The next day, about an hour until noon, the docks were quite busy in excitement for the trade-off. Lance was aboard Zethrid's ship where he had been kept below decks since her crew kidnapped him, except this time he was tied to the mast. Rope tied his wrists behind his back, his ankles to the mast, and his upper arms to the mast. Ezor stepped up beside him, her dagger in her hands as she gave Lance a smirk.
"How's it feel to be a king now, eh?" Ezor said before Zethrid walked up and pushed her away with a roll of her eyes.
"Give it a rest Ezor," Zethrid said with a soft glare, Ezor huffed and sat down on the edge of the ship, barking orders at the crew. "We don't wanna damage the goods."
"You said that I could hook him," Ezor said with a glare towards Zethrid.
"I said, at noon you could," Zethrid barked which shut Ezor up.
"You better hope your little boyfriend comes through with his end of the bargain," Zethrid said with a smirk towards Lance.
"Well, he's not my boyfriend anymore," Lance said with a soft sigh.
"Leave us alone for a few minutes Ezor," Zethrid said, Ezor huffed and walked away, barking more orders at the crew as she headed to the bow.
"I get that you don't deserve this," Lance said once Ezor was out of earshot. Zethrid chuckled and shook her head.
"Yeah," she said, a frown replacing her smile. "This island is a prison, thanks to your father," she said with a shake of her head. "And don't pretend to look out for me, because no one's looking out for me," Zethrid said as she slowly shook her head. "It's just me."
"So this isn't your Mom's plan?" Lance asked which Zethrid chuckled softly and shook her head. "Isn't that her necklace?" Lance asked as he motioned to the dark purple seashell necklace around Zethrid's neck.
"My mom doesn't care about me either," Zethrid said made a frown grow on Lance's face.
"Well, not unless she needs someone for the night shift."
"Ouch," Lance said with made Zethrid send a glare towards him.
"I don't need your pity," Zethrid said which Lance nodded in agreement.
"No you most certainly don't," Lance said as he glanced around at the people working on the docks and on the ship. "You're very resourceful."
"Alright," Zethrid said with a chuckle. "So let's trash talk Keith."
"I'd rather talk about you."
"Funny and a gentlemen I see," Zethid said as she rolled her eyes. "I really hope I don't have to feed you to the fishes."
"Or you don't, set me free and we'll go back together," Lance said which made Zethrid freeze mid-step. She turned and faced Lance with a surprised look on her face.
"Oh so now I get an invite," she said as she softly glared at the king. "Gee, I wonder why."
"Well, even if I don't ask you'll tell me, so lay it on me," Lance said which made Zethrid sigh.
"When you brought Keith, Rolo, Axca, and Matt to Altea. That's as mad as I've ever been," Zethrid said as she pulled off her pirate hat and tossed it on the desk behind her. "And trust me, I've been plenty mad."
"I've never thought of it like that before," Lance said as he took in what Zethrid told him. "That the people who didn't get picked were hurt like you were."
"Yeah well, they were," Zethrid said as she turned back to Lance with a heated glare.
"My plan was to start with four kids and bring people over, I guess I was busy being king, no that's sound lame," Lance said with a shake of his head.
"Yeah it does," Zethrid said as her glare softened.
"I'm so sorry," Lance said which made Zethrid look at him in surprise. "You're a leader Zethrid, so am I, come to Altea and be part of the solution."
"Me? Part of your solution?" Zethrid asked to which Lance nodded. Zethrid smiled and shook her head. "No thanks Your Highness, I don't need you," Zethrid said as she bent over and picked her pirate hat back up. "I'm gonna get there on my own."
"I'll get the swords," Rolo said as he exited the driver's seat.
"Gotcha," Pidge said as she climbed out of the passenger's seat.
"Pidge?" Keith asked as he and Axca walked up to the limo. "What are you doing here?"
"I made them bring me," Pidge said with a smile as Matt joined them.
"I'm just glad you're here, we could use the help."
"Welcome to the Isle I guess," Axca said with a smile. Pidge nodded.
