Chrono Corruption

Act 1: The Frozen Flame

Chapter 2: A Raid at Sea

Ty and Tomo lay exhausted on the weather deck and gazed at the night sky. "So many beautiful stars out tonight," muttered Ty.

"Yeah, so could you think of a spell?" Tomo asked hopefully. "Cause, I think I have an idea on what to do with my next spell!"

"Oh really?" Ty asked curiously. "What's that?"

"It's a secret!" Tomo began playfully. "But I'll give you a hint! Apparently, I can manipulate rocks and dirt like you can manipulate air and wind."

"What are you gonna do with that? Throw a rock at me?" Ty asked jokingly.

"Jerk, you'll see…," Tomo replied humorously. "It'll be much more effective than you throwing a breeze at me!"

Then a sudden noise could be heard on the port side of the ship. A siren went off from another nearby ship that pulled beside their port side. "What's going on?" Ty said annoyed.

"Let's go take a look! That is ridiculously annoying! People are trying to sleep on this ship!" Tomo retorted angrily.

*Main Deck*

As Ty and Tomo made their way to the Bridge of the ship they bared witness to a Porrean vessel outfitted with cannons and military troops. They had already boarded via planks that reached the Promenade Deck. Toma was just about to meet with the ship's captain. The Captain was a very tall, sturdily built middle-aged man who seemed to be in his early forties. His brown graying hair was combed neatly and he had a well-groomed light brown beard that also showed signs of graying and bushy eyebrows. His wardrobe was mostly militaristic with a black trench coat with white skeletal trimmings, black baggy pants, black boots, gloves, and a white ruffled scarf tucked into his popped-up collar. "That's Captain Zorandah Viper!" Ty said with a look of fear.

Tomo was just as fear-stricken, "W-What's he doing here?" she muttered.

"I don't know, but your dad seems to hate the fact he's here," Ty retorted as he observed Toma's distress.

Captain Viper and Toma XIV stood face to face as their conversation quickly heated up. Ty and Tomo could not discern what they were talking about, but with each passing minute, Toma grew more irritable.

"What's the meaning of this Viper?!" Toma said angrily.

Viper got a good look at Toma and smirked, "Well, it seems you have put on a lot of weight recently Toma. Enjoying the finer things in life a bit too much, eh?"

"Don't dodge my question Viper!" Toma scoffed. "What are you doing boarding my ship without an invitation?!"

Viper remained calm and collected, "Well, my men and I were doing our rounds until the officer on the crow's nest spotted a pillar of red light not too far from our position. We were wondering what it was so I ordered my ship to head to it. Simple as that."

Toma calmed down, but still remained on edge, "Well as you can see we are okay and there is no danger. We just had some... difficulties with the distress flares is all."

Viper was unconvinced, "Excuse me Toma, but I know as well as you do that, that was no 'flare'. This brings me to my next point. What did you find out here Toma? I'm not disembarking until you tell me the truth. You found something extraordinary didn't you?"

Toma relented with a heavy sigh, "Posh, Gosh get Ty and my daughter down here."

The Lords siblings nodded in obedience and quickly went to find them. Tomo looked on as the Lords siblings hurried off rather frantically, "What do you suppose those two are so flustered over?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it," Ty responded. "Viper must be here because he saw the light the Flame gave off. Let's see if we can't hide the Frozen Flame. Just in case."

Ty searched the Bridge for a safe place to store the Flame but found it to be fruitless. "Bah, there's no good place to stash this thing!" he snarled.

Tomo tapped her foot nervously, "We've got to think of something!"

Just then, the Lords siblings entered the Bridge and they seemed very nervous. "Oh, thank goodness!" Gosh said relieved a bit.

"We were hoping you two were up here!" Posh followed also calming down.

"Viper wants to know what we found!" Gosh said with alarm.

"What should we do?" Posh asked, hoping for an idea.

Ty paused for a moment. He then gazed at everyone with a grin, "We tell him the truth. We found a chunk of coral and nothing more."

