Mal Voyage

Summary: Chrysta informs Sofia of a strange recurring incident in a location known as the Bixtou Realm, where hundreds of couples from many different realms have gone missing while on a supposed couples' getaway retreat. Desperate to know more and recover the missing participants, she sends Sofia on an undercover mission, but there's a catch: she has to go with Cedric, and they must pose as a newlywed couple to avoid suspicion.

Disclaimer: I only own the Bixtou Realm and any OCs mentioned on the ship. Though they are not in the story and are only mentioned, Nana and Tanya both belong to MarionetteJ2X. Everything else belongs to Craig Gerber.

A/N: Oh, hi, guys! :D Sorry I've been gone; our power went out a few nights ago due to Hurricane Laura, and it's still out. In fact, I'm at my school (where I teach) right now writing this. Glad y'all liked the last chapter. While there was definitely more sweetness and flirting in the previous chapter, this one deals more with the danger of the strange and upcoming realm. We're also going to learn more about these captured souls. As far as The Five and Captain Zhigo go… We'll see what sort of fate they'll be settled with. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 6: The Kryfito Realm

All through the night, Sofia had terrible dreams. Dreams of chaos, of war, of destruction… Dreams of being separated from her family and friends… Dreams of death… Whose, she wasn't sure, but given how she sat up in a state of panic, trying to catch her breath and calm down, she was pretty sure it had been hers.

She sat on her side of the bed, shaking, in a cold sweat, with tears falling down her face. She jumped when she felt a hand on her arm, the familiar touch a comfort as the warmth from his fingers seeped through her long sleeve. She turned and sighed in relief, noticing the look of concern on her partner's face. "Cedric…"

"You were crying earlier," he informed her. "I tried several times to wake you up, and nothing seemed to work." He leaned back against his pillows and opened his arms to her, smiling as she moved over toward him and snuggled into his embrace. "Nightmares, I take it?"

"Yeah…" She frowned in concern, her fist curling into his night shirt. "I don't want to talk about it though… It's too…fresh, I guess."

"Understood. I'll listen if you change your mind though." He smiled as she nodded. "Other than that, are you feeling any better from last night? I know those dizzy spells weren't going easy on you."

Sofia sighed, nodding. "Yeah… I think they've gone away for now. I'd say I hope they don't come back, but with my luck, I feel like that's almost wishful thinking."

Cedric gently rubbed her back to comfort her as best as he could. "I know it probably feels that way, but don't give up hope just yet. Whatever these dizzy spells are, they surely won't last forever. If nothing else, I'll attempt a potion that can settle those effects. We'll handle it one way or another." He smiled gently at her as she looked up at him. "Hungry?"

She laughed softly, nodding. "Yeah."

"Considering what we overheard yesterday, perhaps we should go ahead and eat. I'd rather not have us weakened from lack of sustenance." He slipped away from her, standing and stretching. "Oh, why must we always rid the realm of bad guys?"

Sofia snickered at his melodramatic complaint. "Because we're Cedric and Sofia, and that's what we do."

He smirked playfully at her, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet, his hands then lifting to her face to dry any remaining tears from her eyes and cheeks—an action which made her smile shyly. "Indeed."

An hour later, Captain Zhigo had The Five gathered with him at the front of the galleon, where they could easily see what lay before them: the threshold to the Kryfito Realm. It was barely a ripple in the water, but closer inspection proved that the separation of the realms was far more distinguished than one might believe.

"Not much longer now," Captain Zhigo began, smirking as the others watched him silently, "and we'll have a new collection of souls for him."

"You sure you don't want us to eliminate those other two first?" Robert wondered, folding his arms. "They might be more problematic than they're worth."

"Have we not discussed this?" The captain glowered at the other five. "I don't care who they are. Powers or no powers, they are aboard this galleon, and they will become part of the soul collection. Don't ask me again."

Wally grinned. "Heck, just gettin' some action again is worth it. It's been too long since the last one."

