A Pirate's Life

Summary: Chrysta recruits Sofia and Cedric to go undercover as new members of a notorious magical pirate crew run by the wicked Captain Caegan. While aboard the ship The Barracuda, the friends must determine the captain's plans and figure out how to stop them; meanwhile, Cedric notices an interesting change in his partner while on their mission. (Sofia is 17. Artwork by MarionetteJ2X!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Sofia the First. The cover photo was created by the amazing artist MarionetteJ2X! 😊 I do, however, own the OCs, including but not limited to Captain Caegan, Muscles, Marty, Wiggles, Garnette, and Duchess.

A/N: Time for a little showdown. :D Okay, a slightly large showdown. Not nearly as daunting as the Kinoroh one (in my opinion), but still challenging enough for our heroes to overcome. Lol. BTW, I have a slew of new stories in the process of being developed, including the summaries, titles, and cover photos, so stay tuned. When I get organized and have everything ready, they'll be on my profile bio as usual. Meanwhile, after completing THIS story, I will be taking a little break to get those other stories prepared. 😊 I'm hoping to get this story finished very soon, so keep an eye out for the final chapter!

Chapter 10: Powerful Words

It was pretty late at night when Sofia and Cedric finally came around again. They could tell, however, that they were considerably weaker than usual, and without their magic, they felt a bit…hollow. In a sort of slow struggle, they clambered onto the single cot, just so they could be off the cold, damp, hard floor.

Sofia grasped her amulet, telling it in a weak voice, "We wish to…to be free from this cell." She frowned in dismay as she noticed that her amulet, for once, offered no reaction. "I had a feeling that would happen…" She looked toward Cedric, who looked far more drained than she did, and released her amulet before scooting a bit closer to him. "I am so sorry for getting you into this mess, Mr. Cedric…"

He looked toward her, frowning at her words. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, it was technically my mission as a Protector. Chrysta would have been fine with me going undercover alone. You didn't have to come if you didn't want to."

He chuckled softly and wrapped one arm around her, offering her some comfort. "I think we both know by now…that wasn't an option. I wasn't about to let you come on this mission alone. Not this sort of mission, with pirates and dark magic plans and such."

She sighed, leaning into him. "I just hate thinking that I led us both into a trap… If Chrysta can't get to us in time, what does that mean for us?" She absently played with a lock of her hair. "I'm dangerous to be around, aren't I?"

Cedric laughed at that question, gently squeezing her arm in a comforting manner. "Nonsense, my dear. Life with you is far more interesting, Sofia…even if it means getting captured on a pirate ship."

Sofia smiled tiredly at his words before nodding. "At least we can say that we're never boring."

"Merlin, no. And yet you used to tell me how much you longed for a 'boring day,' eh? Perhaps we'll get one, one of these days."

She giggled softly before feeling her newly-found energy slowly leaving her again.

Without warning, she fell asleep and nearly collapsed, but Cedric caught her and shuffled off the cot, gently easing her into a lying position with her head propped on the pillow. He covered her with the thin sheet before moving to sit in a corner of the cell, his head resting against the steel bars and his eyes slowly drooping closed as he, too, fell asleep.

Several hours later, both friends were startled into alertness as a loud clang echoed throughout the brig. Cedric scurried over to Sofia, who had jolted up and fallen off the cot in surprise, and he helped her to her feet. As they turned, they saw Captain Caegan standing at the now-open cell door with a few very menacing-looking pirates, each holding a length of rope.

"Glad to see ye both awake," the captain cooed saccharinely as his two cronies swiftly captured both friends, tying their arms behind their backs before securely holding onto their wrists. "Bright and early, too! It's a perfect day for a plank walk." He sneered at them before turning and heading toward the exit, chuckling wickedly as he heard the other two pirates wrestling with the Enchancians to get them to walk.

"You can stop shoving me, you know," Sofia warned one of the muscular (and extremely odious) pirates. "I figured out how to walk when I was a baby."

"You've got quite a mouth on ya, lass," the man remarked, pushing her forward again—and a bit rougher this time. "Somethin' tells me it gets ya into trouble quite often."