"He may buy that, but how do we explain the light it emitted?" Posh asked with concern. "Surely there is nothing else in this world that could emit such a light?"

The four hunters paused for a moment until Tomo got an idea, "Wait, I know!" she started with a confident grin. "Ty and I saw a really weird structure in the deep waters! Why don't we tell Viper the light came from underneath us, from the structure I mean, and not from the ship?"

Gosh fell into an infatuated stupor, "Oh wonderful, Tomo my sweet! Your idea is foolproof!"

"Yes, that isn't in poor taste at all!" Posh said in agreement. "We can tell Viper whatever made the light is still down there. If he buys our story he may take over searching the sea himself and we will be back on our way home!"

"Alright, let's tell him the truth!" Ty said as the four left the bridge.

Standing before Viper and his men felt like a trial of sorts. Ty stepped forward and threw down a bag of odds and ends the party found while scuba diving. "This is all we found Viper. No legendary treasure, just some old stuff from old ships and nothing more."

Viper remained unconvinced, "Hmm, I will buy that story if you can explain the strange light show we saw."

Tomo stepped forward and placed the backs of her wrists on her hips while wearing a sort of defiant attitude. "Well, if you must know we found a mysterious structure beneath the waves when Ty and I were using the bathysphere. This structure was like nothing we'd ever seen! It was covered in coral and undersea minerals, but it looked... futuristic? I want to call it? Anyway, we interacted with the structure and it made a huge tower of light that lit up the entire bottom of the sea!" she lied solidly.

Viper paused and his stone-cold face raised one eyebrow. He then burst into laughter, "Young lady, I do believe you have been reading too many science fiction novels! What makes you think I would believe such a tall tale?!"

In an instant, Viper's words struck fear into Tomo, Ty, Posh, and Gosh. Tomo protested, "No, it's not a lie, there really is a structure down there!" she pleaded.

"Rats, I didn't anticipate the truth would be so hard to believe!" Ty thought in surprise.

"Well, if you don't want to tell me the truth, then let me show you what the future really holds!" Viper said strongly. "MUSTARL! RALSH! COME!" commanded Viper.

Two large figures jumped from the upper promenade deck of Viper's ship. When they landed before the party it became apparent that these two figures were mechanical and not human or fiend. The one to Viper's left was thin and green with long skinny limbs. Its head was long but rounded with noticeable ears and slit-shaped eyes and mouth. Its figure resembled the likeness of ancient stone fetishes in tribal cultures. The one to Viper's right was much bulkier with wide hips and shoulders. Its head was ovular with large round eyes and ears. It too resembled ancient tribal fetishes. Finally, they both had large silver windup keys on their backs.

"What are these things?!" Ty asked in astonishment. "Puppets?!"

"I don't know, but they look like ancient statues we've found before!" Tomo stated in awe.

"Mustarl, Ralsh, arrest all crew members of this ship and escort them to our brig!" Viper commanded. "These cretins call themselves treasure hunters! I call them what they really are! Thieves, grave robbers, and criminals! Furthermore, they have entered Porrean waters without permission! See to it that they are detained! Dragoons, search this ship for their stolen goods! Have I made myself clear?"

Everyone was in shock as Viper's men quickly mobilized and began to carry out their mission. Toma cried out in anger, "Have you gone mad Viper?! Who says the Sea of El Nido is Porrean property?!"

The two mechanical puppets obeyed their master and quickly moved around the deck of the ship in an odd rickety fashion. The two figures then began abducting Toma's crew with simplistic ease alongside Viper's Dragoons. Toma's crew members fought back with their cutlasses as everything turned into an old-fashioned brawl.

Posh cried out to Ty, "What do we do now, Mister Drayguard?!"

"We'll just have to fight our way out of this!" Ty said drawing his daggers.

"Um, hello! In case you haven't noticed there are way too many of them and to top it all off we are trapped on this ship!" Gosh said with a realistic tone to his statement.

