Hey readers! I haven't forgotten about the story - just a lot going on. It's finally time to see what happens next in the famous Golbez Cycle; will Tweak be able to help Miskit and his team save their ship before the flames spread too far? Let's see…

Chapter 9

A thump came from the roof of Tweak's vehicle shortly after she helped the small creature (whom she had no choice but to trust was on Miskit's team) that had flown toward the water return to the ship she was next to. The kind of thump that you only heard when someone was landing on the roof of your submarine.

Making sure her face stayed covered by her welding mask, Tweak slipped the rope she'd collected from the spires into her backpack, opened her vehicle's door, and carefully peered outside, trying to see who had just leapt onto her roof. She doubted it was anyone besides the other ship's passengers, but it was best to be ready in case it was the elves. Which it thankfully wasn't.

The small creature she'd helped flew into the vehicle almost instantly, and Tweak jumped, suddenly realizing it was a baby wyvern—definitely the one that hatched before she'd found its nest. Thankfully, like newborn species usually were, this wyvern wasn't angry and fierce like the one that had snatched the two robots; it was instead more happy and a little playful. It even nuzzled her neck for a moment after it entered her vehicle, apparently sensing her good intentions.

Miskit entered the vehicle next, but in a very unexpected way: he was sent floating into it by a bright green beam, similar to the pink one that had come from Emily's amulet when she fought the arachnopod after first entering Alledia. Which had to mean they'd found another stonekeeper that could help them access Cielis.

As soon as the rabbit robot was safely in the vehicle, Tweak's heart fluttered intensely. It was incredibly tempting to run up and hug him now that they were reunited and she knew he was okay, but she knew she couldn't. It wasn't the right time or place to do so, and besides; she was wearing her Mechaniteer disguise. She couldn't jeopardize her secret identity any more than she already had, even if Miskit was among those with her.

A pair of legs appeared just above the doorway from the outside and then swung into the vehicle. A body and head soon followed (very carefully of course), revealing the person to be an elderly human man with a green amulet around his neck. Tweak realized he was the stonekeeper the robots had found, and a feeling of comfort came into her. They were going to accomplish their mission—once they got out of the storm, anyway.

Miskit stepped forward, finally getting a glimpse of the airship pilot that had helped Dagno. It was a female rabbit with ears covered by an orange hood, and an orange and honey-coloured dress that had a bright yellow M printed on it. She also wore honey-coloured boots, a blue tool belt with several tools attached to it, orange mittens, and a yellow welding mask that covered her face. Observing her, he gasped, suddenly remembering he'd seen her before. Twice. The first time was just before he and the Resistance had boarded the Luna Moth; she'd crashed a motorcycle into a pile of barrels near the airship, which had almost distracted him from following his teammates. He remembered seeing her and her motorcycle being thrown back by an explosion once he and everyone else had made it onto the Luna Moth, and concerned for her safety, he'd instinctively told Cogsley about her, for a moment tempted to go back and rescue her. Karen Hayes, Miss Emily's mother, had been tempted to go get her too, since she'd apparently noticed the masked rabbit following them earlier on. But Cogsley, strict and all-business as usual, had pushed both of them to let it go.

Then Miskit had glimpsed her again, after he and Cogsley had been snatched by that mother wyvern. She'd been riding on top of another adult wyvern, until she was flung off and then rescued more-or-less by Cogsley. That was when the stubborn robot had given her the nickname "Miss Motorcycle Demolisher," and berated her until she'd lost her grip and fell into the water. She'd then promised both robots that she'd find a way to rescue them, but they hadn't been convinced she would even be able to save herself. Not because they thought little of her; because she'd been in the middle of nowhere, very far away from civilization. Yet here she was again, with a new vehicle and everything, alive and well. There was no doubt about it now—the masked rabbit had been following them ever since they'd escaped from Enzo and Rico's bar in Nautilus, and she wanted to help them. Yet because she always caught up to them at dangerous moments, she'd never had a chance to explain who she was or her intentions.

Miskit smiled somewhat awkwardly, thankful but hesitant. He wanted to do what was right and officially form an alliance with her, but he didn't always trust newcomers to his mission that easily; which made him feel like a hypocrite in that moment, since only seconds ago he'd tried to ease Cogsley's distrust in their new companion. Yet he couldn't help it. Getting new allies was a good thing, but you never knew when their presence could make something go wrong…

The rabbit robot nearly sighed with relief when Vigo immediately broke the silence by saying, "Greetings, ma'am. Thank you for helping our friend put out some of the fire."

