CHAPTER EIGHT Return To The Flying Dutchman

As the dark shadow creped upon Kathren, Kathren for once feared for her mortal soul. And as she turned she gazed upon him…the fairing sea captain, Davy Jones.

As Davy Jones gazed upon the sorrow Kathren, she is bent over like a broken sail whipped up against the breeze. As Jones facial beard-like tentacles wiggled upon his face, he gazes at the wreck called Kathren. "So…this is what's become of you!"

Kathren looking at her newly reformed body looks up at the pearly eyes of the ghost ship captain. "Davy Jones…am I dying?"

Davy Jones looks at Kathren's misshaped body under transition. "No Dearie, your not even close to dying, it's not your death which drew me here…I sensed you, I sensed you were in pain, so I came as fast as I could." Davy Jones extends his right hand, the hand with all fingers webbed tightly together with a loosely-freed appendage for a thumb. Kathren accepts the help.

As Kathren wobbled like a weak timber in the surf, Davy Jones finally noticed the cause of Kathren's pain. "Who did this to you?"

Kathren tries to keep straight, but falls back into the warm water, the lack of able to stand is killing her. As Kathren gives up, she does not know why or who did this. "I don't know Jones, I don't know! All I know is that Er Murazor was under great stress, then he sent me away to Lake Evendim."

Davy Jones stops Kathren in mid-sentence. "Lake Evendim, not the lake surrounded by mountains, fed by glacial water?"

Kathren nods. "Yes, that's basically it, a gigantic round lake, a pale to deep murky-to-milky blue."

Davy Jones looks up and faces northeast. "You did not enter that accursed lake did you?"

Kathren shakes her head, she begins to feel that pain again. "No, I did not touch it, the whole place did not seem right to me."

"Of course not." Extorted Davy Jones. "When Er Murazor escaped the watery depths which I don't know how, but he did…for you see, I was meant to claim his soul, but something or someone pulled him to shore, and whoever that was curse their very soul, but anyhow, Er Murazor knew he got away and used a barrier to keep me away from him. It's why Er Murazor can't cross water, the very oceans are his enemy, and if he even crosses a stream, his soul is mine!"

Kathren gazes in sheer terror for her own soul, for she knows who pulled the Witch-King free from his watery grave. As the pain increased, it focused in her legs, Kathren does her best to ignore the pain. "I think I know where Er Murazor is, and I think I now know who is doing this to me!"

Davy Jones looks down back to Kathren whom he notices is getting weaker by the minute. "Who?"

"Er Murazor, if he lost Carn Dum he sell his soul to Lord Asron to live forever, it's possible that Er. Murazor tainted the land with his sorcery to escape to Khazad'dum…anyway, since we're talking about the Evendim Lake, why do you fear it?"

Davy Jones looks around as if he expects an ambush. "If you touch Lake Evendim your body will change into your first generation species form, or worse, it changes you into what you fear, or hate the most…how do you wonder why I look like this?"

Kathren looks at Davy Jones deformity, his bummed leg, his tentacle face, no nose, face covered in fish flesh. He had no hair, his hands were two different structures, his right hand was a tentacle and left hand was a crab hand. "So you were change by this Cursed Lake?"

Davy Jones nods. "Aye, it was how I lost this leg." Davy Jones looks at Kathren's legs and arms. "Something happened at the Cursed Lake didn't it?"

Kathren nods, "Something did happen at the Cursed Lake." Kathren pauses to remember. "I did not touch the lake, the lake touched me and swamped me in a smelly swamp!"

"So you were hurt by a curse also be Er Murazor?" Davy Jones looks northwest. "Er Murazor must pay!" Davy Jones looks down at Kathren. "Come. Join me, not as a crew member, but as a messenger!"

Kathren wants off the land, but also does not want to do to sea. "I'll join you for the fight against my curser!"

Davy Jones looks at Kathren and smirks. "Very well."

Kathren tries to stand up, but she is still shaky. "Very well, let us prepare!" Kathren and Davy Jones submerge in the South Aqua they continue their underwater march until they come to the port side of the Flying Dutchman. As the crew watch, they cheer to see that Kathren decided to join them, it means the Captain will go a bit easier on them.

As Kathren is greeted by the crew and helped aboard the Flying Dutchman, Davy Jones rallies up his crew to set sail, they will travel to the greatest graveyard on K'ha'dum to get their army, the sunken city of Numenor.