"I'm here, aren't I?" she grumbled, grunting in annoyance as he pushed her again. "Hey!"

Cedric glared at the man as he, too, was guided onward. "Keep your filthy hands off her. Or, when I get my magic back, I'll use every curse I know to ensure that you suffer for the rest of your miserable life."

"Mighty big words from such a puny sorcerer," the second burly man laughed as he and his shipmate pushed the friends up the stairs and onto the deck.

The quartet with whom they'd made friends (or at least, they'd like to think of them as friends, but at this point even that might have been questionable) stood aside and watched in dismay as the two Enchancians were practically half-carried and half-dragged to the side of the ship, where a newly-secured plank was looming just over the edge.

Sofia happened to glance over toward Garnette, who offered her an apologetic look. Being Sofia, she just smiled in reassurance. It wasn't her fault; she had to know that. Of all the pirates onboard, Garnette was definitely her favorite.

"Avast ye, ya scurvy dogs!" Captain Caegan announced with his usual dramatic flourish. "These two have been found guilty of impersonating pirates, deceiving a proper captain, possessing powers aiming to cause my demise—"

"He's lying!" Sofia yelled, struggling against her captor. "Our job was just to monitor him, not to 'cause his demise.' And he's lying to all of you too!" She glared around at the pirates before her. "If you really think this man is going to give you powers for helping him, you are fools! Can't you see he's using you?!"

Captain Caegan grabbed Sofia by the arm and snarled as he propelled her onto the plank. He smirked at her now-frightened expression, seeing as she'd nearly lost her footing and fallen off the thin board. "Not so high and mighty now, are ya, Princess?"

A rumble of surprised murmurs erupted from the crew, save for the few who already knew the truth.

"Leave her alone," Cedric demanded, ripping his right arm out of his captor's hold before grunting as he was shoved against the side of the ship. "Ugh!"

"Oh, that's right," the captain cackled as he grasped Cedric's tunic and shoved him up onto the plank directly behind Sofia, who was trying very hard to keep her balance. "You two like to do everything together, don't ya? Well, look at it this way: you started this adventure together…" He grabbed a sword from another pirate's sheath and held it out toward them, sneering at them as they shuffled back a bit to avoid being stabbed. "You can end it together too. And I believe the old saying goes, 'Ladies first.'" He smirked at Sofia, who glowered at him in irritation.

With another jab of his sword, the captain guffawed as Cedric swiftly moved to miss it. Instead, it now put him and Sofia both on the very edge of the plank, which was a daunting distance from the water.

"Well, if this is how it ends," Cedric mumbled softly so that only his partner could hear, "I'm glad it ends with you, Sofia…" He smiled sadly toward her.

"Mr. Cedric…" She then frowned at him. "Don't you give up now. There's got to be some way out of this. I'm not going out without a fight!"

"Good to hear!"

Sofia gasped as Orion swooped down and picked her up, followed by Vega doing the same with Cedric. She laughed in relief as the Protectors removed their ropes, freeing their arms at last. "You guys have some interesting timing!"

"Getting here was no easy task, I'm afraid," Vega informed her as Chrysta flew in behind her. "We ended up in some realm called 'Reimagia' first." She blinked as Cedric began laughing, followed by Sofia. "What's so funny?"

Sofia grinned. "Nothing."

Chrysta landed on the side of the ship, her hands on her hips as she declared, "Captain Caegan, you and your entire crew are under arrest, and you will be imprisoned on the Mystic Isles. You are charged with…about a hundred different things, so we'll just make this short and sweet." She snapped her wrist, activating her Enchantlet and preparing to create a lasso. "So, either surrender peacefully, or we, the Protectors of the Mystic Isles, will be forced to take matters into our own hands."

The captain laughed wickedly as he removed the ruby pendant from around his neck. "That's where you're wrong, lassie… There is no stoppin' me!" He ran his fingers over the ruby, chanting something in an unknown language as the skies suddenly darkened and the water became rather choppy and brutal.