"You're welcome," the masked rabbit replied confidently. "By the way, my name's Mechaniteer."

"Miskit," said Miskit. "We really don't have much time for introductions though. Our ship's still on fire, and we need to put it out. But we also need to make sure we stay on course, so we can reunite with our friends." He then turned to Vigo. "Should we tell her where we're going?"

"I already know," stated Mechaniteer. "I saw a friend on my way here, and she told me she spoke with your crew for a bit. She said you're going to Cielis, the flying city where the Guardian Council lived."

Miskit grew a little more suspicious upon hearing this, but shrugged it off. Putting out the fire had to come first, and they needed Mechaniteer's help to do it. So, fighting back his distrust (and making sure it didn't show on his face like it had with Leon Redbeard so many times) as much as he could, the robot continued, "So…do you think you could help us with all that?"

"Sure thing," Mechaniteer confidently replied. "We just need to find some way to flip the ship upside down. Then we'll have to lower the parts that are on fire into the water, without letting the ship get trapped in the current."

"My stone can assist us with that," decided Vigo. "I just hope my ship's current pilot will be alright with our plan."

"Cogsley doesn't have to be okay with it, he just has to help in any way he can," declared Miskit. He then stepped towards the still-open doorway of Mechaniteer's vehicle and hollered, "COGSLEY, BRACE YOURSELF! VIGO'S GOING TO FLIP THE SHIP UPSIDE DOWN!"

Before Cogsley had a chance to reply, Miskit stepped back and allowed Vigo to take his place at the vehicle's doorway. Focussing with all his might, he unleashed a stream of green energy from his amulet and directed it towards his ship, surrounding it and causing the contraption to slowly but surely tilt downward. As this happened, however, something—or in fact someone—slid out of the helicopter-like ship's cabin and out onto the balcony. A scream was heard, and the robot in question fell off the ship, though he succeeded in grabbing the balcony's railing before he could descend too far.

"Cecil!" Miskit yelled in fright. Luckily, Dagno immediately flew outside and positioned himself underneath Vigo's robot, slowly pushing him upward and allowing him to slip over the railing, back onto the balcony.

Once Cecil was safe and inside the pilot's cabin, Vigo used his amulet's power to tilt his ship even more, until it was completely upside down. He then lowered it into the water; but by this point the flames had engulfed the right wing once again, along with the entire back wing. They wouldn't be able to put all of it out without having to trap the contraption in the water's powerful currents.

Mechaniteer rushed to Vigo's side and instantly seemed to realize that problem. "Miskit," she instructed, "tell that wyvern to gather some more water. And sir," she turned to Vigo, "flip the ship right-side up, then see if you can use your amulet to change those waves' course."

Vigo smiled, catching on to her plan. "So they may put out the fire, but without damaging my ship."

The masked heroine nodded. "You've got it."

"Just one second," said Miskit. He went up to the doorway and hollered, "BRACE YOURSELF, COGSLEY!"

Another stream of green energy flowed from Vigo's amulet, heading toward his ship, and Miskit and Mechaniteer stepped aside to give him some room. Within seconds, their companion managed to flip the ship right-side up again, before stepping back to allow Miskit to signal Dagno and explain the plan to him. The little wyvern seemed to quickly understand what he had to do, and as he flew back towards the water with the rabbit robot supervising, Vigo and Mechaniteer climbed onto the vehicle's roof and examined the waves nearby, trying to figure out which one of them was big enough to successfully help Dagno put out all of the fire.

Lightning struck a pointy rock in the distance, and Tweak nearly jumped as a wave huger than the others flew toward that rock two seconds later. "That's the one," she said.

Vigo, the stonekeeper Miskit had teamed up with, quickly sent an energy stream toward the wave, surrounding it before it could crash into the rock. He then put all his focus into the wave in order to levitate it out of the water, which, despite being an extremely difficult task, he eventually succeeded in doing. Next, with Tweak's support, he slowly transported the now-frozen-in-place wave toward his ship, just as Dagno was returning to its roof. Once the baby wyvern was finished putting out the parts of the fire affecting the right wing, Tweak screamed, "NOW!" Vigo then released the wave, which splashed down on the back wing, finally making the fire completely vanish.

