The Throne of Flame: Chapter Twelve
With Madagascar close, Skipper had everyone ordered to return back to the main control room, as it turned out that some of them had dispersed after he and Julien left (namely Rico, who was still messing with that cupcake tin for reasons Skipper did not bother to decipher). With everyone present, he allowed Julien to take a seat, but commanded everyone else to stand in a line. As they did such, he began to march back in forth in front of them, pacing.
At first, they were all apprehensive and concerned over this, unsure of what to expect, but did as told. Maurice was not prepared for military interrogation formation, but his boys were, and they all exchanged incredibly frightened glances. Skipper was not known to go easy on things he disapproved of, a detail they all knew from personal experience. Once his men - and Maurice, now by extension - were lined up nicely, he broke out something he hadn't used in awhile - his legitimate military commander voice.
"After the recent incident," the word came off of Skipper's tongue in an inconspicuously accusatory manner, "I've come to the conclusion that there is an assassin among us."
Private gasped the loudest, but the expressions of concerned shock were all around the room. Maurice looked like he'd seen a ghost, and Rico patted Private's shoulders as the young penguin began to tremble. The only one who looked unsurprised was Kowalski, but that was most likely because to him, this was old news. He had no doubt already figured out this detail. Skipper decided to take advantage of such; the brains of his team never let him down when it came to situation assessment.
"Kowalski, analysis - and, options, while you're at it." Skipper nodded to the scientist, who seemed somewhat pleased at being able to shed light on the turmoil.
He cleared his throat and stepped forward, but apprehensively stepped back into line when Skipper glowered at him. "...Well, it appears that either the assassin is one of us - which is highly unlikely - or that we have a stowaway, sir." Kowalski explained. "I suggest that we-"
"One of us?! By golly, you mean, one of us could be… A killer?" Private whimpered, keening softly at the very insinuation.
"Mercy," Maurice seemed as though he was about to faint, but before he could, seated himself on the floor of the submarine. Skipper was partially tempted to tell him to get back on his feet, but he knew that it would be pointless.
Rico was the only one who seemed unperturbed by this information, but then again, he was rarely concerned with danger, even when it looked him right in the face. Instead, he was more focused on the far end of the wall as if it held the answers to the universe, despite it being barren. That was Rico for you.
Skipper's stress, however, was heavy on his beak, weighing it down into a frown. He hadn't truly considered the possibility that the assassin was one of his own. He turned to Julien to see that the lemur only held slight interest in this conclusion; he still reclined in the chair, relaxed as ever, (aside from his injured arm, which he fidgeted over) but was eying all four of the animals lined up in scrutiny.
"As I was saying," Kowalski glared at Private in specific, no doubt peeved at the interruption. "We could search the ship for the stowaway. There aren't many places to hide."
"I thought you said it was possible that the assassin was one of us?" Skipper rose a brow, surprised that Kowalski skipped over any options for that possibility, especially right after Private and Maurice had made it into such a huge deal.
The intelligence of their team nodded, but it was with mild exasperation. "Yes, that could very well be the case, but the chances are slim to none, sir. No one here has any reason to kill Julien, especially considering the fact that we've put in so much effort into protecting him. I mean… We built a submarine and traveled to another continent, sir."
Julien snorted softly at this, but only Skipper heard. He fought the smile that was urging it's way onto his beak. He wasn't sure why he found it so amusing that Julien must have thought Kowalski's words bordered on supercilious, or even presumptuous, but it humored the commander. He didn't let it show.
"Fair enough." Skipper nodded. He couldn't very well imagine any of his men - and especially not Maurice, what with how much the aye-aye loved Julien - wanting to kill the king. He returned to his normal voice. "Interrogation over, then. Let's start a search of th-"
Before he could finish, the ship began to shake violently, and a loud crash was heard. Water began to flood into the main control center from one of the other rooms, catching them all off guard enough to knock the penguins and lemurs onto the floor. Salt water was rising immediately into a shallow pool around their feet, and within seconds it was around their waists.
"Sir, the sub is exploding!" Kowalski exclaimed hysterically as torrents of water began to flood in.
"Yes, I can see that!" Skipper snapped. This was no time for panic. He instantly grabbed onto Julien's paw. He looked the startled lemur right in the eyes, and with a firm yet cautious tone, the command was out his beak just in time. "Hold your breath."
Everyone had time to process and follow through with this order just as Skipper yanked the chair out from under the king and threw it at the main window, where it cracked through the glass. Water was flooding in from all directions now, but Skipper didn't allow any time to slip by, not when their vessel was on the verge of detonation. He was guiding his men and the lemurs, and they were swimming out into the deep blue within moments, Skipper holding Julien by the arm. He swam with purpose, Julien only a fraction of an inch behind him. In the midst of the wreckage, he could have sworn he saw a dark figure that strongly resembled a platypus, but resolved the concept to his imagination. He didn't have time to think more on it.
