VII
Sarah continued hushing and rocking him close to her body. She gently swayed back and forth keeping him tight in her arms. Her clothes were soaked and sticking to her chest. Jim sat there trembling and quivering. His cheek was pressed against her chest. His breaths were broken and eyes wide and mouth agape. He did not move and it was his mother who pulled him in his arms. He sat there silently and to himself wondering what happened.
Captain Amelia walked in and said Silver's name. Silver said a quick goodbye to him. He made him promise to see the greatness in himself. He told Morph to keep an eye on him. He was about to say something to his mother then was dragged out of the room.
"Mom, what just happened?" he asked softly. "I don't understand."
"They took John away," replied Sarah with one breath and a hard swallow.
"Why?" wondered Jim.
"Because he's a pirate," said Sarah.
"But he's a good man," said Jim.
Sarah shut her eyes. "I know, but he's a pirate and they're going to kill him."
"But he's a good man," Jim told her. "He's a good man."
"I know," said Sarah. "But—"
"Damn it! Mom, I don't want to hear it!" Jim screamed as he pulled away. "I'm not going to just sit here and let him die while we talk about how good of a man he is. I'm going to save his life!"
He scoot to the edge of the bed then stepped his feet on the ground as he kept a scream in his throat. The pressure on his left arm and he scoot to the edge was killing him. He only began moving his arm the previous day and he spilt the weight of his torso on in half on that arm. Squeezing his eyes shut and pressing the pain to the back of his head, he stood up. Immediately, his knees gave away. He should have known that would happen, for he hadn't been on his feet in about three weeks.
"Jim!" Sarah cried, dropping to her knees and getting him up.
The second he was on his feet, he pushed her back and took a few steps forward before falling against Livesey. He looked up at him with tears falling from his blue eyes. The tears were of pleading and pain, but mostly pleading.
Livesey looked at Jim and nodded his head. He set one of his arms around Jim's shoulders and under his knees to carry him back to his bed. "Stay here. I'll see what I can find out."
"He's a good man. He doesn't deserve to die," Jim told him.
"I know," said Livesey quietly. He tucked the blue blanket around Jim and set his palms on his shoulders. "You stay here and rest. I know he would want you to rest."
Jim nodded. He sat there looking so alone and lost. His eyes distantly searched the room then finally settled on a gold ring on his finger. Wanting to be alone and away from everything, he sunk beneath the blankets on his bed and pulled them close to his face covering everything but his eyes. He then burrowed his face into his pillow. Almost knowing how he felt, Morph settled himself beside Jim's forehead and curled up beside him trying to comfort him like he saw Silver do countless times before.
"Jim," Sarah whispered, sitting beside him.
"Just leave me alone," Jim told her softly, hiding his face more.
With a heavy sigh, Sarah stood. She gave him a kiss on the forehead to simply tell him that she was right there and still loved him very much. While leaving the room, she nudged the other two out of the room as well. The moment she shut the door, she heard Jim's wailing and crying. He was so strong for them and only them. She should have known him wanting to be alone meant he wanted to cry in peace.
"Now what?" Tom asked.
"I'm going to find out what I can," Livesey said. "Tom, you're in charge. There shouldn't be any severe issues with anyone while I'm gone and I'm not expecting to be gone for very long."
"I'm going for a walk," Sarah told them.
She was clearly on a mission for her own doing. Something was deeply wrong in the world. Why would someone simply walk in like that and arrest a good man. She could only assume that was the captain of the Legacy and if the captain was back then so was the crew and Delbert. She was off to find him. He would have the answers she was looking for. It wasn't just why Silver was arrested that she wanted to know. Nope, she wanted to know where the hell he was when Jim was getting beaten up and why he did nothing to stop it.
Delbert Doppler. Where would he be? The only logic in where he would be was back on Montressor so it was only logic for her to go there. Of course, the ship did just dock so he could still be on the ship. Since she was close by the ship, she decided to walk aboard the ship. A few of the officers from the Navy were walking about and keeping watch on the gangplank. Knowing her fortune and the way fortune was treating her recently, she wouldn't be allowed clearance aboard the ship, but it was worth a try at least.
She approached them. "Excuse me officers, I was just wondering if I could get my son's things. He was cabin boy on this ship, but he was hurt so he was brought here before the ship arrived. His name is Jim Hawkins and mine is Sarah Hawkins."
"Sarah?" Delbert's voice asked.
Seeing it was indeed her, he set an arm around her shoulders. He led her past the officers who stood at attention when he walked past. His pace quickened when they walked on deck since he saw her impatience growing more. Once in the main cabin, he set her in a chair and pulled up a chair as well.
"Sarah, Jim didn't come back with us. A pirate took him," he told her gravely.
"No!" Sarah said with sarcastic shock. She stood on her own two feet. "Where were you? You told me not to worry about Jim before we left and you weren't anywhere to be found when he was continually injured. And for your information, that pirate saved his life. Silver has been with me for three weeks and he's been looking after Jim."
"Jim's here?" wondered Delbert shocked. "Is he all right?"
"He was before Silver was taken away from him," Sarah told him. She collapsed in her chair. "Delbert, why was Silver arrested? Don't tell me because he's a pirate."