Chrysta fought to hold her position as steadily as she could, but it was definitely harder with the crashing of the water. She found that she couldn't really concentrate on her mission right now, and she'd certainly need some help at this point.

"That's got to be his 'Maedan Magic,'" Sofia whispered to Orion, who held fast to her as they hovered in the air, the storm-like conditions worsening around them. Her eyes were trained on the deep red mist that was beginning to swirl around the captain. "He told me about it. That's what he's going to use to take over the Seventeen Seas and everyone who's magical."

"Then I suppose the solution is simple," he responded, glancing toward Vega as she and Cedric hovered next to them. "We must combine our powers and abilities and take this madman down."

"We'd love to," Cedric drawled sarcastically, "but Captain Careless drained all of our powers, and a great deal of our own life energy."

Vega gasped. "Why didn't you let us know?"

Sofia lowered her head. "I tried. But he attacked me before I could finish telling Chrysta what was going on." She sighed heavily. "It's useless, Vega. Without our magic, there's no way we can defeat him."

Vega smiled gently as the princess instinctively glanced over at her. "That's where you're wrong, Sofia. You and Cedric have the strongest bond I've ever seen."

Cedric and Sofia smiled toward each other.

"Captain Caegan might have taken your magic," the older Protector continued, "but he hasn't taken away your will and your heart. If you have both, your magic and powers will always return to you."

With those simple yet powerful words spoken, Sofia decided to attempt something that even she wasn't sure was possible. Still, she had to try. She reached over to Cedric and grasped his hand before placing her free, shaky hand over her amulet. She closed her eyes and concentrated, willing her beloved gem to reestablish itself and its powers. "We wish…to have our magic restored."

At first, nothing happened. Not a glimmer, not a warming under her fingers, nothing. The gem just sat there, stagnant. However, to her surprise, several seconds later, she began to feel a familiar warm surge coursing through her. She gasped and opened her eyes, looking over at Cedric, who wore the same expression on his face. "It's working…"

He gazed at her in disbelief. "How?"

Sofia grinned. "It's magic, isn't it? Magic doesn't have to have any explanation, I guess…" Feeling stronger than ever, she released her friend's hand and looked up toward Orion. "Mr. Orion, if you don't mind, take me back to the ship. I have a score to settle with a certain wicked captain."

The man chuckled and nodded. "Very well, Princess Sofia." He returned to the ship and settled the teen beside her former trainer.

Vega, sensing Cedric's concern, simply smiled and swooped down, releasing the sorcerer next to his friend. She noticed his baffled expression and remarked, "I had a feeling this would be the right thing to do." With that, she returned to Orion.

"We need to get our wands back," Sofia told Chrysta, who nodded. "I'm pretty sure Captain Caegan has them."

"Cedric, you handle that. Sofia and I will distract him."

"Oh, so I'm just supposed to go up against forty pirates by myself then?" he asked sarcastically. "No problem! I can't think of a better way to end my time on a pirate ship."

Sofia quickly grabbed Cedric's arms, giving him an imploring stare. Seeing she had his attention, she smiled nervously at him. "Be… Be careful, okay?"

The irony didn't escape him. All this time, he'd been begging her to be safe, and now it appeared that she was doing the same. He chuckled, pulling her into a brisk hug, which she readily returned, before murmuring against her hair, "You do the same, my dear." He then quickly departed, jumping back onto the ship's deck and beginning to discreetly make his way toward the distracted captain.

"Not so fast!" one of the bulky pirates from earlier sneered as he grabbed Cedric and slammed him against the side of the ship, causing the sorcerer to groan in discomfort. "There's about to be a serious case of 'man overboard.'"

"You're right."

Both Cedric and the pirate turned, surprised to see Garnette standing there with her three friends, each of them holding a sword out toward the other pirate. Even the cat, Duchess, appeared menacing as she was dropped into a defensive stance and hissing.

"But it won't be him." The redhead smirked as the other pirate gaped at them in shock. "Now, let him go, Shadley, or I'll be making some Shad-kabobs." She emphasized her point by moving the point of the sword toward the man's neck, though she didn't come anywhere near hurting him. "Get him, Muscles."