The two of them climbed back inside the vehicle, where a relieved Miskit was waiting for them. "Okay," he said, "now let's get out of the storm. Vigo, you and I are going back onto our ship with Dagno, and then you keep using your stone to guide us in the right direction. Mechaniteer, you stay here and follow us with this ship, and if something happens to ours, come and help us."

"On it, Miskit," Tweak affirmed. "Be careful."

Miskit nodded, and once she steered the vehicle close enough to the ship again, he and Vigo leapt back onto it. Dagno followed them, and Vigo's amulet glowed green soon after; but this time, no beams of energy appeared as well. The ship then continued flying forward, amazingly staying upright and steady despite the noticeable damage done by the fire. Tweak followed them close behind, until suddenly she gasped in fear. The same three funnel clouds she'd seen earlier were approaching her vehicle and Miskit's, ready to close in on them. They weren't close enough to send either contraptions into an uncontrollable spin, but they would be in a few seconds. So, returning to her vehicle's still-open door, she hollered, "FOLLOW ME!"

Miskit barely heard what his team's newest member just said. But before he could ask her to repeat it, he saw her vehicle's door close. And then suddenly, just as two funnel clouds began to surround it, Mechaniteer's vehicle flipped sharply onto its side and flew forward faster than he'd ever seen a ship go; right between and past the two twister-like obstacles.

Cogsley chuckled mischievously from inside the pilot's cabin. "Looking for a little competition en route, eh? Well, pilot-who-just-dropped-in-out-of-the-blue, you've challenged the right robot!"

"She didn't challenge you," Miskit said, "I think she just wants you to repeat what she—WHOA!"

The ship suddenly rotated sharply to the right, nearly sending Miskit, Vigo, and even Cecil sliding off the balcony. Thankfully, all three of them grabbed the ship's railing just in time, and managed to hold on tight enough to stop themselves from either falling or getting sucked up in the funnel clouds.

As they passed that area of the storm and reunited with Mechaniteer's vehicle, Cecil shakily climbed back onboard the ship for the second time, followed by his two companions. "Perhaps I should have received some lessons on how to drive," he muttered.

"Yes, that would have been helpful," admitted Vigo. "But don't worry…perhaps once we arrive in Cielis, we can arrange some piloting lessons for you."

"As long as we're looking for Miss Emily while we're at it," Miskit put in, making his way to the pilot's cabin.

After flipping her vehicle right-side up again, Tweak went back towards the door and opened it. She was relieved to see that Miskit had gotten her message, and that he and everyone else on his ship had successfully made it past the funnel clouds. Smiling, she closed the door and returned to her vehicle's control panel, where she was surprised to see the storm was clearing up. The rain, lightning, rough waves, and high winds were now safely behind her and Miskit's team, and the clouds were parting, revealing the beautiful star-filled sapphire blue sky she'd seen before entering the storm. They were safe.

The helicopter-like boat moved up in front of Tweak's vehicle, and she saw Miskit standing in the middle of the balcony. He was waving her over, gesturing towards Vigo, who was pushing aside some crates and making room just outside the pilot's cabin. Instantly getting the message, she steered her vehicle downward, and landed it on the balcony.

Tweak deactivated her vehicle for the moment and stepped out, where she was greeted by Miskit and Vigo. "Thank you for helping us through the storm," Vigo said gratefully. "You are very resourceful."

"Yeah," said Miskit, smiling for the first time since they'd reunited. "I admit, I was a little apprehensive at first…but the way you led us through all that was so awesome!"

Tweak could feel herself blushing, and mustered all her strength to stop her ears from twisting into that heart-shaped loop like they had back in the Octopod earlier. "Th-thanks…" she whispered. Then, in her head, she scolded herself for letting out that stutter. She might have managed to get them out of the storm, but that didn't mean she could let herself lose her focus again! There was still so much to do, and no time for distractions.

The baby wyvern flew over and nuzzled Tweak again, making her laugh. "That's Dagno," Miskit introduced, "My friend and I, um…accidentally made his egg hatch. He's been with us ever since."

"And my name is Cecil," said the robot that Dagno had saved from falling off the balcony. "I've been helping Vigo for many years, and now I am also helping with the quest to Cielis."