"You got any other bright ideas?!" Tomo snapped as she firmly grasped her hammer. The four then grouped together as they were surrounded by several Dragoons. The Dragoons wore grey metal body armor with brown cloth pleated skirts around their waists and they wielded plain iron swords and their iron helmets covered all but their mouths and noses.

One of the Dragoons rushed Ty with his sword, but Ty parried with his left dagger and attacked with his right dagger, sinking it into the man's unarmored triceps. He dropped his sword and backed off as two more took his place. Tomo managed to block and parry most sword swipes with her hammer and then retaliate with powerful blows while Posh and Gosh defended with their own mithril weapons. Gosh locked himself into a duel with a Dragoon until he managed to disarm the man. It did not take long for another Dragoon to take his place, however. Posh found herself in the hardest position. She mainly protected herself with blocks using her mithril rod while staying close to her brother or Ty.

Ty kept his opponents at bay with lighting fast dagger strikes and deflections erstwhile 'Plundering' the Dragoons' pockets for extra money or goods. However, this strategy began to fail once the Dragoons changed their own tactics. This forced Ty to stop his plundering and withdraw, "We need to retreat and get in a better position!" he announced to his teammates.

"I know! We're sitting Bellbirds out here!" Tomo said as she batted a Dragoon away from her.

Then suddenly, Mustarl and Ralsh appeared opposite one another surrounding them. "Oh, forget that we're done for!" Gosh said with an expression of fear.

"No, we can't give in like this!" Ty said as he faced Ralsh. "We are so close to making the biggest historical discovery ever!" he finished as he dashed towards the machine with his daggers held in a reverse grip. Ralsh did not move as Ty leaped into the air and slashed the mechanical doll with all his might. As Ty landed he turned his gaze towards Ralsh who was not even the least bit scratched or fazed by the attack. He was in shock.

Tomo did the same to Mustarl with her hammer but it only bounced off also giving her an expression of fear and awe. "But... but I'm super strong! How did my hammer do nothing?!"

"Well then... it seems we have to try our new 'special techniques' out, huh Tomo?" Ty smiled with unease.

"No Ty, don't be reckless!" Tomo shouted in resistance. "You haven't even learned one yet!"

Ty braced himself in an awkward stance with his legs spread and arms out stretched weakly. His Cloud Key reacted to his emotions and his body was surrounded by a green luminescence. "Ha, not to worry Tomo, I got this all under control!" he said with reassurance. He then gave a powerful war cry as he threw his hands down as if to 'fan' his opponent. Unfortunately, that is literally all he did was give a cooling breeze to Ralsh. He gasped in horror, "Oh crap...!"

"Let me try mine!" Tomo shouted as she outstretched her right index finger. "Gastromorph!" she announced as the yellow stream of light hit Mustarl dead on. Mustarl was enveloped by the light, but with a shrug, it broke free unharmed. Tomo was shocked, "What...? But I know my own spell... Why did it fail?"

Gosh dropped his rapier and his sister dropped to her knees. "That's it, we're done..." Gosh said hopelessly.

Mustarl and Ralsh raised their arms in preparation for an attack. Their metal joints made grinding noises as they did so. Before Ralsh threw a slap at Ty's head, he closed his eyes in an attempt to 'lessen' the impact.

*Later, Aboard Viper's Ship*

Ty awoke groggy and bruised in a dark damp cell deep in the bowls of Viper's massive ship. He quickly remembered the pummeling Ralsh gave him. Only a small lantern lit the cramped space. He lay on a rickety iron-framed bed with a putrid mattress. "Ugh, my everything...," he moaned in pain. He quickly searched his person and found his Cloud Key still around his neck, but his daggers were missing. A large figure stood before the portcullis door with its backside facing it. It was another mechanical doll. It was about seven feet tall and had a burly upper body with a bronze finish and had maroon cloth accents. Its head was set into its torso and its long arms nearly reached the ground. Ty approached and tapped the thing through the bars.

It responded with a whir, "GA-PI? GA-PI-PI?" it said.

No matter what Ty did after that point it did not give any other response or even turn around. Ty gave up and sat back down too tired and beaten to do anything else. "I wonder what happened to the others?" he said worriedly.

