The Little Miraculous bobbed up and down as it sluggishly tread water. The makeshift sails of palm leaves only worked at a small fraction of effectiveness compared to cloth sails.
They sailed around three other islands that looked just as deserted as 'Little Paris'. As the sun crept towards the horizon, Plagg returned from a scouting trip from a nearby island.
"This boat looks like an overgrown fern," he complained as he floated over to 'his human.' "I did find a small spring on that next island, so we can get more water. And more berries. Bleh. I want cheese. It doesn't even have to be camembert! I'll even take American cheese!"
Adrien scooped up his kwami and petted his head. "I'm sure we'll find civilization sometime and we'll get your cheese."
"You better!"
Wayzz looked up from where he watched Marinette make a fishing net. "Ship! There is a ship headed towards us!"
Alya shaded her eyes and studied the approaching anachronism. "That looks like one of those restored galleys that rich people buy sometimes." She narrowed her eyes to see if she could make out the flag it flew. "Can anyone make out the flag?"
"You mean the pirate flag?" Adrien asked.
"You can see that?" Chloe asked him in surprise as she looked away from the ship and to him.
Marinette's head snapped up as she started to think very rapidly. "Cha- Adrien, get the swords. Nino get the oars," she ordered in full Ladybug mode. "Consider this on the job training for being a superhero."
Adrien headed over to the chest and pulled out the cutlasses. He handed one to Marinette and kept another.
Nino looked over to his girlfriend and handed her an oar at her nod. Chloe took the last cutlass with a cringe at the rust on it. She held on with both hands in front of her.
"Bend your knees and elbows, Chloe," Adrien said as he quickly instructed her on a proper stance.
All of the kwami hid in their holders pockets or purses.
Five minutes later, the other ship pulled up alongside. A blond and bearded man looked over. He opened his mouth and then noticed the readied weapons. "Well, I was going to ask if you had anything worth stealing and I'll drop you off at the nearest port, but you seem to be a mite aggressive." He pulled out his own cutlass and then leaped over to the raft to clear the pontoon arm.
Marinette and Adrien both hopped just before he landed. The latter charged forward and engaged the pirate captain while the former looked over at Nino.
"Follow me!" Marinette shouted as she charged along the short pontoon and then jumped up three feet to the deck of the pirate vessel.
"Marinette!" Alya shouted as she followed much more slowly and awkwardly.
"Girl, you be crazy," a bald mountain of a man said as he attempted to hit Marinette with a cudgel.
She sidestepped his attack and then lunged at him with the rusty cutlass. "You are not robbing us," she declared as she kept up the attack.
The pirate captain fended off Adrien and Nino with some effort. He yelped in pain after Chloe jabbed him in the hind with the blunt tip of her rusty cutlass. "I'll get you for that-!" he yelled, only to be interrupted as Nino clubbed the back of his head with the flat of the oar. He collapsed with his eyes crossed.
"Dude! I rock!"
"Tie him up, Nino! I've got my lady's back!" Adrien charged across the pontoon and leaped up to the deck of the pirate schooner.
Five minutes later, Marinette and Adrien finished disarming the pirates as they gave pointers to their three new heroes.
"You kids are crazy," the bald first mate said as Nino and Adrien finished tying him up.
"So how do we get out of the Bermuda Triangle?" Marinette demanded.
The three conscious pirates shared a surprised look. Then started laughing.
"You don't, girly. No one escapes the Bermuda Triangle. That's just the truth of the matter. Odd magic, djinn nor aliens and their sorcery of technology will not free you!" the runtiest of the pirates said.
"Well, we can't just float from deserted island to island," Chloe screeched out.
"There's still Marituga, the lighthouse island of the Sea of Beru." The last pirate shrugged at them. "Everyone goes to Marituga eventually. You just have to follow the light."
"So, captain?" Adrien said to Marinette.
"Well, we might as well go to this place then." The raven-haired girl looked at the pirates. "I wonder if there is a reward for capturing pirates?"
"What! You can't do that!"
"Says who, dude?" Nino said with a snort. "We're heroes."
The islanders of Marituga found themselves treated to the odd sight of a schooner towing a raft with five tied up men into the bay under the rose-red sunset's light.
"Hello the dock! We have captured pirates!" Alya shouted from the prow.
An older, stout woman trotted down the steps from the center of town. "Pirates you say? On Old Samah's ship?"
"Well, he was going to only rob us a little and take us somewhere. But we disagreed with being robbed. I'm Marinette, the captain of our, er, raft."