"Bae-Bae?" Rolo asked as he opened the trunk to get the swords, only to find Bae-Bae hiding underneath a blanket. Matt ran over and his eyes widened upon seeing the dog.
"I told you to stay back at school," Matt said as he uncovered Bae-Bae from the blanket.
"Yeah, I flunked obedience class," Bae-Bae said which made Matt and Rolo sigh.
"Great, and he can still talk," Rolo said with a roll of his eyes.
"You're lucky I love you," Matt said as he picked Bae-Bae up.
"Let me see the wand," Keith said as the trio joined them. Matt handed over the wand and Keith examined it. "Perfect replica, hopefully, Zethrid will take it."
"It's noon," Rolo said as he checked the watch on his wrist.
"Alright, are we ready?" Keith asked.
"Yeah," Axca said as she picked up the backpack filled with smoke bombs.
"Let's do this," Keith said and he led the group through the tunnel towards the docks.
"Stay," Matt said as he turned to Bae-Bae who groaned and sat down. "I mean it this time."
As soon as they entered the docks, Janka noticed them from where he was standing in the crows' nest.
"Hey guys, they're here!" Zethrid turned and a smile formed on her face, she motioned to Ezor to get Lance into place and her crew got into position.
"Huh, let's get this party started
I swear I'm cold-hearted
There's no negotiation
I'm not here for debatin'
You need some motivation?
Just look at Lance's face
Then ask yourself how long you think I'll remain patient
I'll throw him overboard and let him swim with killer sharks
You either hand over the wand or he'll be ripped apart"
Keith looked over at Lance who was standing on the plank with Ezor behind him, her dagger in her hands. He turned back to Zethrid, a smirk on his face.
"Now, let's all just be smart
Although for you that must be hard
You'll get your wand
No one has to come to any harm
Don't try to intimidate
Your bark is much worse than your bite
Who's the baddest of them all?
I guess we're finding out tonight"
Zethrid's crew backed her up as they sang, smiles on their faces, as if they knew Keith would crumble and give in.
"Let's go, bring it on
Better give us what we want
It's the wand for the crown
If you don't, it's going down"
Keith rolled his eyes and he and the others sang back as if saying, "we won't back down".
"Let's go, make your move
Peace or war, it's up to you
Give him up and do it now
If you don't, it's going down"
Zethrid smirked and pulled her sword out, her crew following after.
"We want the wand
Or else the king is gone
Your time is running out
You should really watch your mouth"
Keith sang back as he kept his eyes on Lance, Ezor shaking her dagger in front of the king, taunting Keith.
"Let's go, pound for pound
We're prepared to stand our ground
Put your swords up, put 'em up
It's going down
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, make the trade
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, or walk the plank
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, make the trade
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, or walk the plank"
Keith watched as Ezor spun Lance around. Each time she did, he was more worried he would fall off, seeing as his arms and ankles were tied together.
"Ok, look, this is not a conversation
It's a do-or-die situation
If you don't give me back the king
I'll have no hesitation
I'll serve you right here
And I don't need a reservation
That way your whole pirate crew can have a demonstration
Release him now, and we can go our separate ways
Unless you wanna deal with me and the VK's"
Keith walked up to the platform where Zethrid was standing and stared at her in the eyes, his eyes glowing yellow for a split second before flashing back to violet.
"So that's your big speech, huh?
An empty ultimatum?"
Zethrid turned to Ezor with a smile and the other girl picked up, a smile on her face.
"All it takes is one swing and I'll humiliate him
Matter of fact, make one wrong move and I'll debilitate him
And if he even starts to slip, I'll eliminate him
All it takes is one wrong look and I'll-"
"Ezor! We get it. Chill," Zethrid said as she pushed the girl awake. Ezor sent a wink towards Keith as she headed back to Lance. Knowing how much this pained Keith.
"Let's go, bring it on
Better give us what we want
It's the wand for the crown
If you don't, it's going down"
The tension was building, the other pirates on the dock were getting rowdy which added to the tension between the two groups.