Tomo awoke in a well-kept aristocratic room with beautiful stained wood furniture with bronzed accents. It was lit dimly with candles and the window let in a cool sea breeze. The dawn had still not come so save for the candlelight the room was quite dark. Tomo searched her person and found her things to be placed neatly on a chair not too far from her. The bed was comfy and had maroon curtains lining the top of its frame. She noticed her hourglass pendant still around her neck and clutched it with a sigh of relief.

As she took a deep breath she heard the door creak and open. She quickly feigned being asleep. A Dragoon came to her bedside and 'awakened' her. Tomo acted like she had been asleep to throw off suspicion. The Dragoon spoke with an orderly tone, "Miss, are you awake?" he asked.

"Yeah, what do you people plan on doing with my dad and my friends?" she asked sternly.

"Come with me and we'll tell you everything," the Dragoon continued. "You must be hungry, we'll stop at the kitchen before moving on."

Tomo's face brightened a little, "Well, I am pretty hungry..."

The Dragoon quickly brought Tomo to the mess hall which was filled with Dragoons, "We have a meal already prepared for you so we don't waste time, please eat your fill," he said not breaking his orderly tone.

Tomo was suspicious as she sat at the large wooden table. There were a few Dragoons quietly eating their meals at the other end of the table. This made the scruffy tomboy feel a little nervous. She felt a little better after sitting down and taking note that no one was paying her any mind. She eyed the Hyper Kabob that was placed in front of her a meal normally for a family. She thought with suspicion, "Why are they giving me this to eat? I hope this isn't like a 'last meal' or something...," she worried.

As she worried she managed to polish off the entire kabob stuffing herself to the 'gills'. This comically caught everyone's attention which caused her to blush fiercely. The Dragoon came to her side, "All finished? Good, then let's go," he ordered.

Tomo had no choice but to follow him but decided to attempt to make a little conversation, "Y'know, I've had Hyper Kabobs before, but that one had some weird seasoning on it," she claimed.

"...," he responded.

"Joy... a real chatterbox...," Tomo thought unsettled. "I mean it was 'good', it just had something weird on it...," she stammered as she picked at something in her teeth.

"...," he responded again.

She decided to stay silent and after a few moments of walking, they reached their destination. He seemed to have taken her to a very eerie part of the ship deep inside the hull. This made her feel nervous and tense as she was invited into a room. Upon entering the room the Dragoon stood watch outside. The room was filled with nothing but extra weapons and armor and was lit with small whale oil lanterns. A single wooden chair sat directly in the center of the room. Nervous, Tomo sat down in the chair. She hoped she would not be here long if she did what they wanted. However, unbeknownst to her a dark cloaked figure stood behind her. This figure blended in with all the junk due to the cloak they wore. The person walked up silently and raised their hands over her head.

*Meanwhile*

Viper came to Ty's cell and called to him, "Drayguard, Welcome to my ship, 'The Snake Strike'. I have business with you," he claimed sternly. The mechanical doll now stood to the right of the cell door as Viper stared at him through the portcullis. Viper unlocked the door and opened it, "Come with me, Drayguard," he commanded.

Ty kept quiet as he analyzed Viper. He left the cell but kept his distance as he followed Viper. Two Dragoons followed Ty to make sure he did not try anything but kept their distance from him as well. They acted nervously not wanting to get within arm's range of him.

After some time and a very brief tour of Viper's warship, Ty was brought to a suite. The suite was lined with bronzed accented mahogany furniture with a white fluffy bed lined with marooned curtains and girly accessories along with some girly toys placed on a coffee table. Ty was brought to the bedside of a black-haired little girl who slept very deeply in the bed.

"What does a sleeping kid have to do with me?" Ty asked puzzled.

"Do you know who this is, Drayguard?" Viper asked rhetorically. He responded without allowing Ty the time to guess, "This is my daughter Riddel. She is very ill, stricken with a touch of poison. I fear this poison will eventually take her life if she is not cured soon. You... my studies have shown you and your family are practitioners of Toxicology. I am glad whatever you found underneath those waves drew me to you. This is surely Fate. I need you to cure my little girl," the man said attempting to fight back tears.

