-15- Two Options
"Keep away from Aruto. It's already too late to stop him," Tsukasa said as he tightened his grip on Amu's shoulders.
"What is Aruto going to do?" Amu asked anxiously, still startled from Tsukasa pulling her back.
"Close your eyes," Tsukasa ordered.
"What-"
"EVERYONE CLOSE YOUR EYES NOW," Tsukasa shouted as loudly as he could over the thundering of the storm.
Confused, Amu glanced around the ship to see everyone close their eyes. Are they insane? Amu thought in disbelief, at a time like this, they need to see to move the ship from the storm. Why are they…? Amu turned to look in Aruto's direction again. For the first time, fear overcame her as she watched the massive wave loom above them. Her heart stopped beating; all she could see was the monstrous wave and Aruto's shadow, then too suddenly, a bright emerald light blinded Amu's vision. She could no longer see anything.
"Amu, Amu," a voice kept calling.
Amu felt her body rock back and forth, someone was shaking her. "Tsukasa," Amu whispered, still unable to see anything properly but blurry figures meshed into one. "What was that emerald light?"
"Come to your senses witch," the voice demanded.
Amu tensed up, pausing to think, that voice…. She stopped concentrating on her blurred vision and instead became aware of her other senses. It was warm around her, the air was dry too. What happened to the storm? She touched her face and hair. "It's not wet," Amu gasped.
"You've finally calmed down," the voice said in an irritated tone.
Slowly, Amu's vision returned to her but she didn't need to look to know whose voice she was hearing. She gulped, turning to stare at Ikuto. There was no doubt about it. Immediately, she had recognised the familiar surroundings of his ship and the person afore her eyes was her captor, Ikuto. How did I end up back on Ikuto's ship? Amu questioned, lost and confused with what has just happened. I swear I was just on board another ship…
"Seems like she's confused," Nadeshiko commented, amused with the situation.
"More like she's a lunatic," Nagihiko corrected, eyeing Amu carefully.
The one they called Kairi Sanjo remained silent and running towards the forming crowd was a bewildered looking Yoru and Daichi.
"You alright?" Yoru asked quietly.
Amu slowly moved away from Ikuto, standing against the edge of the boat she glanced from one person to another; their returned gazes making her uncomfortable. What happened? Amu kept asking, but she couldn't reach an answer. She looked behind her at the vast blue sea, I should worry about escaping first…
Amu gripped the wooden ledge, about to hoist herself up and jump into the sea when a strong blast of air hit her from behind, propelling her back into the ship. Kneeling on the floor, Amu coughed from the impact. A single green feather dropped before her.
"Don't think you can escape so easily," Nadeshiko said, a broad smile on her face, "even if you are a lunatic, it's still up to the Captain to decide your fate."
Amu stared at the green feather that withered away into dust. Is that….?
"Nadeshiko," Kairi said angrily, "how many times have I told you not to recklessly use my feathers."
Nadeshiko shrugged, an apologetic smile upon her face.
"You shouldn't have given it to her in the first place," Nagihiko stated.
Kairi let out a sigh, "well, since you used it for a good course this time." Kairi turned to face Ikuto, "Captain, should I interrogate this lunatic?"
"There's not really a need to…" Yoru began to say but Daichi clasped a hand over his mouth, pulling him back.
"Neither of us are in any position to say anything on this ship," Daichi whispered into Yoru's ear. "I have a duty to watch over you so don't make things hard for me."
Despite Yoru's struggling, Daichi managed to pull him away; both going back below deck. He couldn't help but take one last glance at all the people standing beside Ikuto, feeling an uncanny chill run through his body.
"Instead of interrogating this lunatic witch, how about giving her to me?" Nadeshiko suggested with an evil smile.
"Proper interrogations should proceed even if the subject is a lunatic," Kairi spoke in a matter-of-factly way.
Having heard enough, Amu clenched her fists, standing up to speak for herself, "I'm not going to get interrogated or be handed over to anyone and most importantly, stop calling me a lunatic. I've done nothing to be called one."
Nadeshiko blinked innocently at Amu, whilst Kairi glared at her in disbelief. He gave his glasses a small nudge and stated, "Just moments ago, you were running around the ship, shouting about a storm, had an interesting conversation with thin air and was about to run off the ship if captain hadn't grabbed you back." Kairi paused, "I'd call that the acts of a lunatic."