"Uh," began Delbert, his eyes searching for an answer. "Well, Sarah, he is a pirate and he's wanted on more than one planet in the universe. He did mutiny and that is a crime."
"But he's a good man," Sarah told him.
"I can't say that I agree with you," admitted Delbert. "I haven't seen him do any good."
"Where were you the entire time?" wondered Sarah.
"I was with the captain," replied Delbert.
"And where was Jim or do you not know that either?" snapped Sarah.
"He was under Silver's charge and watch," said Delbert.
Succumbing to the fact that he didn't know anything about what happened to her son, she slumped in the chair and let her head fall into her hand. "What happened? After the mutiny what happened?"
"What did you mean when you said Jim was hurt?" Delbert asked.
"Just tell me what happened first," said Sarah softly.
"We were locked in the jail cell to begin with," replied Delbert. "The pirates locked us in there while getting the treasure. It was just Amelia and I. They needed Jim to open the map. Well, it didn't take us long to figure out they had the treasure in hand since they were walking by us carrying it and I suppose they were attempting to taunt us about it. We did find out that Silver took Jim, which I have to say gave me quite a fright. Amelia managed to unlock the door with a hairpin after a few days when the pirates were sleeping. Of course, we got them in the cell. We ourselves went down to the planet's surface to recover more of the treasure.
"Did you know that the map is also a key to a portal? It's fascinating really. I mean, with one little push of a button you could be halfway across the galaxy and in a different galaxy altogether. All the little planets that we saw are, in fact, portals. That's how Flint did it all those years. I can't tell you what happened to the planet or where we came from though."
"It took two months to get to Treasure Planet and it's only been three weeks since you found the treasure. I know about the trap. You had to have left the portal open so you could get here sooner," said Sarah.
Delbert nodded then shook his head. "Yes, but I can't tell you where. Only Amelia and I know where we left it open and the portal is in fact a one way image. You can see it on Treasure Planet but the moment you leave the portal and turn to it in a different location it simply disappears. I don't know the exact heading where the portal is. She doesn't need me to know yet and we aren't sure what to do about the treasure either. Now, what about Jim?"
"Is she going to kill John?" wondered Sarah.
"John?" asked Delbert slowly.
"Silver. John Silver," Sarah told him.
"It's up to the courts," said Delbert. "Between you and me it doesn't look too good in his favor."
"He can't die. Jim needs him and I need him. He's a good man. I need him to help my son," said Sarah hopelessly. "Jim has a mechanical arm. His arm was infected with blood poisoning and gangrene. From shoulder to fingertip, it is all a silver compound. He's also got a silver plate in his head where his skull was cracked."
"Is he doing okay?" wondered Delbert, standing from his chair to move closer to her.
"He was just starting to move his arm and get used to it. Silver was helping him more than I ever did," said Sarah. "It's so hard on him to do this himself. He has so many medicines he has to take to help keep the pain down and help him heal."
"And you?" wondered Delbert.
Sarah shrugged her shoulders. "Better now that he's awake, but not so good since Silver has been arrested. Do you think there is any possible means to get him back to Jim?"
"I don't know, but I would talk to Amelia. Well, don't talk to Amelia. She has a bit of a sore for Silver right now and couldn't stop talking about seeing him hang. She wasn't one to appreciate pirates before and after they mutinied her on her own ship she's definitely not one to appreciate even more," Delbert told her.
"It's worth a try. I'm afraid to lose Jim," said Sarah.
"If you don't mind my asking Sarah," began Delbert. "Can I ask why you need Silver?"
Sarah sighed. "Delbert, please don't say anything to anyone else about this and I know you really, really like to say things to people."
Delbert Doppler stood and crossed his heart with his forefinger and raised his right hand. "I Doctor Delbert Doppler, promise not to say anything about what Sarah Hawkins is about to say to me."
Sarah smiled and couldn't help the little giggles that came from her. Ever since she knew him when she moved to Montressor, he was always an odd fellow and that was one of his perks of oddness that she adored. "Thanks Delbert. Well, to being with, when you saw Silver and Jim together what did you think of them?"
"Jim seemed happy with him and he respected him. He respected Silver more than he respects you," noted Delbert.
Sarah smiled even more as she lowered her head. "I've put in a request for adoption papers."
Wondering if he heard her correctly, Delbert looked at her oddly and shocked. He pointed at her then out the window like he was pointing at Jim. Once she nodded her head and blushed red, he nodded and smacked his palm to his forehead then pulled down. "Sarah, he's a pirate who is most likely going to be hanged for piracy and you want him to adopt your son?"
"What is wrong with that?" wondered Sarah, her voice fierce and eyes angered. "Jim needs a father and John is a good man."
"He's a pirate. Pirates aren't good men. They steal and lie and cheat and mutiny and steal and kill and murder and take," Delbert told her. Seeing her frustration, he gently grabbed her arms. "I don't want to see you hurt again by another man."
"Leland was a mistake," admitted Sarah distantly. "He said he wanted to be a father, but he didn't have the heart of a father. John has the heart of a father. Jim needs him and he loves Jim like his own son already. I don't know what it is Delbert. There is something about John that I trust."