"First...," Ty began as he looked over the child. "Promise me you'll let my friends and I go after I finish. Second; I need to know some details. How did she get poisoned, and what kind of poison is it?"

Viper took a deep breath as he remembered the unpleasant incident. "We were on one of the many uncharted islands east of Porre in hopes of establishing our rule there. The natives were Fiends and not the friendly Medinan variety. They were savages who used a lot of occult magic and brandished weapons glazed with poison. Not unlike what you do. During the nighttime hours while we slept some of those Fiends snuck aboard our ship while others entered our campsite. Fearing the worst, I left my Dragoons to deal with the Fiends at the camp while I darted back to the ship. I was just a moment too late though. A Fiend broke into Riddel's cabin and attempted to kidnap her. I managed to kill the Fiend, but not without their weapon cutting into my daughter," he explained solemnly.

Ty sent Viper a cross gaze, "Why did you have Riddel with you in the first place?"

"My daughter hates it when I'm gone for too long and since that was supposed to be a routine scouting trip for land expansion it didn't seem to be too dangerous," Viper explained. "But I was wrong..."

"And now your kid here pays the price...," Ty followed up.

"I don't expect a ruffian like you to understand what it's like to be a father!" Viper snipped back. "I simply want you to heal my daughter! I'll pay you anything! What do you want, jewels, gold, or women perhaps?"

Ty sighed heavily, "You don't need to bribe me to get me to help a kid Viper. I'm not made of stone. Only this, just let me and my coworkers go after this is done."

"You have my word as Captain of the Porrean Military, and head of the Viper Clan!" Viper said sternly.

"Good, now I need some things before I can do anything," Ty started. "First; I need to know what type of poison she's inflicted with. So if you have a sample that would be great. Second; I need a place to work."

"Done, one of the weapons, a crude knife was confiscated and there is a medical deck down below. You can work in there," Viper claimed.

"Alright, it's a start. Let's get to it," Ty replied.

*Medical Deck*

Ty was guided to the medical deck which was nice and clean and it resembled any common doctor's room. Viper showed Ty around, "You can study the toxin in here. If you need anything that will assist in making the cure simply let me or my men know," he explained.

Ty simply nodded as a Dragoon came in and handed him a wrapped-up object. Ty grasped the object and unraveled the white cloth. It was the crude fiend knife that was used to poison Riddel. Ty walked over to a lab table and gently placed it down. With that, Viper left Ty alone to work.

An hour passed as Ty ran the sample of poison from the knife and as he did he heard the door open and a figure sat down in a chair near the door. Ty turned his head to his strangely silent intruder. The figure was in a dark cloak, and no features were discernible underneath the hood. Ty became suspicious as the figure did not act hostile or say anything and seemed to simply sit there and monitor his progress. "Can I... help you?" Ty said curiously.

The figure let out a deep low chuckle. This person's laugh indicated they were male, "Hmm? Oh don't mind me, I just wanted to see a poison master's progeny at work is all," he said with interest.

"No offense, sir," Ty began as politely as possible. "But having you sit there and stare at me silently is a little creepy. It's kinda distracting really. I'm not so good at what I do when I feel like I'm performing for an audience..."

"Ah I see," the man replied, seemingly understanding. "I will leave you to your work..., but before I do allow me to ask you a question."

"Sure, what is it?" Ty replied.

"Do you realize you are in a situation where your actions can change the course of history for many decades to come?" the man asked.

Ty blinked with an expression of surprise, "Come again?"

The man chuckled again, "But of course! You've been given the keys to open the doors of Fate young man! Captain Viper has been placed in charge of a surprise attack on the nation of Guardia, but thanks to his daughter's affliction he can't focus. Your ability to remove the poison from Lady Riddel will judge whether or not Captain Viper will be mentally fit enough to go to war. If you fail the lives of both you and your friends are likely at stake, but if you succeed Viper's mind will be clear and his resolve strengthened! Success will bring about a bloody attack on Guardia that will cost many lives, lives that were lost because you helped Lady Riddel. Your nation, Choras, has something to gain from a Porrean Victory as well; your independence."