The dockmaster chuckled at that. "So he bit off a bit more than he could chew? He's not really a pirate, just an opportunistic jackal. We'll clap him in irons for a week to cool off. And fine him with a month's worth of fishing to pay off his debt."
Adrien looked over at Marinette. She gave a little shrug. He turned back to the dockside. "So, uh, who can we talk to about trying to find a way out of the Bermuda Triangle?"
"New to the Triangle then? Well, we do have a witch that trades in secrets and magic. She's the only one I know of that might have a clue, but I've never heard of anyone escaping. Benjamin! Taylor! Get Samah and his crew and take him to jail." The dockmaster waved towards the lantern lit town. "I'd tell you to look for a bunk at the tavern, but there's another ship in that's filled them up. You'll have to sleep on deck tonight before you go speak to old Sassafras in the morning."
"Why do we have to wait!?" Chloe demanded as she carefully stamped her bare feet in frustration.
"Because she closes at night."
"She's right. If this Sassafrassafrassa is the only one that might be able to help us, then we can't antagonize her," their captain said as she watched the two town guards escort the want to be pirates down the dock.
Alya nodded. "I saw some blankets, but we don't want to sleep below deck. I saw some rats."
"Ewwww!" the blond girl said in abject horror.
Adrien woke up late that night feeling like he was too hot. He shoved the blanket down to his waist as he looked around and felt a cool breeze from the sea. He froze as two voices mumbled incoherently and snuggled into his chest and back.
Plagg cackled softly in his ear. "Good job, lover boy!"
"Not now," he muttered even as Pollen and Tikki started defending their wielders in hushed whispers.
Tikki looked around. "Let's take this up to the crow's nest."
The kwami swooped upward and out of earshot. Adrien smiled to himself as he looked at the sleeping angel below his chin. His lady! A hand on the side of his chest reminded him of another girl, his oldest friend. The one that needed help in being a better person. He let those simple, happy thoughts lull him off to sleep again.
"-my wielder is doing better, so why should she be shoved out of the way?" Pollen asked.
"I'm just glad that the reveal is done. It's always so awkward and these two are some of the worst lovey-doveys ever," Plagg complained.
"It's going to hurt her," the yellow and black kwami said with sad eyes.
The other four kwami closed to hug the last one.
"It's part of their growing up, Sneezie," Plagg said in a whiny tone. "Who knows, maybe they'll even figure out a way that doesn't leave them hurt too much."
Trixx looked at the other. "Since we don't have to hide ourselves, we can try to give some advice."
"A good suggestion, Trixx," the kwami of protection said with a smile. "All of them need to come together as friends and comrades to overcome this trap we are in."
Plagg coughed into flipper. "So, uh, who's into finding some food before sunrise?"
"No, Plagg. Just pester your holder in the morning to go buy some cheese!"
"But I'm starving!"
"I see doom! Doom I say!" Sassafras called out as she stared through her crystal ball. "But the way is murky and dim." She put the back of her hand to her forehead. "I'm not sure I feel strong enough this morning to jump into such dire portents!"
"Are you for real?" Chloe asked the other even as she wiggled her toes in the comfortable shoes they'd found for her in the market earlier.
"Alas that I have nothing for my troubles," the old witch said with an overdone sad face.
Alya rolled her eyes. "How about now?" she asked as she put down five small gold coins.
"Doubloons? Always a good way to get me focused!" the witch said with alacrity as she made them disappear with a quick sweep of her hands over her table. "So just the five of you and wanting to escape the Triangle?" She narrowed her eyes at them. "Lies will taint my seeing!"
"All of us from our ship, The Little Miraculous," Marinette stated in a firm tone.
Sassafras glared at her for a second. "You've got some cunning with the way you think and talk, girl. Mary, for you and your crew, yesterday's storm is a good omen. Let me see, let me see. I know I have it here somewhere." The old witch went to a trunk and pulled out what looked to be a plastid ouija board.
"Dudette, that's just an ouija board," Nino said as he adjusted his glasses.
"Of course it is! But it sees the future! It's from your future, I bet!" Her gnarled finger pointed at the print-date on it for 2159 AD.
"Dude!" Nino said in an awed tone.
"So what are you trying to do here?" Adrien asked.
"I will do nothing but guide one of you. Pick one of you to lead you to your future!" Sassafras declared as she put the lens on the board.
"How do we know any of us have any talent or the sight?" Chloe demanded of them.