"What do you mean?" Amu questioned, though she was already beginning to realise what had happened or the possibility.
"You were hysterical about a storm hitting the ship," Kairi stated again, "but as you can see, the weather is clear."
Amu glanced up at the clear sky; an endless stretch of azure without even one spec of white cloud in the way. But only moments ago, she was standing under a brewing darkness that raged with lightening.
"I'm not going to deny the existence of ghosts, but I'm pretty sure this ship is not haunted and you were clearly talking to thin air like you were talking to ghosts," Kairi continued to state.
He's talking about Aruto and Tsukasa, Amu thought, their faces still etched in her mind. No matter how she remembered it, she was certain that at that precise moment, she was definitely on board another ship. But the way Kairi Sanjo was ridiculing her, perhaps everything she saw and experienced, perhaps it was all just a hallucination.
Seeing that Amu was silent now, Kairi continued, "Captain, what do you wish to do with this lunatic?"
Amu didn't dare look at Ikuto. She felt his gaze upon her and she tensed up. I'm as good as dead, she breathed, he's going to kill me…
"Take her into my room," Ikuto ordered clearly.
Not just Amu, but Nadeshiko and Kairi too looked at Ikuto with an astounded look. Nagihiko let out a yawn, clearly disinterested in the whole business.
"Make sure she doesn't escape," Ikuto demanded, "I'll be spending the night with her, so don't disturb me. Am I clear?"
Kairi composed himself again, "understood captain."
"Unbelievable," Amu could only mutter as Nagihiko quickly grabbed hold of her. Scared of what Ikuto was going to do to her, she couldn't hold in her emotions and began to scream, "Pervert, jerk, you damn pirate, what do you want with me? If you have the guts, stop fooling around, just kill me."
Amu's voice echoed in the distant as she was dragged back inside by Nagihiko. Ikuto had such a serious expression on his face that Nadeshiko and Kairi remained silent.
"I've got business to attend to, do not disturb me," Ikuto said, leaving the deck.
"Yes Captain," both Nadeshiko and Kairi answered. They exchanged looks of speculation with each other as soon as Ikuto was out of sight.
"Who exactly is that girl?" Kairi directly questioned.
"A witch from Barren Town," Nadeshiko answered honestly. "She was already with the kid and Captain when we met up."
"Witch?" Kairi repeated, "A witch that's still alive after meeting our Captain."
"The Captain retracted his order to kill her," Nadeshiko informed, "he appears to be quite interested in her and for reasons unknown."
"It's not unknown," Nagihiko interrupted, re-joining the two after dealing with Amu. "Neither of you have forgotten our Captain's final destination."
Kairi and Nadeshiko exchanged another speculating look, "that witch knows about the Seventh Treasure…"
There was silence for a few minutes as the thought sank in. "She was shouting about the entrance to the Seventh Treasure just a-while ago," Nadeshiko recalled, "that's the reason why…"
"Most likely," Kairi said, giving his glasses another nudge.
"Hey," Nagihiko suddenly called out, a smile appearing on his face, "let's make a bet…on whether this witch will be the first to continue living after meeting our Captain…"
Within another part of the ship, the door closed shut with a soft thud; chains rattled as the lock was slid into place, sealing the lantern lit room. It was quiet. Ikuto wasted no time, taking the few big strides towards his bed where Amu lay waiting. Nagihiko had did half the work for him, knocking the witch out unconscious. Now he could do whatever he wanted to her, without any resistance. He stared at Amu, remembering how she was acting strangely before: her hand reached out for something, running towards the edge of the ship; her expression was desperation but then she suddenly stopped. She stared for a few moments before her eyes widened and she whispered, "the entrance to the seventh treasure."
Ikuto sat beside Amu. He gripped the back of her neck, drawing her closer to him. His lips parted, closing his eyes, he chanted, Show me in his mind before biting hard into Amu's neck. His teeth dug into her flesh and he tasted her blood. Soon, his own thoughts were gone. Letting go of Amu, he felt her blood run through his body and he opened his eyes to see what she had seen.