It wasn't his first time escaping an exploding submarine, but it most definitely was for Julien and Maurice, who began to lag severely. They weren't aquatic beings, not like the penguins were, so Skipper made sure to aid Julien carefully - and from the looks of it, Rico had a strong hold on Maurice. Adrenaline could only do so much, even in near-death situations such as this one. The surface came into view, being that they weren't that deep down. In the distance, the sub destructed entirely, propelling them upwards with it's incredible blast. They had cut it close.
They breached the surface suddenly, all gasping for air. For a moment, the world spun, the sky and the ocean all flipping this way and that in a chaotic blur, but Skipper was quick to refocus himself. The water-training he'd been through, and put his men through, wasn't for nothing. After gaining control over his vision and mind once more, he turned in the water slightly and was met with an unreal sight.
Before them floated the sunkissed land of Madagascar, within a few feet. The lush foliage of the jungle loomed over it's pale coast to complete the scene of wonder, and above the sensual waves of the ocean, a bird cawed distantly. Skipper glanced to his men and the lemurs, who were all staring up at Madagascar in astonishment.
Not wasting anymore time, they began to wade to the sandy beaches of the tropical island they'd been seeking out. Private wasn't exaggerating when he said they'd been close, and Skipper was immensely thankful that he had been correct. Had they been a mile off, the swim would have been much less simple, and he couldn't imagine Julien and Maurice being able to keep up for that long. Their bodies were not meant for the water.
They crawled onto the beach, joints aching from the intense swimming they'd just done. The firmness of land was pleasant after having been in the sub for such a great deal of travel. Skipper, however, was the only one who felt instantaneous relief. Julien was coughing behind him, one hand clutching Skipper's wing and the other at the damp sand of his homeland.
Skipper looked to him sympathetically, knowing that Julien had been far from prepared for a swim, and rubbed his flipper over the mammal's back in a comforting manner. Julien merely sent him a grateful expression, clearing his throat once more, before he regained his composure. The two of them rose to stand in a simultaneous fashion, and Skipper reluctantly released Julien's paw when he recalled that they were not alone.
There was no time for inappropriate behavior, no matter how innocent his intentions were, towards the king when his men were around. Luckily, his consternation was for naught when it became evident that no one was focused on the two of them. Instead, they were rather caught up in their own shock at what had just occurred.
"Well," Kowalski heaved through a deep breath. "That… Wasn't part of the plan."
"Uh-huh." Rico nodded in agreement from where he was patting Maurice on the back, who was still attempting to expunge the water from his lungs.
Kowalski turned his eyes back to the sea critically, before he nodded to himself as though in confirmation of something. "It appears that… Whoever was responsible for the destruction of our sub placed explosives from the outside."
"No kiddin'," Maurice cringed as his voice came out hoarse. "How else would they have done it?"
"Doesn't matter." Skipper huffed as he helped Julien onto his two feet, still slightly short of breath himself. "What does matter is that they probably went down with the explosion. Which means…"
"No more assassin?" Private piped up, voice expectant.
Skipper nodded. "Yes, no more assassin, young Private." A pause. "That, and no more way home."
All fell silent at this, their eyes trained on the large expanse of water before them as they attempted to soak up this information. Julien, however, was less than interested in a staring contest with the sea, and instead gently pulled at Skipper's arm to get his attention. When the penguin turned to the lemur, he saw that Julien appeared immensely concerned, his vivid and exotic eyes twinkling with worry.
"I wouldn't be so sure that whoever it is, is gone," Julien murmured beneath his breath so that only Skipper could hear. "My previous hitmen have been… Very persistent."
To say that Julien's doubt was alarming would be an understatement. Julien had been starkly casual about all of this, so to see sincere concern on his features only made Skipper all the more paranoid. He was still unsure about whether or not Julien's carelessness towards the situation was a facade he drew up around those that were not Skipper himself, but acquainting himself with the idea took time. Regardless, Julien was frightened, and that in itself was reason for concern on Skipper's behalf. He could worry about a way home later - what mattered at that very moment was making sure that Julien was safe.
He was just about to confront this issue further, demand that Julien elaborate on his own paranoia, but before he could, collective exclamations of joy interrupted his train of thought. The penguins, Maurice and Julien all turned towards the jungle to see what may have been hundreds of lemurs approaching, all with ecstatic expressions. The newcomers were surrounded within moments, glee permeating the crowd. Julien's lemur kingdom engulfed them in chatter, all reaching out excitedly to see their king.
If Julien was at all dismayed by this interruption, he didn't let it show, and instead a smile was plastered to his face within moments and he began to wave joyously to his delighted lemurs.
"The king has come home! The king has returned!"
"King Julien! He's back, he's finally back!"
"It's the king! The king is here, he's here!"
"Oh, he brought the weird birds with him!"
"King Julien!"
"Thank the Sky Gods, our prayers have been answered!"
"You know what this calls for?"
"A party!"