The door to the pilot's cabin opened, and Tweak sighed with relief as she saw the reckless robot with the red eyebrows step onto the balcony. He then stopped in his tracks, immediately recognizing her from the wyvern mishap.

Tweak chuckled suavely. "What do you think of Miss Motorcycle Demolisher now, my friend?"

Miskit laughed. "Cogsley, this is Mechaniteer. It's official, she'll be travelling with us the rest of the way."

"What?!" the reckless robot, Cogsley, exclaimed. "But…but…she crashed a motorcycle! And because of her, you and Mrs. Hayes almost put yourselves in great danger!"

"I've only crashed something once," Tweak told him. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm usually the one who builds and fixes vehicles."

"Impressive," said Vigo.

Cecil peered over the balcony and jumped. "Um, everyone…we seem to be approaching an ancient, levitating landmark."

"We are?" Miskit asked in anticipation. He rushed over to where Cecil was standing and gaped in awe, seeing he was right. In front of them, a few feet away from their ship, he could see a floating island with a tall temple standing on it. Many ancient statues of people were carved around the temple, and just below the statues, in the middle of the structure, was a tall rectangular doorway. Cyan light was seeping out of the doorway, which meant something was inside that temple; something that was probably important.

Miskit heard Mechaniteer, Cogsley, Dagno, and Vigo join him and Cecil by the balcony, and they too stared in fascination and curiosity. Vigo's amulet then glowed, and its owner studied the island. "Cogsley, take the wheel," he said. "I'm going onto the island."

"What?" Cogsley exclaimed. "By yourself?"

"My stone tells me that the island holds a puzzle. Only a stonekeeper can solve it. Once it is solved, we will have access to Cielis."

"I don't know about this," Mechaniteer said in apparent hesitation. "What if the elves see us? I saw a few riding a giant flying animal over the water, and I could tell they were up to something."

Vigo looked around. "The elves aren't anywhere near us, Mechaniteer. But in case they do come, I need all of you to stay on the ship. Be prepared to do all you can to prevent them from stepping onto the island."

"Okay," Miskit said, although he was just as nervous as Mechaniteer. "Be careful, Vigo."

"I will."

Cogsley steered the ship the rest of the way to the island, where he parked it inches above its ground. Cecil then used a rope ladder from one of the ship's crates to help Vigo get onto the island safely, after which the stonekeeper instructed him to pull the ladder back up until he came out of the structure. That way, in case the elves or even some wyverns showed up, it wouldn't get in the ship's remaining passengers' way of taking action.

As Vigo entered the island's structure, Miskit turned to face Mechaniteer. "What were they up to?"

"The elves, you mean?"

"You said you saw a few of them fly by on a giant flying animal before you helped us out of the storm. That you thought they were up to something."

Mechaniteer nodded. "It was after I spoke with my friend. I was flying over the water in my um…my vehicle…and they flew past me. They were carrying someone inside this bag, and whoever it was fidgeting a lot, trying to get out. One of the elves said there were two animals in the bag, but he didn't say exactly what animals they were. He just told one of the other elves to let him watch them, or else they'd escape."

Cogsley shrugged. "If it's not Redbeard or the cat brothers, it won't be a big deal. And it can't be them. The cats are too big to fit inside a bag, and Redbeard wouldn't struggle if it was already too late. He's too good at predicting what'll happen if anyone does anything."

"Cogsley, it has to be a big deal!" Miskit exclaimed. "Why would the Elf King send his men to capture two random animals if he's so focused on searching for Miss Emily, Trellis, and Luger? And the rest of the Resistance?"

"Maybe the animals know something about their whereabouts," suggested Cecil.

"I doubt it," said Miskit. "If someone knew where to find the Resistance, they'd question them for sure. Maybe even hurt them. But capturing them?"

"You're right, chief," agreed Cogsley. "Something tells me they're saving their cells for fugitives. Not random civilians that know stuff about fugitives, but not the fugitives personally."

Miskit glanced at Mechaniteer to see what she thought and was a bit surprised when he saw her grip on the balcony railing tighten. He thought he heard her whisper something under her breath, but all he heard were two words: "wanted poster."

"Wanted poster?" Miskit asked in concern.

Mechaniteer jumped, as though she was startled, for a moment. Then, quickly relaxing, she said, "Well, uh, I…I saw this 'wanted' poster in Nautilus, before your escape from the explosions. Trellis and Luger's pictures were on it, but there was one more person there too. I…I don't know who she is, or why they think she's a fugitive, but…she's a fugitive according to them."