"Let's go, make your move
Peace or war, it's up to you
Give him up and do it now
If you don't, it's going down
We want the wand
Or else the king is gone
Your time is running out
You should really watch your mouth
Let's go, pound for pound
We're prepared to stand our ground
Put your swords up, put 'em up
It's going down"
Keith turned to Matt and motioned for the wand. Matt nodded and handed the wand over. Keith started walking towards Zethrid who met him halfway for the trade. However, Lance called out and stopped them.
"Hey, we don't have to choose
We don't have to light the fuse
Keith, whatever you do, it's gonna be a lose-lose
There's gotta be a better way"
Lance could see Keith was fighting in himself to hand over the wand or listen to Lance. Lance turned to Zethrid who was watching him with question.
"Zethrid, I promise I'll give you your chance
You'll have your say"
Zethrid rolled her eyes and pulled her sword out, pointing it to the king before pointing it to the sky.
"Silly king! You? Give me?
You're gonna give me a chance?
Well, not a chance"
Zethrid's crew laughed as she rejected Lance's proposal. She turned to Keith and motioned to the wand in his hand.
"Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, make the trade
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, or walk the plank
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, make the trade
Yo-ho, ho-oh, oh-oh, or walk the plank"
Keith sighed and held the wand out for Zethrid to take. However, before he did, Zethrid stopped him.
"Hold up," she said, stopping Keith. "It's too easy."
"I knew there was a catch with you," Keith said with a glare.
"Why don't you give it a test drive?" Zethrid asked, her crew agreeing with her. "We wanna see it work first."
"We're doomed," Matt said to Axca who noticed Bae-Bae walk up above them. She poked Matt and motioned to the dog, Matt nodded and waited to somehow tell Keith.
"And nothing too big, or else Lance here is fish bait," Zethrid said. Keith turned to his friends, desperately looking for a "spell" to do so to show that the wand was real. Matt motioned towards Bae-Bae and Keith followed him, a smile forming.
"Although it seems absurd, turn your bark into a word," Keith said with a wave of the wand. However, Bae-Bae didn't talk and Zethrid was growing impatient. Keith turned back to Bae-Bae and glared at him. "Talk. Dog."
"Does this vest make me look fat?" Bae-Bae asked. The crew laughing and cheering for the wand worked.
"Give me the wand!" Zethrid demanded holding her hand out.
"Give me Lance!" Keith snapped back, his eyes flashing yellow. He didn't miss the flinch Zethrid gave.
"Ezor, bring him over," Zethrid said. Ezor nodded and dragged Lance over, cutting his ankles free because she was tired of how slow he was moving, leaving his wrists tied up though. Ezor pushed him towards Zethrid and he landed on his knees. Keith gave Zethrid a knowing look and Zethrid turned to Ezor. "Cut him loose."
"Fine," Ezor said as she cut the ropes around Lance's wrists. Lance quickly grabbed onto Keith's hand but Zethrid shoved a hand down on his shoulder, keeping him down. Keith rolled his eyes and placed the wand in her hand, only then did she let go and Keith pulled Lance towards the group.
"Lance go," Keith said as he pushed the boy towards the others. "Go!"
"BY THE POWER OF THE SEA, TEAR IT DOWN AND SET US FREE!" Zethrid called out, holding the wand to the sky. Her crew cheered as they waited for the barrier to come down. However, it didn't. It was then that Zethrid noticed the lack of magical essence that would normally be radiating off of it.
"What's wrong now?" Ezor asked, they had all been expecting the barrier to come down and when it didn't, everyone turned towards their leader.
"It's a fake," Zethrid growled and quickly snapped it in two over her knee. She looked towards Keith and the other teens where he was still trying to push Lance back to the exit. "You do not get to win every time!" Zethrid yelled with a glare, pulling her sword out.
"Guys!" Rolo shouted, tipping over the barrel that he and Pidge hid them in when they first entered the dock. Matt quickly grabbed a smoke bomb from Axca's bag and aimed one at the pirates on the ship.
"Get 'em!" Zethrid yelled, the other pirates pulling their swords out. Matt quickly fired a smoke bomb in front of the pirates on the deck and then another at the pirates who were hanging onto the mast.
Rolo handed swords to Matt and Axca and grabbed another to Pidge as he ran to her side. Ezor swiped one to Lance who handed it to Keith and then grabbed the other sword Axca tossed at him.