Cedric and Sofia were walking along the deck when they spotted the six troublemakers, and they of course couldn't help but overhear their conversation.

"Impatience doesn't suit you," Tamoa advised. "It is best to act with efficiency and careful precision."

"And afterwards, seal 'em up!" Hopscotch laughed with a devious grin. He heard a sigh nearby and turned to face Butterford, who still appeared uncertain despite their conversation last night. He frowned, snapping his fingers once to get his friend's attention, then shook his head sharply, as if silently urging him to get it together.

"Heh, the only good thing about the foolish passengers on this ship is their impending doom. How considerate of them to sacrifice themselves for the sake of our cause…" The captain smirked.

Sofia stepped up, withdrawing her wand, as Cedric moved next to her. "That's what you think."

"Oh, it's them!" Robert laughed. "Look at that, fellas. This chick thinks she's gonna stop us with a stupid magic stick!" He grinned toward Cedric. "And I bet she's got quite the…magic touch."

Cedric snarled and withdrew his own wand, yelping as Tamoa held up his hand and blasted the wand across the galleon, causing it to roll under one of the lounge chairs. He hissed in pain as he felt some of the other man's dark magic starting to drain his energy, before feeling himself lifted and lowered next to Captain Zhigo, who unsheathed a dagger from the hilt at his belt, the blade just millimeters away from his throat. Cedric held his breath, not wanting to move, for fear of the dagger cutting him.

"Put away the wand, girl," the captain warned, "or your magic man will be sliced to ribbons."

All the other crewmen seemed to be waiting with anticipatory stares, but Butterford watched uncertainly, a strange feeling overtaking him. A feeling that…this wasn't…right…

"Fine," Sofia agreed, reluctantly, not wanting her partner hurt. She moved to sheath the wand, but Tamoa stepped toward her and yanked it from her hand, tossing it into the water. She wanted to scream. How many wands had she already been through? And that was a special one: remade by Cedric himself, after the original one's demise. She gasped as Tamoa grabbed her arms, holding her in place; he was far stronger than he appeared.

"Tie them up," Captain Zhigo ordered as he tossed Cedric to Hopscotch, who roughly captured the sorcerer and began dragging him toward the mast, followed by Tamoa with Sofia in his hold. "They don't belong here… But we'll gladly welcome their sacrifice." He smirked, looking back toward the water. "As it is, the Kryfito Realm is already awakening…

Cedric grunted as Hopscotch tossed him to the deck before grabbing two heavy ropes. He glanced over as Tamoa shoved Sofia down next to him, the two crewmen working together to tightly tie them to the mast before tying their legs and wrists together. When they'd finished and left, he instantly began struggling, as did she. "We've got to get loose," he grumbled, growing impatient.

Sofia glanced up and noticed that the scenery before them was changing. It appeared that the water was beginning to bubble, and a thin veil of the atmosphere was opening. "Cedric…"

The Kryfito Realm was directly before them. The most horrific thing, however, was the fact that it was practically coated in hovering human souls: from the youngest baby to the elderly. Even the souls of several pregnant women were among them.

The passengers on the galleon grew alarmed as they saw the new realm opening, the calmness of the water now growing more tumultuous and much louder as thunder rolled across the skies. The Bixtou Realm may not have been a place with many (if any) storms, but the same could not be said for the Kryfito Realm.

"Hang on," Sofia muttered, her hands brushing against Cedric's as she struggled a bit. "Stay still." She grabbed the tightened rope around his wrist and concentrated.

Cedric could feel the warm magic flowing from the princess's hands and into the rope, searing it off his wrists. He laughed in surprise as the rope fell to the deck. "Hand magic… I forget how potent yours is sometimes."

She smiled sweetly at him. "Anything to save my sorcerer." She winked at him, causing him to blush, before twisting her hands to grasp her own rope, burning it off with her magic. She stood, pulling him to his feet. "We're taking them all down this time, no matter what."

"Absolutely. I'll follow your lead."

She nodded before groaning. "He threw my wand overboard."

