2D tapped his hand on Artie's back, letting him know that he could hold his breath no longer. Noodle gave the singer's hand a squeeze to let him know that she had reached her limit as well.
The whale skimmed the surface of the ocean just enough so his passengers could stick their heads out of the water. The jets had spread out in an effort to locate their targets, and an unmistakable smoky figure darted through the sky, trails of black fog marking its evil presence. For lack of anything better to do, 2D and Noodle sucked in as much air as their lungs could hold, and then plunged into the sea once more.
Artie and his crew didn't get too far until they collided with something that felt immense, and strangely squishy. 2D's first thought was another whale, which made him shriek aloud underwater. Sure, he was riding a whale, but he didn't think of Artie as a whale anymore. At least he tried not to.
Noodle's eyes shot open to identify the source of the collision. Through the dark water she could make out a large, cylindrical object that almost looked like an oversized-
"Leg!" shouted Noodle through a mouthful of bubbles. She patted Artie rapidly, signaling that she wanted to go above the ocean again.
As they broke through the surface of the water, Noodle looked up and her hopes were confirmed. The giant frame of Russel was looming over the water, swatting at the pirate jets like a lumbering monster from a horror movie.
What she didn't expect to see was Murdoc perched on his big bald head, equipped with the full arsenal of his late cyborg, humming "Pirate Jet" and blasting away.
"Oiii!" yelled Noodle, trying to get their attention. Russel and Murdoc looked down bewildered, seeing 2D of all people riding a whale, one that was supposed to be imprisoning him at that.
"You traitor!" Murdoc shouted down at Artie, "What part of 'use his own crippling cetaphobia against him' did you not understand? No squid for you!"
Artie gave a snotty little laugh. "This lad here is payin' me triple! So don't bother yatterin' on aboot yer measly offerin's!"
2D, failing to read the mood of the situation, burst into tears of joy. "It's not anovva whale…it's not anovva whale…" he sobbed happily. "Stop yer blubberin'!" said Artie with a guffaw, "Get it? Blubber? "Cause I'm a whale!"
"YOU'RE NOT FUNNY!" shouted Murdoc, shooting at a random pirate jet passing by.
"Murdoc," sniffled 2D out of the blue, "Yer still my best mate."
"SHUT YOUR FACE!"
"Urusai!" yelled Noodle suddenly, shaking her head of purple hair violently. "All of your faces should…be shut." Everyone was looking at her all of a sudden and she felt a bit awkward.
"Look, we're in a warzone. People are trying to kill us. We need to…focus," she said steadily.
Everything was still and quiet for a moment. A pirate jet whizzed by and Murdoc shot at it nonchalantly.
"So what's the plan?" Noodle finished.
"I say we run for it," said Russel, "There's no way we can take out all of those jets."
"Awww…" whined Murdoc like a kid being told to leave a candy store.
"It's not just jets," said Noodle slowly, looking directly at Murdoc. She then pointed up at the rapidly moving black cloud in the sky.
Murdoc turned the strange color of over-diluted pea soup again, and his eyes seemed to pop out of his head.
"It's him," he muttered. Without warning, his gaping mouth turned into a snarl, and he began shooting recklessly at the smoky figure in the sky.
"MURDOC, NO!" screamed Noodle. 2D put his hands on her shoulders protectively. "Woteva happens," he whispered to her, "I'm here wiv you. I'll die before I let him take you away from me." Noodle eased herself against 2D's stomach, needing to soak in every last bit of comfort from him. She tried to focus on the feeling of his warm stomach rising and falling against her back. If the end came, at least she would be with the one she loved.
Noodle suddenly felt a drop on her arm. What looked like a small droplet of oil was trailing down her bicep. Then another. Then another. It was raining oil.
Noodle, 2D, Russel, Murdoc, and Artie tried to wipe off the oil, but the liquid was uninfluenced by their touch. Instead, the oil trickled off by itself and began to accumulate in a single spot in the ocean.