The crowd quickly ran for cover as the fight began. Pirates swung down from the masts and the sound of swords clashing filled the air. Keith was fighting Zethrid, Rolo was fighting Ezor. He ended up winning by tossing her favourite dagger into the water and she ended up jumping in after it. Matt and Ezor made their way to help Lance while Rolo went to back Pidge up in her fight.
"You never know when to quit do you?" Keith asked as he stomped on Zethrid sword blade when she tried to slash at his leg. He noticed her hand reaching for the handle and snapped at her hand, her fingers barely missing the blade as she pulled back.
Keith kicked her away and turned to head to the others.
"Rolo, Pidge!" he yelled as he pushed one of the pirates away. "Go start the limo!"
"We're on it!" Pidge yelled as she and Rolo quickly ended their fight and headed back to the limo, dropping their swords off in the trunk.
Zethrid went to follow but heard Ezor call out behind her. The girl was climbing out of the water and Zethrid went to help her first mate out of the water and back onto the desk, her clothes soaking wet and her makeup smeared.
"Lance go!" Keith yelled as he pushed Lance behind him and blocked a sword that was aiming for them.
"Keith's mine," Zethrid growled as she grabbed her sword and headed up to the fight, Ezor following sword in hand.
The crowd watched from the ship as a smaller but more tense fight began. Keith against Zethrid, Lance against Ezor, and Matt and Axca covering their backs.
"Let's go, bring it on
Bring it on, it's going down
Time is running out
Bring it on, it's going down"
Axca grabbed the last smoke bomb out of her bag and tossed it to the ground, a cloud of dark purple smoke blocking the pirates' view.
"Bring it on, it's going down
Time is running out
Bring it on, it's going down
Let's go, pound for pound
We're prepared to stand our ground
Put your swords up, put 'em up
It's going down"
"Time to go, let's go!" Axca yelled as she grabbed Lance's wrist and Keith pushed him to the exit, Axca pulling.
"Yo-ho, ho-oh, woah-oh, oh-oh
Yo-ho, ho-oh, woah-oh, oh-oh
Yo-ho, ho-oh, woah-oh, oh-oh
Yo-ho, ho-oh, woah-oh, oh-oh"
Lance finally ran after Axca and Keith turned back just in time to see Zethrid and the pirates appear from the fading smoke. He gave Zethrid a smirk and kicked the wooden bridge that connected the exit and the dock together, the bridge falling into the ocean.
"Zethrid, Zethrid, Zethrid, Zethrid"
Zethrid shook her head with a heated glare and an angry snarl, anger filling her as she realized she lost the battle.
"What's my name?
What's my name?
What's my name?
Say it now!"
"You okay?" Matt asked Pidge as he was the first of the four to exit, the rest of the swords in their bag in hand.
"Yeah I'm good," Pidge said with a smile on her face. "Better than good."
"Great job Pidge!" Matt called out as he ran over to the limo and tossed the swords in, grabbing Bae-Bae right after and putting him in the back seat.
Axca was the next to exit and she and Pidge ran back to the limo, Axca tossing her sword in the trunk. Axca climbed into the back seat with Matt and Bae-Bae, Pidge stayed by the trunk waiting for Lance and Keith.
Lance exited next and turned back, noticing Keith was still standing by the other end.
"Keith!" Lance called out. Keith gave Zethrid a final smirk and ran back to the limo. The pair ran over to the limo and tossed their swords in. Pidge shut the trunk and the trio climbed into the limo. Keith and Lance in the back and Pidge in the front with Rolo.
As soon as Pidge got into the passenger's seat, Rolo drove off. The air was tense in the backseat with Keith and Lance sitting beside each other. Rolo and Pidge silently were grateful they were in the front and not in the back.
"I'm really sorry things didn't go the way you hoped they would," Lance said finally breaking the quiet.
"I mean, as long as you're safe," Keith said as he let out a sigh of relief. "That's alright."
"At least I got to see the Isle," Lance said as he unzipped his jacket and pulled off his fingerless gloves. "They're my people to, Zethrid helped me see that."