"Chloe has a point. Marinette, any ideas?" the blond haired boy asked.
"I'm not sure," she dithered as she thought over things.
"Marinette should do it." Alya winked at her. "Like you're our lucky charm!"
"Oh, right! That's perfect," Adrien said with a smile.
"That doesn't make a bit of sense!" Chloe declared in a loud huff.
Marinette slapped her forehead. "Of course! I just hope I'm lucky enough today."
Sassafras waved her hands and the candles dimmed. She started to murmur words of power under her voice as she put Marinette's hand on the sides of the lens.
Chloe wanted to huff in disbelief, but too many akumas had rekindled her belief in the magical.
"How do we escape the Triangle?" their captain asked as her hands moved.
The lens went to 'seek' and then 'guide'.
"Who is their guide, oh spirits?" Sassafras demanded.
Sword, skull and key were the next words highlighted.
"We need a name," Marinette muttered even as her hands started to move.
C, then A, followed by L, A, B, R, A, S and then it circled back to S again.
"Impossible! Calabrass has been lost for years!" the witch declared.
"Is that, like your years? Or our years? I thought this Triangle thing was a trap in time, too?" Chloe asked in a very confused tone of voice as she waved her hands around like airplanes.
Sassafras looked at them all. "Well, good luck finding one sword in the seven seas and convincing him to help you."
"So where is he?" Marinette asked.
"No idea. Off you go! If you get a ship, I might hire you to do jobs. Otherwise, skedaddle!"
Chloe blinked as she noticed the board and lens had highlighted the word 'outside'. "Um, how about we leave?"
All of them looked at her as she nodded fast and firmly.
Moments later they stepped out onto the side street of Marituga.
"Chloe, did you have a reason to leave then?" Marinette asked.
"Yeah, the board said 'outside'. So I figured something is going on outside that might be important." Chloe crossed her arms across her chest in a defiant way as she lifted her chin.
"Gangway!" a voice shouted. "Skullivar's skeletons chasing me!" The boy came tearing around the corner with a blue girl with scales, an odd looking viking with bits of modern junk for weapons and armor and a yellow ball with hands and feet to go with its digital expression of fear on its blank faceplate.
"Zak?" Alya blurted out in surprise.
A gold skeleton followed behind a moment later. "Get that sword for Lord Skulivar!"
"No way, bonehead!" Zak called out. He skidded to a halt as more of the skeletons appeared in the two other paths. "Uh, oh!"
"This is your fault, Zak Storm!" the haughty aquatic girl stated as she pointed her pistol at the nearest skeleton.
"Crogar bash now?" the viking asked as his US Airforce wing-blade extended.
Marinette narrowed her eyes. "Guess it's more hero training, guys!" She pulled out her cleaned up cutlass and started spinning her rock on a rope like she would her yo-yo.
Adrien and Chloe pulled out their own swords, even if her knees quivered in a bit of fear.
"Nino!" Alya called out as she grabbed the top of a barrel and handed him the round lid. She then armed herself with a thick broom.
"Dragging others into your fight, Zak Storm? You are no pirate captain!" Golden Bones declared pompously as he readied his sickle arm. Light reflected off of it from the morning light that reached them in this alley.
"Calabrass, tell me you've recovered some of your energy?" Zak demanded of his sword.
"Sorry, laddie. I'm still all tuckered out," his skull-sword replied.
"Oh no!" the little robot whined.
The five miraculous holders all grinned.
"Well, my lady, it appears you luck is holding true! Shall we rescue them so we can ask for their help in escaping the triangle?" Adrien asked the raven-haired love.
"Oh, yes! Attack!" Marinette shouted as she stabbed at the nearest skeleton.
"What!? These kids are as crazy as Zak Storm!" her skeleton complained just before she knocked his head off.
"That wasn't hard," she noted with a smile.
"Yeah, until they re-assemble themselves," Zak pointed out.
"Oh, drat," Marinette muttered.
Crysta Coraline Lajune twisted slightly and zapped two of the skeletons.
"Ragnarok!" Crogar shouted as he took out three skeletons on his own.
"Little help here, dudes!" Nino shouted as he blocked two swords from two skeletons.
Alya looked over at Marinette with a pleading expression. "Should we-?"
"No! But we need to retreat!" she called back.
"Yo! Big guy! Break through towards the docks! Come on, everyone!" Zak shouted.
"Ragnarok! Again!" Crogar shouted.
"Follow them and try to slow down the skeletons!"