Then out of nowhere, the glob of oil in the ocean burst into flames. Smoke rose up from the inferno, slowly swirling and taking shape like a wet clay pot.
In a matter of seconds, The Boogeyman was floating above the water before them, the bottom of his cloak no more than a centimeter away from touching the liquid. He was completely immobile and slightly drooping, like a phantom puppet suspended in midair.
The Gorillaz band in its entirety as well as the sperm whale were paralyzed with fear. It seemed like if anyone moved a muscle, the monster would stir as well.
After a few petrifying seconds, the specter disappeared in a burst of smoke…
…only to reappear above Russel's head, with Murdoc's neck in his grasp.
The struggling bassist let out a strangled cry similar to that of the pet raven he had until 5 years ago. Russel heard the cries of his bandmates, but didn't know what was going on until he felt Murdoc's feet being lifted from his head. Russel looked above him in horror and tried to snatch the Boogeyman out of the air, but his hand passed through him like smoke. The giant withdrew his hand in a yelp of pain; it was still covered in smoke, and all 5 fingers were burned.
Back on the whale, 2D was screaming Murdoc's name in anguish, and Noodle was looking up at Murdoc determinedly, racking her brain of a way to remove him from the Boogeyman's clutches. He had wronged her, but she had an unconditional love for all her band members. She didn't want her family to be broken anymore. If she only had…
Noodle felt like she got punched in the stomach as she caught sight of a dirty scrap of paper in Murdoc's back pocket.
One of her passwords.
"RUSSEL!" she shouted up at the giant frantically, "GRAB THE PAPER!"
Russel looked at Noodle, then at the paper. His eyes widened in hopeful understanding.
"Good luck baby girl!" he called down to her as he grabbed the piece of paper from Murdoc's pocket and dropped it in Noodle's direction.
Noodle strained her eyes to see the printed text of the paper fluttering down to her. It had to be the right password. It was their only hope.
The first shards of daylight hit the falling papery fragment. "Sea…" she began to read aloud, "Sea…L…Sea Li…" She caught the paper and nearly screamed the password: "SEA LINKS!"
Her vision went white. Spots of colors flashed in her eyes, forming images that lasted a fraction of a second before she could fully register what she saw. Then came the sounds-voices of her native tongue…positive energy traveling through…nature is balanced…good, Suzuki, let it flow through you like a song…then music…beautiful music that moved her. She felt the music travel inside her, its warm presence growing in her stomach. It grew until it was forced upwards…
On the Cloud of Unknowing…
Rays of light even brighter than the sunshine peeking over the horizon burst through Noodle's mouth, eyes ears. Her mouth was agape, and her violet hair flew back from the sheer energy. She had been activated.
My world seems open…every satellite up here watching….
2D held on to Artie for support; the energy radiating from Noodle didn't hurt him, but passed over him like a strong wind. "NOODLE?" he yelled through the noise. She looked like she was about to explode, but he knew better than to touch her. He could somehow sense that this was meant to be. He felt strangely calm as the energy passed over him.
But I was here from the very start…trying to find a way to your heart….
The rays had grown so intense, the light had begun to form a sphere that completely covered her. It suddenly expanded, engulfing each and every pirate jet. They disintegrated instantly. The Boogeyman dissolved from the outside in, and for a second Murdoc, still in his grasp, caught a glimpse of the face beneath the mask. The sunken eyes…the green skin…the bald head…the pointed teeth…the inhumanly long nose that reminded him of the father he hated so much…it was his brother, Hannibal Niccals.
Hannibal existed for a second longer before he burst into smoke, never to reappear again. With nothing to support him in midair any longer, Murdoc fell toward the ocean.
Oh, sinking love…on the Cloud of Unknowing
Russel caught the wet-eyed bassist in his hands, then looked over at Noodle. The light coming from her receded to a thin line, then her mouth snapped shut. She fell unconscious into 2D's trembling arms.
Waiting to see what the morning brings
The light of dawn crept over Noodle, illuminating her face. Her bruise was gone.
May bring sunshine on its wings