Looking at her closely, Delbert was seeing something different on her face than just trust. She was not a person who trusted very easily. Her eyes looked lighter and full of something wonderful and sweet. Her completion was rosy, like she was nearly blushing. A smile was most always present on the corners of her lips. When she spoke of Silver, her eyes smiled. He knew this look very well.
"Sarah, why not simply marry him?" he asked.
"I've only known him for a total of three weeks," replied Sarah honestly. "People simply don't get engaged to be married after three weeks of knowing each other."
"And a mother allows a man she has known for three weeks to adopt her fifteen year old son who she has raised since he was created?" wondered Delbert.
With no answer, Sarah turned away blushing red again. She wasn't falling for John. No, she simply trusted him with her son and trust was a difficult trait to gain by her. She trusted him more than she probably should have. There was no one else in the world that she trusted to care for her son. Not even David Livesey came close to how much she trusted Silver. Trusting someone was not the same as falling in love with him. She simply trusted him.
"Well then," noted Delbert, breaking the odd silence that was going on between the two of them. "I'll get you Jim's things and then I intend on seeing Jim."
"I don't think that is the best thing right now," Sarah told him. "Before I left, he told us to leave him alone and he does need to be left alone. I'll ask him and see what he thinks tomorrow."
"All right then," said Delbert, walking to a shelf at the end of the room and to a brown sack. "I think everything is here. I didn't check, but don't think anything is missing."
"Thanks Delbert," said Sarah.
Delbert said his hand on her shoulder. "Do you want lunch? I'll pay."
"I want my son back. If it was worth a price to have him back, I would pay anything," said Sarah.
After lunch and a bit of catching up, Sarah returned to the hospital and her son's bedside. He was sleeping of course and cuddling Morph with both arms, although Morph seemed more content in his left arm than right. The blanket was pulled all the way to his face and Morph was squished against his cheek softly pulsing. She knew Jim had cried himself to sleep. His eyes were red and puffy and his bangs were sticking to his face.
Sarah softly went to his side and pulled the stick away. She took a damp cloth and wiped away the tear lines that she could reach. Neither of them moved but closer into each other. It was as though they were each other's reminder of Silver and if he wasn't there they needed each other. He was most likely going to sleep the rest of the night through and wake up with a headache and the first thing he would ask was the location of Silver and what was going to happen to him.
How could she tell him? Listening to Delbert speak of all the things Silver did in his past didn't seem in a good favor for any of them. The man was wanted on a dozen planets across the universe and had the death sentence on eight other once if he was to set foot or be seen near the planet. He was every definition of a pirate and it was astonishing that he had made it this long. She didn't know much about Cyborgs, but she knew he was the first Cyborg she ever met in her life. Running an inn for four years and people constantly coming in and out would have given her the indication that she had seen it all. Not having seen a Cyborg until John Silver appeared into her life, she wondered further. Clearly, those wanted posters were looking for a Cyborg and how many Cyborgs were roaming the universe? Apparently there were more than she thought there were.
Fingers tapped on the door and just a hand motioned her outside the door. It was a human hand so she knew it was not Delbert. She had a feeling who it was though and she was right.
Livesey pulled her down three flights of stairs and into his office where Tom was also pacing back and forth in worry. He set her in a chair and pressed a cup of tea in her lap.
Sarah looked at the tea and shook her head. "What did you find out?"
"There is going to be a trial tomorrow actually," began Livesey.
"Well, they wasted no time setting that up," Sarah noted, suddenly taking drink of the tea.
"It is going to be a public trial—"
"I'm going!" Sarah announced immediately, spilling tea over herself and the floor but not seeming to care.
"It's at nine so you better be there waiting at least an hour early. Public trials of pirates are always a topic of interest and you should probably be there at seven so you can get a good seat. They may or may not call witnesses to defend him, although I rather doubt it because he's wanted on a dozen planets and has the death penalty on eight more," continued Livesey.
"How long do you think he has if he is sentenced to death?" Tom asked.
"It depends on what his sentence is and where it is to be carried out," said Livesey.
"I don't suppose Jim voicing his opinion will help," wondered Sarah.
"No, it won't help. He's injured and his head isn't right. The three of us know that his head isn't right. Since Jim can't remember what happened to him and his injuries, they will try to play with his head and convince him that Silver did it," Livesey told them. "I've seen this too many times before. Too many a good man is killed because of one wrongdoing and other times there was no choice to steal. It was steal or starve, and if you steal and are caught then at least you get food and somewhere to sleep at night. Perhaps running away wasn't the best thing after—"
"Then the three of us would have been separated and lost from each other forever and we would have had our lives determined for us," Tom said.
Livesey nodded. "I know, but you aren't the one who lost his twin brother."
"It wasn't your fault. It's what he wanted. We did what he wanted us to do," whispered Tom.
"I feel I shouldn't be in here anymore," noted Sarah, standing.
"My name is Jacob Raines. Tom is Owen Raines. Our father is Douglas Raines," Livesey said. "I had a twin brother, but he was killed while we were trying to escape. I was fifteen at the time. We had no money for school or life so father stole while we attended school. I never finished formal schooling. Because there were wanted posters for us with our descriptions on it, I had to change my eye color. We went to the medical planet and I had red dye injected into my eyes to turn the indigo into violet. It was then when I was discovered to have a talent for medicine and they got me into the Academy and we changed our names to Livesey, our mother's maiden name and simply chose a first name to go by for the rest of our lives. Tom and I are runaway convicts who are still wanted somewhere. Father is sentenced to life the prison planet of X-185. My father stole so Tom and I could have a life. They didn't listen to him and so they imprisoned him. Sarah, I wouldn't waste my breath to try to save Silver. I don't think you're going to get very far. All you are going to do is get a heartache from having to watch them convict him guilty."