"Lance she captured you," Keith said to which Lance shook his head.
"She's an angry girl, with a bad plan," Lance said as he turned back to Keith. "That's not so different when you came to Altea Keith," he said. Keith's eyes widened and Lance immediately regretted his words. He couldn't help it, something came over him. The rest of the ride was quiet and very much awkward.
When they returned to Altea Prep, it was day and everyone was finalizing preparation for the celebration later that night.
"I'll get these back to the gym," Pidge said grabbing the bag from Rolo.
"Thanks," Rolo said with a smile. "Hey, why don't you stop by practice later?" Rolo asked.
"Why? You into breaking some rules," Pidge asked with a smirk.
"No, just an idea," Rolo said.
"Alright then, I'll be there," Pidge said as she headed to the gym, swords in hand.
"Lance there you are," Romelle said as she ran up to the group. "Cotillion's tonight," she said unlocking her IPad. "Look, this is the stained glass for Keith, he's gonna love it," she said quietly as Keith was standing near Lance.
"Do you wanna cancel," Lance asked as he turned to Keith who looked at him in surprise, Romelle mirroring his expression.
"I can come back later, but soon," Romelle said as she slowly backed away. Lance stopped her with a shake of his head.
"Do whatever you need to do," Lance whispered to Keith before heading off with Romelle.
"We need to talk," Axca said as she grabbed Keith's arm, the pair walking off leaving Matt and Rolo behind.
"Yeah," Keith said with a nod, tears pooling in his eyes.
"No," Matt said which stopped the pair in their steps. "You two are always going off in a huddle, whispering your gossipy stuff or whatever, and Rolo and I are tired of it."
"I-I'm not," Rolo said with a shake of his head, holding his hands in a surrendering position.
"We're your family to," Matt said which made Keith and Axca feel bad that they had left the other two out for so long. "We've been through a lot, together, I'm not stopping that now."
"You have a point there," Axca said with a small smile.
"Everyone sit," Matt said as he sat down on the grass, Bae-Bae jumping out his arms and laying on the grass beside him. The trio following suit. "So, how do we start this whole gossipy talk thing? I've never done it."
"Umm, well," Keith said pushing his bangs out of his eyes. "I'm a mess, I'm such a mess," Keith as his tears started pooling in his eyes again. "I mean, six months ago I was stealing candy from babies and now everybody wants me to be this Lord of the Court and I have no idea how to keep up the act."
"Then don't," Matt said with a shrug of his shoulders.
"See? This was dumb," Rolo said with a smile on his face as he started to stand back up.
"Maybe it wasn't," Axca said stopping him, Rolo sat back down and everyone turned to her. "We're always gonna be the kids from the Isle, I tried to forget I really tried," Axca said with a smile. "But, those are our roots, and we all did what we had to do to survive," Axca said as she placed a comforting hand on Keith's shoulder. "But it made us who we are, and we're never gonna be like anyone else here and that's okay."
"And we can't fake it," Matt said with a shake of his head. "No matter how hard we try."
"Yeah, you got that right," Rolo said with a nod.
"Keith, if he doesn't see the real you, then he's not the one," Matt said as Bae-Bae crawled into his lap.
"I'm gonna make some changes to your suit," Axca said turning to Keith. "And if you're up for it, but only if you're up for it, it'll be waiting for you okay?" The trio stood up and started walking off, knowing Keith needed his space to think. However, Rolo stayed behind and knelt down beside Keith once more.
"Come to Cotillion tonight alright?" Rolo asked as Keith glanced up at him. "If Lance isn't smart enough to love you for who you are and you can't stand another day, then I'll drive you back to the Isle myself," Keith nodded and Rolo stood back up and walked off to get changed for practice.
"If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling
Is this just a dream?
Ah oh, yeah
If only I could read the signs in front of me
I could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah oh, if only
If only"
Author's Note:
Hey Y'all. Been a while, I know. Apologizes for the late update, I was having trouble writing the sword fighting scene since it's a lot going on in that scene. Anyways, I managed to do it where I felt happy with it and I was able to finish the chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it!