Cogsley nodded. "Now that would explain it. One of those animals must have been her." He chuckled. "Can't wait to see what the elves want her for. If she somehow made it onto their bad side so much that they think she's as valuable as the Resistance, she must have done something huge!"

As Miskit, Cogsley, and Cecil continued discussing the elves' newest prisoners, Tweak could only look on, bracing herself for the next few things that could happen in their mission. These robots (not to mention Dagno) didn't know it, but she knew something about the prisoners that they didn't: one of them wasn't who they thought it was. She'd told them it was herself—the real her that Miskit had met back in Norlen—without being very specific, but that was to cover up her secret identity, which she'd almost let slip in fearful realization seconds ago by mentioning the wanted poster. Of course she knew the robots would eventually see the poster, causing Miskit to realize who the third fugitive on it was, but she hoped they would be too focused on reuniting with Emily's team and stopping the elves to go and "rescue her."

Because if they did go to rescue her, Tweak knew they'd find out she wasn't one of the elves' prisoners after all, which could reveal her true identity. She also had a feeling the prisoners they'd find instead were two of the other Octonauts. They had to have found out she was in Alledia by now, and they'd probably seen the "wanted" poster with her picture on it too—something she imagined would result in them going straight to the elves to investigate why they saw her as a fugitive. Plus, based on what the robots had said about the elves' hostage choices, it was clear why the elves would want to capture them. If the other Octonauts were on the same team as her, and the elves thought she was working for the Resistance (which she was, but they weren't), then it would seem like all the Octonauts were Resistance members; making her friends the perfect bait to lure her into the elves' custody.

Tweak swallowed hard. Kwazii's grandfather had ventured into Alledia once, which increased the odds that one of the captured animals was Kwazii himself. Which probably meant Peso or Captain Barnacles was the other prisoner, since they spent the most time with him. And what about the rest of the crew? What circumstances were they in? She didn't know—but as painful as it was, she couldn't go save her teammates. No one could, until the Elf King was defeated. If anyone tried to save them now, they would just end up captured too.

A hard, sudden jolt awoke Captain Barnacles from his slumber. He quickly sat up and turned towards Kwazii, who was swiftly looking around the inside of the bag they were trapped in and muttering, "Now we've arrived in the elves' kingdom…where the kingdom's king will decide on our sentence…and trick us into admitting even more information…"

Barnacles sighed. "You didn't sleep at all, did you?"

"Would you be able to get any sleep if you had to spend the next few hours of your captivity inside a bag, which was being transported on a GIANT CREATURE THOUSANDS OF FEET ABOVE WATERS POSSIBLY INFESTED WITH MORE HORRIBLE BEASTS?! And how do you think I knew that's a location we passed? BECAUSE UNLIKE YOU, I ACTUALLY TRIED TO GET OUT OF THE BAG!"

"Please, Kwazii," the captain insisted. "I know we're in a bad situation, but you have to keep it together."

Kwazii glared at him, and as he did, Barnacles could see a wild look in his lieutenant's eyes (or at least the one that wasn't covered by his eye patch), which had dark circles underneath them. Yes—clearly he hadn't slept since before their first encounter with these elves. "Of course," the pirate cat retorted, "that's something you'd say, since you're always good at staying calm! Which allowed you to somehow use the amount of time the elves took to bring us to who knows where, to sleep! INSTEAD OF HELPING ME BREAK US OUT!"

"Kwazii, if you don't calm down, we might accidentally make things even worse. Not just for us, but also for our friends."

As Kwazii reluctantly fell silent, Barnacles furtively glanced at his octo-compass. He hadn't been able to contact the remaining Octonauts like he'd promised (since he didn't want to endanger them by doing so in front of the elves), and it had been well over 24 hours since he and Kwazii had last seen them. He hoped it wouldn't be too much longer before he'd have a moment to speak with their teammates virtually; if such an opportunity would even be possible.

Barnacles felt the bag he and his friend were in jump a little, which could only mean one thing: the elves had dismounted their gigantic dragon-like creature and were transporting them to wherever the Elf King was. The polar bear braced himself, and he stole one last glance at Kwazii. This was it; any second now, the leader of all the Alledian villains would decide what to do with them for lying to the elves twice.