"I have to try to save him. I'm not going to sit back and do nothing. Jim was right. At least trying to save someone good is better than watching him die knowing no one in the world defended him," Sarah said.
Both Tom and Livesey nodded their heads at her, agreeing the same.
"I don't know what good it will do if any, but I will come with you and try to help. He is a good man and I don't want to see him die because of something silly," said Livesey. "Tom, you stay here."
"And what am I supposed to tell Jim when he wakes tomorrow morning?" wondered Tom.
"We had something to take care of," replied Livesey.
"About Silver?" wondered Tom obviously.
"Make something up. You're good at that," said Livesey.
"And what happens if they want Jim there?" asked Tom.
"We'll deal with that when the time comes," replied Livesey.
"You have your doubts," noted Sarah.
"I do, but I'm not going to see another fifteen year old lose a father again," said Livesey.
Sarah nodded. She could not contain herself and so she walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him, feeling that she could trust him a little more. This was a man who understood the pain her son was going through. He rubbed her back in comfort as if already comforting her for the worst. Each passing moment that she was awake and thinking more and more about Silver's situation, hopelessness was overcoming her. He was a pirate and a good man. The problem with the world was that good deeds did not redeem a man who was a criminal. He made his choice to pirate long ago and they would have no evidence to make them believe that he wouldn't pirate again.
History was history. Having Jim as a son, she knew the history of the Caribbean pirates long, long ago. Those that did have licenses to pirate abused them and were hanged for it. Others took to the license or vowed to end piracy but did not. These days there were no licenses to pirate. If there was a situation that required acts of piracy, it was to be done by the Navy and therefore legal. They would not let Silver continue to sail in the Navy either because of his criminal record. The Navy was one to destroy criminals and the second a man committed a single crime he was considered a criminal and therefore evil.
She did not sleep that night as she watched her son continue to sleep. All she thought about was what would happen to him the moment he was told that Silver was going be hanged as a pirate without mercy. Her son saw something in him and trusted him. Gaining Jim's trust was more difficult than gaining her trust. Somehow, Silver got through to him to gain his respect and admiration. The two of them gained each other's respect and opened doors. Silver's heart was once again kindling red and glowing. Jim had the fire that once again began to burn. Both fires slowly faded when Silver was arrested.
If Silver died, her son would ultimately give up too. She had a feeling he would do that. He had a mechanical arm and that was killing him having to live with it. They were still telling him that no one would think of him different and he was only listening and comforted when Silver said it. She knew her son would die because she could do nothing that prevented him from falling into his melancholy after Leland left them. Failing once meant that she would most likely fail again. John Silver was the only thing that would and could save her son. Without him, it was only a matter of time before he killed himself or simply gave up without a care.
Giving up with no care for life seemed like what he was going to do. He wanted to give up. He didn't see that greatness that she once saw. She once saw that greatness in him when he was a child. He excelled at everything he did was top of his class. After he was abandoned, the flames of greatness were gone from him and they must have come back for Silver to speak with that compassion. She knew the only way a person could go on was to see the greatness and confidence. He had to see it within himself to move on.
Quite simply, if he wasn't going to get on his feet and push through his issue with his arm then there was no possible way for him to see that greatness. He had to solve one problem at a time. Right now, he had to see himself with a mechanical arm and a silver plate in his head. He was beginning to see himself like that and work to fixing his head. And, of course, it was John Silver who got him that far. She needed that man back or she was going to lose her son.
Hearing voices from a distance, Jim felt he was between two different worlds. His head hurt, but he knew why his head hurt.
At first, Jim breathed through his teeth because of the pressure then settled when he felt the coolness of the pink blob settle into his skin. He slumped lower.
"Do you want something?" Tom asked.
"No," replied Jim.
"But you do need your morning doses," reminded Tom.
Grumbling, Jim slumped more. He was hoping Tom didn't remember that he had to choke that down every morning and night. Recently, he had begun to simply drink his medicines. He was getting used to the foul taste really. It wasn't that bad. After he finished his glasses and handing them to Tom, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"It's not bad really. It tastes like an old, sour alcohol," he told him.
Tom rolled his eyes. He turned his back with the glasses in hand. Curiously, he brought a glass to his tongue. That one happened to smell like acidic fuel. He gagged when the taste was sensed on his tongue and set the glasses down.
"It tastes like oil," he told him.
Jim poked at his shoulder. Forgetting Morph was there, the little shape shifter giggled and went back to his pink form after being tickled. He nuzzled into Jim's neck again and floated there contently.
"Do you want real food to get that taste out of your mouth?" wondered Tom.
"It never leaves no matter what I eat. I've gotten used to it because of that," said Jim with a shrug.
"Well I'm going to get something to eat because I don't think I can have that taste in my mouth forever," said Tom.
Jim had to smile when he watched him leave the room gagging. "It's not that bad really," he told Morph.