Muscles picked up the other pirate (Shadley, apparently) and tossed him overboard, smirking as he heard a splash below. He blinked as he noticed his friends gaping at him. "What? He never paid me those twenty doubloons he owed me anyway."

Garnette rolled her eyes. "All right, Horatio—"

"Cedric," he corrected.

She smiled, nodding. "Right, sorry. Cedric, then. We'll hold off the others while you make your way to the captain."

The sorcerer nodded, gasping as he saw the hoard of men rushing toward him. Without second thought, he turned and hurried in the direction of the captain, who was still distracted with his pendant. Behind him, he could hear Garnette and the others yelling and working to fend off the approaching opposition. Just as he reached the captain, he stopped in his tracks as the other man paused his chanting and turned toward him, a dark grin on his face and his eyes now a swirling vortex of black.

"Not so fast, sorcerer," he ordered, his voice sounding distorted for some reason. "I've had about enough of you and your annoying little protégé."

"Hey!"

The captain turned, glaring at Sofia and Chrysta, who were both directly near him, their Enchantlets raised.

Sofia smirked. "I'm his partner. Get it straight." Nodding to Chrysta, they both released their lassos and watched as the magical bonds wrapped around the man's arms. "Now, Mr. Cedric!"

Cedric looked over the captured man and smirked as he saw two familiar wands sticking out of his own sheath. "I'll take those." He reached forward and pulled both his and Sofia's wands out of the case. He then turned toward his friend again. "Sofia, catch!"

Reacting quickly (albeit a bit clumsily, due to the sudden suggestion), she reached out with her free hand and haphazardly caught her wand. She exhaled in relief before offering her friend a pointed glare. "Probably not the best idea considering where I'm standing, but thanks." She grinned before moving her wand to her right hand where the Enchantlet was still holding taut on its lasso, and she lowered a bit to extend her hand down. "Come on, Mr. Cedric. Let's finish this."

He smiled and moved forward, reaching out his hand and clasping her own. Just as he was about to step up beside her and Chrysta, he yelled in pain and surprise as the captain—who'd broken free from the lassos—reached out and twisted his other arm backwards. "Ahh!" Inadvertently, he released Sofia's hand and fell backwards against Captain Caegan, who wrapped his arm around his neck before hovering his dark-magic-powered hand up to his face.

"That is far enough, ye do-gooder wretches," he sneered at the two Protectors. "If ye think you're gonna win this battle, you've got another thing comin'. Make your choice now: let me go and I won't kill this pathetic bag of bones." He smirked as he heard a noise of disgruntled disagreement from Cedric, who clearly didn't care for his description. "Or say goodbye to your beloved Horatio; 'cause if I go down, I'm takin' him with me."

Sofia narrowed her eyes at the man before noting Cedric's obvious state of distress. He didn't look like he was able to breathe well since the pirate captain's arm was limiting his oxygen supply. And he was obviously stronger than he appeared. If he made one swift move, her partner would be gone instantly. "I've made my decision," she stated clearly.

Chrysta gazed at her, curiously.

"Well, don't be sittin' there like a bump on a log!" the captain barked. "Spit it out!"

Sofia moved her wand to her left hand, smiling sadly at Cedric. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cedric. It's either you…or the rest of the world… And I can't be selfish."

Cedric sighed heavily and closed his eyes. "I understand…"

Captain Caegan was floored as his grip on Cedric loosened. "You'd kill your own friend for this miserable world? What kinda princess are ya?! What kinda friend are ya!" He grinned maniacally. "This should be fun then."

Suddenly, the princess smirked dangerously. "Yes, it should." Seeing that Cedric was now in a different position, she aimed her wand directly at the captain's now-visible glowing pendant. "Perdere!" She watched as the heavy stream of magic flowed from her wand toward the pendant, making a sharp impact and completely shattering the ruby gem within. With the pendant—the source of the dark magic—destroyed, their surroundings returned to normal. She smiled in triumph as the captain's eerie dark presence altered to his usual form, slumping to the deck as Cedric managed to slip away and hurry over to her. She sat down on the side of the ship, laughing as Cedric reached her and hugged her tightly. She returned his hug, whispering to him, "You didn't really think I was going to let him destroy you, did you?"