The two Octonauts heard a big door open, and their bag was carried inside what they could only assume was a huge castle. A few minutes later, the elves carrying them set the bag down on a floor, and they finally allowed them to exit the bag. Once they did, the duo looked around in awe as they became aware of where they were: in a huge throne room that, despite its humongous luxury, seemed slightly dark and dull. Sitting on the throne in the middle of the room was a tall creature with a black cloak, pointy ears just like the elf soldiers' ears, and a round white mask covering his face.

The elves bowed before the masked figure sitting on the throne, who immediately clenched his fists and demanded, "Where have you clueless soldiers been?"

"In the city of Nautilus," said the elf with the wanted poster. "Remember when we told you about that rabbit who gained suspiciously early access to its library? Well, these two animals are allied with her, and they have lied to us during interrogation twice. We thought that if we brought them here, we could use them to lure her in. Then the rest of the Resistance would go after her, only to fall into our trap as well!"

"Tweak's never gonna fall for that trick," Kwazii angrily declared. "And neither will Miskit, or that 'Resistance' you think she's working with!"

"Kwazii, please," whispered Barnacles.

The Elf King angrily shook his head. "Yes, yes. But you see, soldiers, while you were busy searching for that fugitive, my sons formed an alliance with the stonekeeper I wanted brought here as well. And because of it, and the fact that you did not pursue them instead of the rabbit, my plan to have my memory-eraser capture the stonekeeper failed!"

"But that rabbit was collecting valuable information for the Resistance!" insisted one of the soldier elves. "We had to intercept her before she delivered it to them!"

"So why didn't you bring her here the first time you found her?" the king scoffed.

"Because we didn't think you would consider her worth our time if we brought her to you without labeling her as a fugitive first," explained another soldier. "And she appeared so vulnerable and fearful of us, we didn't think she'd be hard to recapture. But after we let her go, she disappeared without a trace. Even after we intercepted these two friends of hers!"

Rising to his feet in rage, the Elf King bellowed, "You soldiers are the most naive soldiers I have ever had the displeasure of recruiting! There is no information in the Nautilus library that the Resistance does not already know, which means that rabbit you tried to seek isn't among our top priorities! My sons and the stonekeeper are the ones you should have focused on bringing in, and instead I find that you've let them escape nonetheless!"

The soldier with the wanted poster sank to his knees in desperation. "Please, your highness, do not punish us! We at least succeeded in kidnapping two allies of the Resistance's ally…which means that if we keep them here, the Resistance's ally will come and save them, only to also end up captured. And that will lead the rest of the Resistance to eventually be captured as well, in an attempt to save her! Then, once that happens, your sons and the stonekeeper will come along as well. Don't you see? These two prisoners are the key to a chain reaction that will satisfy your hunger for success!"

The Elf King considered this for a moment, then turned his attention back to his soldiers. "Alright…I accept your idea. Lock these two prisoners away, and make sure the Resistance knows they were captured. But just in case your plan fails, I already have another one in action now, regarding the flying city of Cielis. And it is too late to cancel it."

"But you won't need that plan," stated a soldier. "You already have ours."

"That is true…but if no one from the Resistance arrives here within 24 hours to rescue these two prisoners, you will not like the consequences. As for the two current prisoners, I will figure out what to do with them myself."

The soldiers gulped, but nodded and escorted Kwazii and Barnacles down a hallway and a few flights of stairs. They then reached the bottom level of the castle, where the soldiers opened a door and thrust their captives into the prison residing on the other side of it.

As he heard the door slam and lock behind them, Barnacles examined the cell closely. There were sadly no windows anywhere, or any passages, vents, or pipes, so they wouldn't be able to escape. In fact, the only thing in the cell aside from himself and his companion was a bed. It looked a little musty, but nevertheless, the captain was glad it was here.

Kwazii fell to his knees and groaned. "Tweak, why did you have to leave without us?!"

"It's not her fault, Kwazii," said Barnacles.

"It is, captain! She should have just told us she was gonna help Miskit accomplish his mission!"

Barnacles knelt down beside him and gently held his paw, causing him to fall silent. "You're right," the bear agreed, "she should have told us first. But honestly…if I'd left in her place…I probably would have kept it a secret too."