Morph shifted into an image of Silver. "Good lad."
His mood suddenly shifting, Jim turned away. His face sank and a cold shiver passed through his body. He wondered where Silver was right now. The thought of him being in some small, tight, cold cell chained to the wall gave him shivers. Silver wasn't a man to like to be confided. He knew that. Silver had a free soul. When this was all over, he wanted to get Silver on a solar surfer and teach him to ride. Not only did he want to see if he could do it, but it would be the most amusing thing watching him try to get it down.
He taught himself to ride and got a little banged up. Nothing serious of course. No broken bones. Of all the times he fell off and skid across the ground, he merely got bruised up. He had to admit it was a miracle he didn't already have any mechanical limbs. All the times he had fallen or jumped from high distances or ran to get out of trouble left him with mere bruises. One of those bruises was a bone bruise and he was limping for a week another time, but it was nothing severe.
The images of Silver bouncing off the ground or turning his cannon on the solar surfer for revenge caused him to begin laughing. He could picture Silver doing just fine then something going wrong and him bouncing off the ground and rolling. The moment he got on his feet, he would whip out his cannon and blast the contraption to pieces then feel bad about it. Knowing his luck though, Jim had a small feeling Silver would pick it up right away because he knew how to operate a ship and the two were similar in concept, but surfing required balance and agility, something he questioned Silver to have.
He was confident Silver wouldn't get the death penalty. He couldn't. He was a good honest man who changed. The expression on his face was gentle and fatherly with the occasion red eye of anger and frustration. His clothes were more normal looking and he hadn't done any harm since he arrived. Good deeds had to change a man. If he was so evil and such a criminal like the world thought him to be, he would be long away from there by now and his tracks long gone from record. A person who would continue to do wrong and commit crimes wouldn't stay in one place so he could be caught. No, he would leave and continue to run. Silver settled down finally so clearly he was ready to end his wrongdoings and do good.
"Oo!" Morph noted as he was burrowing in a brown sack in a chair at the other end of the room.
"That's mine that was," began Jim excitedly then calmed more, "was on the Legacy. Morphy, I don't suppose you can drag that over here?"
The little pink blob transformed into a hook and latched onto the strap. It wasn't long before both realized he wasn't a powerhouse.
"I'll get it," Jim said. "I want another try at this. Won't it make Silver proud of me seeing that I can stand on my own when he gets back here? He'll be happy and proud that I am trying to push past my squalls."
He drew a deep breath to prepare to try this again. It would hurt and he knew it would hurt, but he had to start somewhere. Like before, he scooted to the edge of the bed and set his feet down. His arm didn't hurt too badly since he was more careful this time and not in a rush. Slowly, he pushed off his arms, the right one more than his left, until he rose to his feet. Standing and not feeling too weak, he smiled.
A step was taken forward and he did stumble a bit, but that was expected. He grabbed onto the night table.
Morph was looking at him with concern and softly whining.
"I'll be okay Morph, and if anything happens you are here to get Tom," Jim told him.
Still not liking this, Morph narrowed his eyes. Keeping a close eye on Jim, he magnified his eyes and hovered over his shoulder.
"Morph, you scare me sometimes," Jim muttered.
The teenager took another step forward, stumbling again. Foot by foot, he slowly stepped forward. His legs were weak and shaky and his right knee hurt. He made a promise though. He promised Silver he would get better and show the world what he was made of. First, he had to see what he was made of, but once Silver got back they would find that out together.
He reached out to grab the sack with his right hand out of habit. Remembering something he was told, he pulled his right hand back and moved his left arm forward. He didn't think too hard about moving his arm because it messed up his mind. He knew he had to grab his sack and so that's all he thought about. Watching him reach forward, he felt odd. His arm was moving but he wasn't feeling it move. The second his fingers curled around the strap, he smiled. That was as far as he had gotten and he did it. He didn't break down or cry like before. He simply had to push past all the squalls and simply do it.
Not sure if he should lift it with his left arm yet because he didn't remember how heavy it was, he switched out his hands and lifted the sack with his right arm. Wise thinking on his part. There was a bit of weight to the sack and he probably would have dropped it several times and gotten frustrated and then broke down on the floor and, knowing his luck, his mother would have walked in right there when he was on the floor having a breakdown.
Small clapping hands applauded his success.
Jim was beaming as he sat back on his bed. Not only did he manage to walk across the room by himself without falling or getting into trouble, but he also moved his arm out and grabbed his sack. Silver was going to be so proud of him when he got back. He couldn't wait to show him that he could walk and move his arm better.
Morph dived into the sack again and returned with two photographs.
"Those are my parents," Jim told him, motioning to the photo in Morph's right hand. He pointed to a small three year old boy and an older man's arms. "And this is me and my father. He just bought me Treasure Planet. It was the day before his long mission on the other side of the galaxy."
A metal cube was floating in the air in front of his face. The lid flipped open and inside was images of what looked like paper.
Immediately recognizing that little cube, Jim's eyes narrowed in wonder as he poked Morph. "You found it didn't you?"
A pink smiled widened across Morphs face.
"Do you know where it is?" wondered Jim. "Is it on Montressor?" Morph nodded. "Who has it? Silver?"
Morph nodded again.