"You don't need it, my dear." He took her hand, holding it up. "You've got all the power you need."

Sofia sighed, frowning. "I hope so…"

"Captain," Tamoa murmured, getting the paler man's attention. "The passengers…"

Captain Zhigo turned, his eyes narrowing at the stunned crowd before him. "Rigor Obstupefacio…" His lips twitched into an amused smile as the crowd grew catatonic and silent, their eyes glazed over as they all fell to their knees. "There. Problem solved."

"Not quite." Sofia hurried over to them, careful not to harm any of the passengers, and held her hands out, her Enchantlet activating as she did. "I've had about enough of you."

"The feelin' is mutual, pretty girl," Wanderin' Wally cackled as he lunged toward her, yelping and falling over as Sofia side-stepped him. He grinned up at her as he noticed her glaring down at him. "Feisty and slick, just the way I like 'em." He smirked and reached up, just barely touching her hand before feeling a zap from her fingers, making him fall backwards. "Agh!"

Cedric moved to help Sofia before feeling someone hold him back. Looking back, he noticed that Robert had grabbed his arm, keeping him in place. "Let me go!"

"I don't think so," the redhead laughed. "Not after what your little girlfriend did to my brother." He yanked Cedric closer to him, muttering loudly enough for everyone within close distance (including Sofia) to hear, "You know, she's pretty easy on the eyes… My brother told me he's got a thing for the blue-eyed, long-haired girls with the gutsy spirit. She could be the ambrosia men strive for. I might consider sharing her with you and my brother if she tastes as good as she looks…" To emphasize his words, he made a point of licking his lips and sighing in satisfaction.

The sorcerer felt his anger building up. No one talked about his princess like that… He jabbed the other man in the stomach, glad to hear the wind being knocked out of him, before turning and kicking him into a wall. "Don't you ever say such things about her again!"

"You are most certainly worried about the wrong thing," Captain Zhigo informed Cedric, smirking as the heated sorcerer turned to scowl at him. "Words may be problematic…" He lifted one hand, a cesspool of dark magic forming in his palm, similar to what Tamoa possessed. "But there are far worse things than words… Allow me to demonstrate!"

Sofia gasped, especially since Wally had used a good deal of his strength to hold to her legs, keeping her in place. "Cedric!"

"Sofia!" Cedric called, his eyes widening as the magic swirled in the captain's palm.

Butterford was hesitant now. He wasn't sure what to do. Sure, his allegiance was with Captain Zhigo, but he'd felt that loyalty slipping away recently. He couldn't justify hurting people, even though he'd been part of that in the past. Why couldn't he deal with such a thing anymore? What had changed?

Growling in frustration, the sandy-haired crewman ran over in front of Sofia, blocking her from the attack.

"Butterford, what are you doin'?!" Hopscotch called out, shocked at his friend's action. "Move!"

"I'm not going to let you kill her…" He frowned as the captain smirked, seemingly unmoved by his words.

"That's fine," Captain Zhigo cooed, perhaps a little too saccharinely. "I never liked you anyway, so you can both go together!"

What happened next was both fast and slow at the same time. It was so quick that those around hardly realized what was going on, and yet so slow for those who were waiting for that impact…

Butterford closed his eyes, bracing himself, as he stayed in front of Sofia, whom he could hear breathing erratically, clearly afraid… When he felt a back brush against his chest only moments later, he opened his eyes just in time to see… "Hopscotch, no!"

The white-haired crewman had a hole in his abdomen so large that it was a wonder he was still standing. The dark magic had begun scorching through his flesh, causing him to collapse against Butterford, knocking them both down to the deck. "J-Jas…"

"Hopscotch, stay with me! Come on!" The sandy-haired guy sniffled as he held onto his best friend, his fingers running through the patchy hair on the other man's head. "Y-You… You saved me…"

As hard as it was, Hopscotch ignored his pain momentarily to smile up at the other crewman, reaching up and touching his face, despite the mix of dark magic and blood that was pooling around him. "I'd save you…every time…" His eyes slowly closed, and before long, he was gone.