He laughed nervously as he looked toward her. "For a moment, I honestly wasn't sure. But then I figured you must have had a plan, so I suppose I literally put my life into your hands at that point."

She giggled before glancing over his shoulder, noticing that the Protectors had landed on the ship and were working to round up the weakened captain and a majority of his crew. "You know, he wasn't that much of a threat really. Not when you consider all the other bad guys we've taken down."

"Speak for yourself," Cedric mumbled, his left hand reaching up to his neck. "If nothing else, that chokehold was very real. I'm lucky he didn't cut off my circulation."

The princess nodded. "I'm lucky too. I don't know what I'd do without you, Mr. Cedric." She smiled as he grasped her hand with his free hand.

"Hey, Sofia!" Chrysta called as she walked over with the quartet of pirates lassoed together (just in case). "These guys seem to have a different story from all the other pirates on this ship. Mind helping me out here?" Behind her, the other pirates were now all in shackles.

Sofia slid down from the side of the ship and walked over to them. "They're fine, Chrysta. Yeah, they may be pirates, but they helped me out…a lot." She sent Garnette in particular an appreciative smile, receiving the same from the woman. "I know piracy is one of those negative things, and illegal in most realms, but these four—and Duchess, Marty's cat—deserve a second chance. A chance to start over and make a difference."

"Hmm," Orion hummed, tapping his chin as he considered the teen's words. He nodded toward Chrysta, who released them from her hold. "I have a suggestion, then. We have a number of isles in the Mystic Isles, including some water-themed ones. The Isle of Mermaids, for example—"

"Mermaids?!" Wiggles exclaimed, grinning. "Count me in!"

Muscles shoved the shorter man into the wall next to him. "Forgive him. He's an annoying little man."

Vega laughed uncertainly. "Yes… As Orion was suggesting, we could always use a few extra helping hands in the Isles, if you're up for it. Consider it a new home and a place where you can explore and live a better life."

"I think it sounds great," Marty told them, picking up Duchess and scratching behind her ears. "And where are these Mystic Isles?"

The Protectors and Cedric all pointed upwards at the sky.

Marty blinked as he looked up, seeing nothing but the usual clouds. "I see…"

"You'll love it," Sofia gushed happily. "It's a beautiful, magical place, and there's always something exciting happening. And I'll be there a lot of times, because I'm one of their Protectors."

"A Protector?" Garnette asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"She's our youngest Protector," Chrysta informed the other woman. "Sofia guards the Ever Realm from danger. Your so-called captain, for example, was planning to do some pretty terrible stuff, so we sent Cedric and Sofia in as undercover pirates to uncover his plans. However, it seems things got a bit complicated."

"That's a bit of an understatement," Cedric retorted, still rubbing his sore neck. "No offense, Chrysta, but I think I'm going to stay away from your 'undercover missions' for a while."

"Right," she teased, "until the princess asks you to go with her, and you'll be like, 'Certainly, Sofia! When do we leave? Shall I bring a snack?'" She grinned as Sofia laughed at her impression of the sulking sorcerer.

"First of all, I don't talk like that. Second of all, I really must return to my duties before my sister believes she's actually the royal sorceress for good."

"Agreed." Vega smiled at the two friends. "You've done a great job—both of you. We'll wrap things up here. I suggest you head home and get some much-deserved rest."

"And a bath," Sofia added, laughing as Cedric nodded in agreement. She turned and walked over to Garnette. "Thanks for everything, Garnette. And to the rest of you too." She looked at the other pirates. "I never thought I'd be able to say that pirates helped me save the day, but I'm always finding that people still are able to surprise me in a positive way."

"Not a problem, kid," Garnette responded, winking. "We'd better see you soon."

"Oh, don't worry. I'll be around." She smiled and turned, heading back toward Cedric. She took his hand. "Ready to go home?"

"More than you realize," he responded, squeezing her hand gently.

To be continued…

Next Chapter: The Seas of Change