Jim smiled softly. He looked at the picture of his parents again. They were dancing in the main room. It was evening and the soft colors were glowing on them. The sun was in the background. He had her low, in a dip. She had her foot in the air. Their foreheads were just about touching. The smiles on their faces were glowing like the sun was. He missed this and wished it would happen again.
Secretly, he was hoping his mother would fall in love with Silver and they would get married. He wanted a father and Silver was the father he wanted. It would make him happy to have a father again. He knew the two of them had a thing for each other. He saw how they looked at each other on more than one occasion. When he was supposed to be sleeping, he saw the stolen glances and subtle smiles.
They deserved to be happy even if it was an odd pair. His mother was human and Silver was something else. Come to think of it, he never asked Silver what race he was and he wasn't sure that he wanted to know. Silver was so large and his mother was so small he wondered what the two of them would do. They were a perfect pair though. Anyone who could put up with his mother for two weeks while he was completely out cold and practically dead had to be a saint or someone she wanted to keep around and he knew it was the latter of the two in his mind.
He pulled out the storybook of Treasure Planet from his sack and smiled even larger. This was his copy and he was most likely going to give the other copy to Harry and Benji. Those two little twins wanted him to play it over and over. After three hours, Benji still persisted that he open it and start again. They would love a book from him and he got the feeling they liked him.
A once clean set of clothes was also pulled out. He noticed the blood stain on one of them and shook his head. He held it up to the light to look at it. The stain was on the sleeve of his right arm. He scrubbed with all the elbow grease he had inside him and it still did not completely wash away. When he was up on his feet officially, the first thing he was going to do was buy new clothes for himself before they went back to Montressor. He was thinking about wearing lighter clothes really or clothes with more color now that he had the money to get clothes with color. He always wanted a violet tunic. Violet was the royal color long ago and there was something about violet that seemed forbidden, considering there were very little indigo deposits around the universe. Rather, the only place to get any real color dye anymore was Earth and indigo was fading quickly.
A shadow went across his tunic where it was blocking the sun. It looked like a spider, like—Jim froze up and began trembling. He did not want to lower his tunic, knowing who was in the window. Perhaps he wouldn't notice it was him. Tears of fright that suddenly came to his eyes spilled down his cheeks. He felt sick to his stomach and couldn't breathe. His hands were shaking the tunic and he slowly swallowed. The image of Scroop's shadow was crawling up his tunic. He wanted to lower his tunic. He wanted to run away. He wanted to scream for help. None of his senses responded to him.
Suddenly, the Scroop's shadow emerged from his tunic in a much smaller form and the yellow eyes were looking at him confused. Morph returned to his normal pink self and floated on over to the blood stain then transformed into Scroop again.
Jim cried out as his arm came around and sent Morph flying across the room and landing on the wall in a splat. Frightened, he did nothing more than sit there and cry. He still couldn't move. The tears continued to pour from his face. He didn't know what to think. All he felt was his heart pounding.
Morph slowly approached and gave him those big apologetic eyes. He whined and snuggled into Jim's chest.
Outraged and frightened, Jim grabbed him and less than gently shoved him into the drawer at his bedside table. He slammed the drawer shut. Finally able to move, he hugged his knees against his chest and pressed his forehead in the gap between them. Both arms wrapped around his crossed legs. Soon, he was a small ball on the bed, rocking back and forth and bawling the fright out of him. He couldn't remember ever being that frightened.
"You shouldn't have done that Morph," he sobbed. "He's the one that turned me into this. He's the one that started it. He's the one who ruined my life. Don't ever do that again. Don't ever scare me like that again. I never want to see him in any form. I hope he's dead. I hope he's hanging at the end of a rope." He lifted his head from his knees to let his jaw settle in the gap. His eyes fell on that blood stain.
Unknown to Silver, there was more than one time he and Scroop quarreled. There was a scar on his right arm where Scroop brought his claw across his arm. He lied about the scar on his neck too. He told Silver he cut his neck while he was taking the barnacles from the ship; one of them broke free and came across his neck. No, in fact, that was Scroop's claw that did that. Thankfully, it happened in the crew's quarters and near his hammock so when Silver went to get him a few hours later, he had no idea that he was passed out after being strangled. He never knew what caused Scroop to keep him alive or what drew him away from finally squeezing every last breath of air out of him, but he was grateful for it. If not, he would have been dead long ago.
Shivers going through his body, he turned away and hid himself from the world again. This was going to be a long, long day. Suddenly, he raised his head and threw the tunic across the room. He wanted no reminded what he was or how it came to be. All he wanted was John Silver's arms around him telling him it was going to be all right and that no one would hurt him again. He didn't know what happened to himself. One day he was the toughest teenager on Montressor and no one had the will to break him. Two months later he was easily broken down into pieces. Something changed him. It couldn't just have been his arm. Could it?
Needing and answer, he opened the drawer where Morph and his big eyes stared up at him. His little pink lip trembled. He knew he upset Jim very much and melted into a puddle of tears and cried. Jim scooped the little puddle into the palm of his hand. He caressed the blue top with his thumb. Two sad eyes emerged.
"All right, I'm sorry I did that to you Morph but you need to apologize to me for doing what you did," he said. "Agreed?"
"Sorry!" Morph squeaked, over and over.