As the Flying Dutchman rolls on under the water, the crew work as ghostly as possible, the Flying Dutchman must be in fit condition, and a army must be rallied!

As the ship coasts in the South Aqua, Kathren looks at the underwater world that has been home to the family of Kathren for so long. 'So this must be the world that has been my domain?' Thought Kathren, while she dazed at the sandy, underwater deltas. 'We must be somewhere near the Dunes of Sand?' Thought Kathren again, for the smooth plains of white sand laden with shells, decorate the seafloor bottom.

How fast the Flying Dutchman is going, it's no surprise there is no escape from the grave ship. As the Flying Dutchman navigates the depths of the sea, Kathren watches the sandy deltas dissipate into a volcanic landscape…here lies what is left of the Fluid Peak

As the Flying Dutchman heads northwest, they are heading towards Numenor. As the vessel comes upon the ruins of ancient Numenor, the Flying Dutchman halts on the outer limits of Numenor.

Kathren looks at what is left of the island she stared at for 16 years of her life.

As lost souls rise out of the ground they gather around the Flying Dutchman. Kathren looks at the decayed citizens, one of them she know…it's the general who died from drowning while trying to combat against Kathren and Er Murazor. As Kathren walks up to the general, the general smiles, he may be dead, but it humors him to know that Kathren has been forced to join Davy Jones crew.

The general of the Numenorean army walks up to the deformed form of Kathren. "So here you lie."

Kathren looks at the decayed, pruned form of the harsh general. "So you did die!"

The general laughs…"Yep, died when you trapped me in that arch-fiend valley, but my grudge is settled to see you also dead."

Kathren is not impressed. "Dead…who said I am dead?"

The general's smile fades away. "Your not dead?"

Kathren looks at her webbed hands and the bluish-green scales that cover her hands. "I died when I left the Untouched Terrain. But other then that, I'm quite alive."

The look on the generals face is terror. "Alive?" The general lowers his dead head. "So why has Jones called us?"

Kathren looks at the crew at work. "Er Murazor has bent Alquarious to the ends of the world." Kathren is rubbing her hands. "Lord Asron has taken command of all the mighty lords."

The general shakes his head with disappointment. "So tell me, it wasn't you who sunk Numenor was it?"

Kathren shakes her head. The general looks loss in thought. "If you did not sink Numenor, then who?"

Kathren lowers her head. "Er Murazor sunk Numenor when he found your ships. So he sunk Numenor and ended your mortal life."

Davy Jones walks over to Kathren and the general. "You are the general of your people?"

The general looks ghostly white, his very skin could have imploded. "Aye, and you be Davy Jones?"

Davy Jones facial expressions are cloudy. "Aye…I summon you to service, or be locked forever in eternal imprisonment!"

The general looks at Kathren. "Very well, I will summon my army…our designation?"

Davy Jones looks at Kathren. "To Khazad'dum."

The general's face seems lost once again. "Khazad'dum…I've never heard of Khazad'dum or Asron!"

Kathren looks up at the Numenorean general. "Do you remember the valley?"

The general nods his head. "Yes."

"The volcano is Khazad'dum and Asron is lord of the land." Says Kathren.

The general looks at Davy Jones. "Well we have the upper hand this time…we're dead!"

Davy Jones nods and snickers. "Very true…summon and follow!"

Davy Jones turns and heads back to the bridge.

The general turns to look at Kathren. "Well got to go…take care Kathren, this time, you're the disadvantaged!" The general turns to leave and goes to his people.

Kathren finally realizes that her life is the only one which can be ended. As the Flying Dutchman begins to shake and move. A glowing light follows the ship back to the east. As the water becomes warmer, it's clear to Kathren that they are in the South Aqua. As the Flying Dutchman turns to sail to fresh water, the ship is ready for arising out of the water.

As Kathren holds onto the Flying Dutchman, for coming out of the water is a heavy thrust, since gravity and water equals weight. As the water becomes brighter and it flows against Kathren's face, she breaks the oceans surface and the Flying Dutchman has some free air time. As the Flying Dutchman lands back onto the water surface and the water jets out the sides of the vessel, the water quickly drains off the decks, Kathren is dripping wet, but still in her unnatural form.

As the Flying Dutchman begins to sail upstream of the Great River, the sky is clear and the temperature is hot. As the salty water drys up, Kathren walks the deck of the ship.

As the Flying Dutchman sails carefully up the river, they will be at Khazad'dum soon!