"Well that doesn't place any pressure on me at all...!" Ty said sarcastically. Ty was stunned, taking in all that had been said to him really placed him in the spotlight, "Well, it seems that no matter what I do, someone is going to die, but my arms can only reach so far… It's not really any of my business who goes to war with who, nor could I stop them either way. Only Lady Riddel and my friends are within my reach and I can save them and myself as long as I can craft this cure. If I do, then the Porreans will get the drop on an unprepared Guardia and lead in a bloody war, most likely with Porre as the victors. I can't do much about that. Regardless of who wins, Choras is guaranteed nothing. We may just switch who rules us as opposed to gaining independence. Nevertheless, my only moral choice now would be to save Lady Riddel and my friends. So that is what I'm gonna do."

The man laughed deeply with a sense of joy, "I'm quite happy you made your decision and Fate seems to have laid the path for you. I also heard of a special event the Royal Family is currently preoccupied with, so their minds aren't on war preparations. It must be a very special event to have the attention and priority of so many!"

"Yeah, it's been the latest kick, the Princess is getting married soon…," Ty explained.

"Ah, the Princess's big day! It is surely a big event indeed," said the man. "It would be such a shame for her to receive such woe on her most cherished day. Her alter dashed, her wine spilled upon the ground, mixing with the blood of her dying people, her fine cuisine lapped up by stray animals, her villages burned, and her town square leveled during the festivities. Yes, for it is much misery and woe indeed!"

Ty seemed a little put off at the man's strange remarks, but at the same time was not all that offended by it, "Yeah, that would ruin my day for sure…"

The stranger noticed Ty's discomfort, "Ah, are you offended by what I've said? You seem a tad unsure… Oh, I see it in you, you show some… disdain for the Princess of Guardia, do you not?"

Ty's expression changed to one of shock, "Um, well it's not like I outright hate her personally, but yeah, she is… a really big problem… that needs to… go away."

The man seemed intrigued, "Oh ho, tell me of her sins towards you…"

Ty scoffed under his breath, "First of all things, she and her father keep my nation bound to theirs and we have no power or say in the decisions they make. They have higher taxes on the Choras people along with other frivolous charges to prevent us from gathering wealth or passing it on to our descendants. They take our dignity by claiming the legendary Cyrus is a child and 'Hero of Guardia' despite him being from Choras. However, they instantly blame us for the defiling of his grave, so they fix it, glorify themselves, and shame us for something we could not rebuild because our nation is rock-bottom pore. They drive my people to work long hours with just enough pay to make our standard of living 'miserable'. Other than that, other small petty laws are placed on us... We've practically begged for our independence but are laughed out of their throne room without a second thought!" Ty explained getting more and more riled up.

"And now you have the power to change that!" said the man strongly. He then rose to his feet and while heading for the door he gazed at Ty, "Good luck, Drayguard!" he said with a chuckle as he left Ty's missing daggers on the table and left.

Ty sighed heavily as he lifted a flask with a strange yellow fluid in it. His mind was brought back to his work as he realized something about the mixture, "Oh, I know what kind of toxin this is!"

*Later*

Viper became anxious as Ty was able to explain the situation to him, "It's a toxin called 'Mojo'," Ty notified.

"Mojo? What sort of weird toxin is that?" Viper asked confused.

"Mojo is a cocktail-style poison made from many different toxins that work well with each other," Ty began. "The recipe is always different; a little of 'this' and a little of 'that', you know that sorta stuff."

"How can it be cured?" Viper asked, hoping for a clean-cut answer.