Jim gave a firm nod and smiled. Light bounced from the corner of his eye. He turned his head and noticed he had rolled his sleeves to his elbow and saw the silvery of his arm. Curiously, he raised his arm, but not with too much thought of course, and held out his finger, without too much thought, to Morph. "What do you think? I know you like your reflection, but I want to know what you think of it on me. Is it all right on me? It doesn't make me look too odd does it?"
Morph smiled and nodded his head. He wagged his little tail and curled into the silver. He purred and nodded again. "Like it."
"Okay, at least I know one being doesn't mind," noted Jim.
The little pink shape shifter crawled into the sack again making Jim remember there was still one more thing in there. He reached in and pulled out a compass that fit into the palm of his hand. The base was gold of course, holding the ivory shell. A compass rose was painted onto the ivory, the four cardinal directions in blue, and the rest in red. The needle was painted gold. It pointed to the heart of the universe toward some rare matter. The compass was housed under a curved glass. A braided leather cord provided a means of keeping it on his person.
"This was my father's compass. It's all I have left of him. He showed me how to use it when I was just a boy. I liked to play with it and pretend I was going on treasure hunts. I took it from his sack one day because I wanted to show my friends. The next morning, when I was going to sneak it back to him, he left without it and never came back. I take it with me wherever I go. It's always in my pocket or on my person. I sometimes wish he would come back for it just so I can see him again," Jim explained. "I miss him. I never thought I would miss him and that I always would hate him. I want to hate my father, but I can't. He's my father Morph. How can anyone hate their own father? Mom even said he love me." When he looked over to look at Morph, he saw a miniature John Silver sitting there.
"Wha' would ye say ta me adopting Jim as my son? Wha' would ye say ta me adopting Jim as my son?" the miniature said.
Jim looked over with narrow eyes and his lips slowly parted in wonder. "Did Silver say that?" Morph nodded. Jim grabbed Morph and brought him closer to his face. "Does Silver want to be my father?" Morph nodded again. "He wants to adopt me?"
"Wha' would ye say ta me adopting Jim as my son?" Morph repeated.
"Are you telling me this for a reason?" Jim asked quietly.
Morph shifted into a miniature of himself, silver arm included and sat the palm of his hand. "He's my father Morph."
Thinking, Jim sat back. Did Morph have something going there? Did he want Silver to be his father or his own father? What was a father anyway? A father taught his son everything he needed to know. He taught him to pick his fights and trades of the world and responsibility and sailing and told him stories and kept an eye on him and comforted him when he was in pain and told him he loved him and he was listing off everything Silver taught him not his own father. Was the only reason he wanted his father back because he was half of his father and part of being a father was being there when creation was made? A father technically did make the baby too. Was that the only reason he kept telling himself Leland Hawkins?
John Silver was the one who acted like his father and saw him as his son. Silver taught him to pick his own fights and trades of the world and responsibility and sailing and told him stories and kept an eye on him and comforted him when he was in pain and told him he loved him. All he learned from his real father was pain and hurt and betrayal.
Perhaps he only kept telling himself he wanted his father was because he could live on the idea that his father was going to come back. If he knew his father was out there still then there was a possibility he would come back. It was four years since he last saw his father. After four years, if he father supposedly loved him, then he would have come back. Right? Right. Now, he had someone to be his father.
Jim smiled wide from ear to ear. James Pleiades Silver. That sounded nice. It sounded quite very nice. It was literal and figurative. If he became a Silver then he would be a Silver and he was quarter silver anyway. He had a lovely silver arm and forehead. He may not mind the comments when people learned his name of Silver and saw his mechanics. Things were going to be different around his life. Maybe going to a different planet to start over was a good thing after all. Since Silver was planning on adopting him and his mother liked the idea, they could all start over on Earth. She wanted to take him there after all and he heard it was a nice place for humans especially. Most humans were still on Earth really.
Human. Humans were a dying breed really. Eons ago they were the prime source of life across the universe. Now, humans were rare. He hardly saw a human other than his own mother anymore. It could have been because they were so far from Earth, but he simply felt it wasn't just that. Although he asked his mother and she never confirmed it once, he knew humans were an endangered species.
Starting over sounded perfect really. Starting over on Earth with his new name and family sounded perfect. It sounded too perfect.
And it was too perfect.
The door opened and a weary, pale faced Sarah Hawkins walked in. She made no greeting to her son and sat herself in a chair beside the window. Her eyes saw nothing as they looked nowhere. Slowly, her head fell into the palm of her hand. She looked hopeless and lost and confused and frightened. There were tears in her eyes. One finally fell down her cheek. She made no effort of removing the tear.
"Mom," Jim softly called.
Hearing his voice, Sarah sighed and shut her eyes. Her head bowed low to hide the tears that cascaded from them, but he saw them anyway. "Guilty. John Silver is guilty of piracy and is to be hanged in a week. David and I tried to speak up for him. They wouldn't have it."
"Okay," replied Jim softly.
Sarah looked at him incredulously. She rose from her chair and moved to his side. Her fingers gently traced his face and brushed away the hair. "Okay? He's going to be killed and all you can say is 'okay'? Jim, you love him. I know you do. The trial ended an hour ago and I've been thinking how I can tell you all this time and worrying myself nearly to death about what you're going to do now."