"You…would have?" Kwazii asked. His tone was softer now, which secretly made the captain feel relieved.

"I'll admit, I don't know much about Miskit's mission. But it's clearly a very dangerous one, and he knows it. That's why he didn't want us to go with him…and I'm sure it's also why Tweak went to Alledia by herself. They just wanted us to be safe, so they didn't tell us much, or anything, about what they were doing."

"But," Kwazii murmured, "why would she leave her tools behind?"

Barnacles thought for a bit. "She must have known we would figure out where she was and decided to throw us off the trail. But I promise…we will find a way out of here. And once we do, we'll reunite with the rest of the crew, and track her down before the elves do." Kwazii smiled, and the captain quickly added, "But I think you should get some sleep first."

Kwazii nodded and reluctantly climbed into the bed. Barnacles waited until he was asleep, then picked up his octo-compass and finally contacted the Gup X. Almost instantly, Dashi appeared on the device's screen.

"Captain," she worriedly asked, "where are you?"

"In the elves' castle," replied Barnacles. He then explained everything that happened after he and Kwazii had been abducted, including the Elf King's current plans and what the elves and Rasia Redlogger had said about Tweak's whereabouts. "We're still not sure where she is, but we know a few things: the elves haven't found her, and she's searching for Miskit and a stonekeeper. Stonekeepers are what the amulet-wielders are called, apparently."

"I see," Dashi said, obviously displeased that her best friend hadn't been with Miskit after all. "Well, after you and Kwazii left, we moved on to other cities to search for Tweak. We stopped in Nautilus to get some more food, and while we were there, we learned she collected a few things at the city's mall."

Peso stepped into view, nodding. "So we searched every room in the mall for her, and we didn't find her…but we did find most of her uniform hidden in a closet."

Barnacles was stunned. "You…you did?"

"One of the mall's employees said she traded random scraps for some tools and new clothing," stated Dashi. "Considering everything, I think she's trying to camouflage herself so neither us nor the elves will be able to find her."

Despite the bad side of the news, Barnacles managed a small smile. Tweak had always been an expert at planning ahead, which gave her and anyone else her ideas benefited a powerful advantage. In fact, it was because of her ability to plan ahead that the Gup X was as tough and resourceful as it was.

"Keep searching," instructed Barnacles. "We can't let the elves get to her first. If they do, it'll lead Miskit and all of his friends into a trap."

"But captain, what about you and Kwazii?" Peso asked.

"We'll think of something. For now, just continue looking for Tweak without us. I'll contact you again when the time is right."

"Are you sure?" inquired Shellington, peering over Dashi's shoulder so he could see the screen. "We can find out where the Elf King's castle is and then come rescue you."

"No, don't come rescue us," Barnacles insisted. "I don't want any of you to risk getting captured yourselves."

"But—"

"Trust me. Tweak needs you more than we do."

With obvious reluctance, the Octonauts in the Gup X nodded. "Alright," said Peso, "we'll see you later. Be careful."

"We will," reassured Barnacles, and within seconds, the call was over.

Silence filled the cell, only interrupted occasionally by Kwazii's snoring. The captain, now left alone with his thoughts, put away his octo-compass, and listened intently, hoping no one outside the cell had heard his conversation. When he didn't hear anything that would indicate anyone had, he sighed. Although he wouldn't admit it to Kwazii or anyone else in the crew, Barnacles was just as worried as they were about the whole situation. There was no guarantee that the Gup X's remaining passengers would be able to find Tweak in time, or that she wouldn't fall into the Elf King's trap when his soldiers informed her of their two prisoners. And he wished he could think of a way to get himself and Kwazii out of their current situation—but with the cell's only exit being a locked door, escape seemed impossible.

Barnacles gazed wistfully at Kwazii, for once secretly hoping that he'd be the one to think of a plan once he woke up. Being the leader of the Octonauts, and being aware of how much his friends looked up to him, the polar bear never liked feeling so helpless; especially when so many mammals including his friends were in danger. But even he had moments of vulnerability; and during this one, he could only hope nobody else was feeling as helpless as he was—particularly Tweak.

Oh dear…what's going to happen next? Can Tweak/Mechaniteer avoid being lured into the elves' kingdom by her teammates' capture? And what will become of the other Octonauts and the Resistance? Be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter, which will hopefully be written and uploaded quicker than this one. ;)

See you all soon!