"No!" Butterford cried, holding his friend close, sobbing as the white-haired man's body dissipated into thin air. "No!"

As touching as the scene was and as much as she wanted to reach out to Butterford, Sofia used that distraction to blast Wally with her own hand magic, knocking him not only away from her but also overboard with a heavy splash, and then she hurried over to Cedric, knocking Robert out with her magic next. Swiftly, while Butterford sat in a state of shock, she held out her hands toward Tamoa and Captain Zhigo. "You're done!"

"I'm just getting started, actually," Tamoa corrected, smirking as he lunged toward the duo.

"Duratus!" Sofia watched as Tamoa and Captain Zhigo froze in place, and she turned, calling out the same spell as she cast it on the fallen Robert (and soon extended it to Wally in the water). Before long, all four were frozen in place on the deck, while Butterford stayed a sobbing heap behind her. She saw Cedric about to approach the final crewman, but she held out a hand, placing it on his chest. "No."

"But he…"

"He's hurting, Cedric…" She turned, walking over to Butterford, lowering to the deck before him. She reached out, placing a hand over his shoulder, smiling apologetically as he jumped a bit. "Sorry. Are you okay?"

"Physically, yes…" He sighed, frowning. "I just… I couldn't let them… And then…" He closed his eyes, seeing those terrible images of Hopscotch's demise again, and he let out a shuddering sob. "H-He's gone…"

Sofia being Sofia, she couldn't let Butterford suffer any more than he already had. She didn't care that he had been with the wicked crewmen and Captain Zhigo. She didn't care about his past, whatever that might have entailed. All she cared about was that he was devastated and in pain, in need of comfort, and she was going to help him if she could. With very little prompting, she simply held out her arms and smiled sadly at the crewman, sighing as he all but fell into her arms, his sobs muffled by her shoulder. "Shh… It's going to be all right…"

Cedric watched his partner comforting someone who was supposed to be their enemy and couldn't help smiling. Because that's who she was… Good or evil, right or wrong, friend or foe… She wanted to protect everyone… Especially people who tried to…protect her…

The three turned when they heard a growl from the captain, whose own dark powers had begun surging through his body, despite his frozen state. He was slowly regaining control of his body, his eyes wild and furious, those rarely moving lips quirking into a snarl as he finally broke free from the spell.

"Sofia!" Cedric called, watching as she stood up with Butterford, who seemed just as stunned as they did that the captain had fought back against the spell. Sure, spells weren't infallible, but they were still rather powerful.

"Sofia, eh?" Captain Zhigo mumbled as he made slow strides toward the small group. "As in Princess Sofia of Enchancia?"

"Y-You know me?" Sofia asked, stunned.

"Everyone knows you, Princess. Well, now that the truth is out, this will be so, so sweet…" He held out his hand, but instead of aiming it toward Sofia, he turned toward Cedric. "Say goodbye."

Butterford pushed past Sofia, ramming straight into the captain and knocking him overboard. He caught himself against the railing before he too fell over.

"Ahh-help! I-I can't swim!" Captain Zhigo called out as he splashed helplessly about in the water, coughing as he swallowed some of the seawater, his mind growing foggy as his body grew fatigued.

Sofia sighed, activating her Enchantlet. She created a lasso, ensnaring the man below, and began pulling him toward the galleon until he was able to cling to the side. She turned toward Butterford, asking curiously, "Why did you do that?"

Butterford looked down, a forlorn expression on his face. "There's no reason we should both lose someone we love today…"

She observed him carefully before smiling gently, nodding. "I'm Sofia, by the way…"

"I'm...Jastin…" He smiled calmly at the princess. "But my friends-friend… Um, y-you can call me Jas."

She giggled. "Nice to meet you, Jas…"

Cedric sighed, glancing out at the open Kryfito Realm and the hovering souls, then back at the frozen passengers on the galleon. "I think we're going to need some help…"

To be continued…

Next Chapter: Land, Home