"That's difficult to answer considering it's one of the nastiest poisons in the world," Ty started as he crossed his arms. "If I had some Hydra Humour your daughter would be completely cured in as little as a single day. However, considering the Hydra is a critically endangered species that may not be possible to obtain. Another option is that if your daughter's blood type matched mine I could make a blood serum that contained my antibodies. My family's self-poisoning technique boosted our immunity as well as living in the poisonous marshes of northern Choras for nearly 400 years. It could give your daughter the edge to survive and kick the toxin out of her body, but it could take a while. The only other option is to keep giving her different panaceas and hope for a result."

Viper didn't like any option he was given. Nevertheless, he pressed on, "Does your blood type match my daughter's?" he asked.

"We can see, but if it doesn't then that option is a loss for us," Ty informed seriously.

Viper excused himself from the room and his Dragoons quickly brought a sample of Riddel's blood in a vial. The Dragoons left Ty to his work and with little effort, Ty reached his conclusion.

Viper was called back to the lab, "Well, Drayguard?"

Ty gave a glum look, "Nope, it's no good, no match..."

Viper let down his gaze, losing hope, "Wait, you said you lived in a marsh! Is there any Hydra...!" he said as he was cut off.

"Nope, there are none there. That's why the waters are so dirty and acidic," Ty said coldly.

"Is there anything you can do at all?!" Viper said growing angry.

"Well, we can find another Hydra or search the Black Market for Hydra parts; I would use the second option really," Ty informed. "Poachers know where to find Hydras and they hunt them for their expensive body parts. Meat, bones, blood all of it has worth."

Viper came to a decision, "Very well Drayguard, we'll set sail for Choras. In the meantime, you can stay here in the lab."

"What about Toma's ship?" Ty asked curiously.

"It's being sailed to Porre. It and its contents are being confiscated for the time being," Viper explained. "You'll get it back after Riddel is healed."

Ty sweated as he felt his blood run cold, "If they find the Flame aboard we are so doomed!" he thought. "Alright Viper, the Black Market should have something I can use."

"Good, no more wasting time then, let us be off!" Viper said as he left Ty in the room by himself.

*Three Days Later*

Viper's ship had kept its distance from Choras to make sure no one on the mainland became suspicious and reported their actions to Guardia. Ty was placed on a lifeboat with Posh and Gosh to assist him. Ty explained the situation to them and Posh was all too eager to help Ty, "So all we have to do is find some Hydra Humour from the Black Market? I will gladly purchase it for you, Ty!"

Gosh was grumpy as usual, "You do know how expensive Hydra parts are don't you?!"

"It matters not!" Posh scoffed. "I will gladly throw as much money down as needed to help Ty!"

"Hmph, whatever!" Gosh snubbed.

"This is gonna be a long day...," Ty moaned to himself.

*Choras, Choras City*

Choras City was the country of Choras's main capital city. It was large but had a feeling of poverty about it. Its infrastructure could use updating and the only structure that stood with majestic beauty was the Hero's Grave Mausoleum that stood at the northernmost end of the city. "So where is this 'Black Market anyway?" Gosh asked irately.

"Underground, we can take those stairs that lead into the sewer system beneath the city," Ty explained as he pointed out a flight of stairs that led underground.

"You know, I do wonder why Tomo is not with us," Posh said curiously.

"It matters not, this sewer is no place for a lady such as her!" Gosh defended as the party entered the sewer down below.

Posh instantly took offense, "So what am I then? Chopped liver?"

The two bickered as Ty simply sighed. The sewer offered something it had not before. Massive Rats, Bugs, and Bats attacked Ty and his group whenever they could. Despite the resistance, Ty was able to make it around the sewer, turn various valves and pull strange switches until he found the secret entrance into the black market.

"I thought we'd never find it!" Posh said relieved.

"Please let us hurry! Do you realize what I stepped in back there?!" Gosh said shivering in disgust.

"That's strange, I've never seen so many monsters in these sewers before. I hope that's not a bad sign...," Ty thought.

The black market underneath Choras was like an underground shopping district. It was lined with kiosk stands and had shady people walking up and down its dimly lit isles. "What a strange place," Posh said unnerved.

"I think you mean, 'disgusting'...," Gosh corrected.