"We'll see what they do after I have a talk with them," Jim told her.
"Mm mm," Sarah said, shaking her head. "You will stay here and rest. You're not ready to get up."
Jim rolled his eyes and flipped his sack and compass aside. He tossed the blankets from his legs and stepped down and stood up. "Not ready to get up? Look, I'm standing. And watch, I can walk too." He stumbled forward before taking a few normal steps and sitting on the window sill. He rubbed his shoulder with an expression of discomfort then smiled at his mother like nothing.
"No," Sarah told him. "I don't think he wants you to see him behind bars Sweetheart."
"It's worth a try. I'm Jim Hawkins. I'm sure my name was mentioned," assumed Jim.
"It was and they might be coming here to talk with you anyway," said Sarah.
"Well, then I'll just go to them," Jim told her cheerily, getting back on his feet again. "Where are my boots?"
"You're not going," Sarah told him sharply.
"Yes. I. Am," Jim said, clearly saying each word and leaving a pause between to give accent. "I may be the only person who can save him and I intend to save his life."
"And what if you can't Jim? If you can't save his life then what are you going to do?" wondered Sarah.
"I'll worry about that when the time comes," Jim said, searching the room. "Where are my boots?"
"Jim, I don't want to see you laying here wanting to die if he can't be saved. I don't want you to let yourself die because he can't live," Sarah told him. "I almost lost you once. I'm not losing you again."
"Mom, it was no big deal. I just have a mechanical arm. It's no big deal," Jim told her.
"James Pleiades Hawkins!" Sarah screamed, grabbing a handful of her son's hair and forcing him to sit. "You will listen to me right now! I have had it with your attitude. You never listen to me. You never obey me. You never respect me. You never do what I say. You never behave. I have had it. You will stay here and rest. You need to rest. I'm not letting you go out there. Do not tell me 'it was no big deal'. A few days ago, you wanted to kill yourself because of your arm then you broke down every single time you moved your arm. Today, you tell me it was no big deal. It is a big deal. You lost a limb Jim. You lost your arm. Losing your arm is a big deal. Do you know how worried I was? Do you have—"
"Mom, you're not the one who has to live with it. Don't talk to me like you're the one who lost your arm," Jim told her.
"I know I didn't lose my arm, but you don't seem to realize you did," Sarah noted.
Not believing what she was saying to him, Jim unbuttoned his tunic in the front. He pulled it open then down off his arms. Less than gently and knowing he shouldn't have, but did anyway, he pulled the bandages away from around his shoulder. "Look at it Mom. Do you really think I don't realize what my shoulder looks like? Do you really think I can't feel it every time I move? Do you know what it's like to move my left arm and grab things and touch things and not feel it? Do you know what it's like to be fifteen and with a mechanical arm? You don't, so stop telling me what to do. The only person who is going to get me through this is me."
"Every time I see your face, I can't help but see you when you were laying there for two weeks. You were white and sickly thin. The reason your throat hurt so much was because you had two tubes shoved down you, one so we could feed you and another to get air into your lungs. I had to sit here every day seeing that for two weeks. I had to turn away when Livesey or Silver fed you because I couldn't bear the thought of knowing once it was poured into that tube, it went right to your stomach. So tell me Jim, do you have to watch yourself heal? Do you have to watch your face change? Do you have to see yourself cry and hear yourself scream and plead and try hiding from the world because you don't want to have the world see your face? Do you have to look at yourself and know I was the one who should have tried harder to raise you better and change you before it got too late? Do you have to look at that arm every day and wish I never would have sent you away? Do you have to watch yourself change and get older and love and lose people and wait for the day you finally give up because there is nothing left? No, you don't. I may not know what it is like to have a mechanical arm, but I know what it's like to watch the one person I love the most succumb to this."
"This being what?" Jim asked softly.
Sarah traced his jaw line with a sad smile. "Frightened. Insecure. Lost."
"I'm not denying it," admitted Jim quietly so only his mother heard. He lowered his head. "When Silver is here, he makes me feel better. Whenever I am in his presence everything is fine. I know nothing will hurt me. I'm comforted. He takes care of me. He heals the pain that I have, and I need him now more than ever." Once again, tears fell from his eyes. He knew he was insecure, especially when he hugged his knees to his body, with both arms. "I need him to hold me. I'm so scared."
Little Morph transformed into an image of Silver. He floated to his right upper arm where he wrapped his little arms around Jim's arms, like Silver was holding him.
Seeing that and feeling Silver's arms around him subconsciously, Jim lowered his head between his knees and his torso, pressing his forehead in the gap between them. He softly cried. Silver's embraces were like no others. His belly was soft and comforting; it was warm and held all the pain. Both arms covered his back wholly, one was warm and one was cold. The cold arm was the one that always held onto him the tightest. It was as though Silver kept a good hold on him with his mechanical arm because he knew that arm was stronger. And when he lowered his head to rest beside his, he was completely cocooned into safety. Nothing was going to harm him and he knew it.
Sarah sat beside him. She wrapped an arm around his back then around his front and slowly pulled him against her torso. He accepted her embrace. She rocked back and forth again. By this time, no tears were in her eyes. She simply shook her head because her son once again failed at putting up his mask for the world.