"Well, this is Choras's Den you know," Ty explained. "Just don't wander off alone would you?"

"Not a chance!" Posh said as she cheerfully latched onto Ty's arm. Her brother snubbed the situation.

After a while, Ty came to a shady-looking shop that held many strange things. Most of those things were kept in jars or vials. Ty went up to the sales clerk and he seemed to be familiar with Ty, "Hiya, you uh, got any Hydra parts laying around? Like the Humour for instance?"

The shady man scratched his goatee, "A fresh kill came in from the south about a week ago. Scholars are now reporting the creature to now be officially extinct. A lot of it already sold, but I should have some Humour still laying around." He went into the back and fiddled around for a few moments before coming back with a large flask of a yellowish-green fluid. "Good news, it's our last bottle, fresh from the fridge!" he said with a smile.

"Wonderful, how much is the damage?" Ty asked humorously.

"About 50,000 gold," the clerk said as he placed it on the table.

Ty cringed, "Oh, that stings!" he said. Ty leaned over to Posh, "I hate to ask..."

"Think nothing of it, Mister Drayguard!" Posh said cheerfully as she pulled a special government-issued gold note from her wallet.

She handed it to the sales clerk after filling it out, "Wow, you guys mean business! Do you want that gift wrapped?"

"No thanks, that's about it for us!" Gosh said with urgency.

"Alright then! Ty, tell your dad I said hi for me would ya?" the clerk said as he waved them off.

"Right!" Ty said as he and the Lords siblings left the shop. "Now, let's get back we don't have time to mess around!" he said as the siblings agreed.

As the party left the sewer they began heading for the docks. During their trek, a woman came up to Ty running and panting. She resembled Tomo, but was middle-aged and wearing a tight brown corset top with white sleeves that left her shoulders bare. She also wore dark blue skin-tight pants and brown laced knee-high boots. Finally, she wore brown leather boots and was adorned with gold jewelry. "Ah, there you are, where is my husband, Toma?!"

"Tomo's mom, I wonder if her hindquarters are as good looking as Tomo's..., wait what am I thinking?!" Ty thought humorously. "Uh, well, he's preoccupied at the moment. Why do you need to see him is something wrong?"

"Not in a dangerous sort of sense," she began. "I got a letter from the Guardia Royal family. It seems to be a request."

"A request?" Posh asked curiously.

"Yes, please give this to my husband and tell my daughter I want her to come home soon," she said trying to hide her worry. Oh and Ty, be sure to visit your parents once in a while too, you'll make them worry!" she said turning and walking off.

Ty glanced at her bottom as she strutted off, "Yep, now I see why Toma kept this one!" he thought with a blush of embarrassment. "Don't worry we're almost done! We'll be back soon!" he shouted.

*Viper's Ship, The Snake Strike*

"You got the goods?" Viper asked hopefully.

"Yep, making the cure should be a breeze!" Ty said with a confident smirk.

"Wonderful, you do Porre and I a great commission lad!" Viper said swelling with joy.

Ty was guided back to the lab where over several hours managed to construct the cure for Riddel. It was administered and her condition improved within a single hour. She awoke, albeit weakly, and asked for a glass of water. Her father gave her the water with loving tears of joy in his eyes.

"There, your daughter should be fully rejuvenated by tomorrow," Ty said with a smile.

"Thank you, as promised you'll get your ship back along with its cargo. It'll be a few days until we reach Porre, but you have my word," Viper said honorably.

"Thank goodness!" Ty thought with relief.

Ty was then led to a small cozy cabin to stay for the duration of the trip. He was finally allowed to let himself relax. He lay on the bed and opened the letter from the Guardia Royal family. It was a very pretty letter as it had decorations made with gold glitter adorning it. The letter read, "Dear Toma XIII, I have a special request of you on behalf of the royal family line of Guardia. Please send your best as it is the single most important time of my life and I want it to be as perfect as possible! You will be rewarded handsomely, Princess Nadia Guardia." he read aloud. Ty chuckled as he placed the letter back in his bag and drifted off to sleep.

*End of Chapter*