"NO!" Ikuto gasped in surprise, "impossible…"
He clutched at his chest, unable to calm his beating heart that was consumed with excitement. The storm over him cackled and roared, the waves beneath smashing the ship around in the water. A smile spread over Ikuto's face as he stared at the sea before him, immediately recognising the place. "I've done it…I found it. After all this time, I'm finally back at the entrance of the seventh treasure…" Ikuto started to laugh, his excitement only growing. "Amu, you really didn't disappoint me…"
Ikuto's smile disappeared though as soon as his eyes were blinded by an illuminating green light. That pressure and that light… Ikuto turned to stare at the man holding the emerald sword towards the sea.
"Don't stop me kid," he said clearly, "We're almost there…the entrance to the seventh treasure."
Black. Everything around Ikuto turned black. A few seconds later, he was staring at the unconscious Amu stull sleeping on his bed, inside his own room, on his own ship. The excitement Ikuto had previously felt now dispersed into nothing. Something was greatly bothering him. That man… Ikuto thought, there's no way Amu could've met him. Then what she saw…those were…those memories… Ikuto clenched a fist, why does she have my memories?
Tap, Tap, Tap. Ikuto snapped out of his deep thoughts, opening the window, he let in a ruby-eyed Raven. From its leg, he retrieved a small rolled up parchment. After reading its contents, Ikuto burnt the paper, his mood turning for the better. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood Amu," Ikuto whispered, looking at her again. "I've finally decided what I want to do with you."
Time seemed to have just passed by without any indication. How many hours has it been? Amu slowly stirred, rolling onto her side as she sat up on the bed. She squeezed her shoulders with her hands, her body feeling stiff from lying in the same position. She wasn't hurt but somehow, she noticed the uncomfortable feeling on the side of her neck. "I lost conscience…" Amu sighed, remembering what happened. Nagihiko had dragged her into Ikuto's room and before she could do a thing, knocked her unconscious. That's right, I'm in Ikuto's room, Amu seemed to suddenly realise. Unlike last time, she was calmer, already trying to think of how to escape. She frowned though as she spotted Ikuto standing in front of the door. This is a lot like last time, Amu thought, but it'll be harder to escape. At least I'm fully clothed this time…
"You really do like to sleep," Ikuto commented.
"What do you want from me?" Amu asked directly.
"What answer do you want me to give you?" Ikuto mocked.
He's messing with me again, Amu thought holding in her rising anger. But he seems a little different, more carefree…not as intense. His killing aura is gone. Did something good happen?
"Oh you're rather quiet," Ikuto continued to tease, "last time you woke up in my bed, you had a much more entertaining reaction."
Yeah, he's definitely different, Amu continued to study, he is a little like how we first met in Barren Town. Amu pinched her own hand, no I can't think like that. He's a murderous pirate after my life. I need to stay alert.
"Giving me the silent treatment won't get you anywhere," Ikuto stated. "Well, I'll cut your misery short. I've decided not to kill you, but I'm not going to set you free either."
Saying the obvious, Amu thought. I'll find my own way off this ship.
"I'm in a good mood today so I'll give you two options," Ikuto said.
"As if any of your options are better than death," Amu muttered under her breath.
"This ship is missing a maid," Ikuto said, "Since you're already a lowly witch, being a servant of my ship has already raised your status. Be thankful I'm allowing you to serve me and my crew."
Amu got up from the bed and raised her fists at Ikuto, "You're the low-life here. How dare you tell me to be your servant? Who do you think you are? I'd rather die."
Ikuto let out a sigh, "too bad death isn't one of your options. Well, if you don't want to be a maid then, here's your second option."
Ikuto stepped towards Amu, his expression serious again. Amu could feel the change in him and she made a run towards the opposite direction. She heard Ikuto click his fingers before the floor beneath her started to tremble. Amu couldn't move at all, there was so much shaking that she was about to fall over just from standing. Loud rattling noise suddenly sounded from below, as though something was rapidly moving. "What is this?" Amu uttered, her eyes widening. She let out a scream as something shot up from the floor. She felt several hits around her legs and arms, something holding her, weighing her down in place. "Black chains," Amu gasped, struggling as more chains shot out from the floor and began to bind around her. The more she moved, the more she felt the chains tightening grip on her. "T-these…" Amu continued to gasp.
"Don't worry, you won't die," Ikuto said, walking towards the now immobilised Amu. "These chains are like a part of my own body. I can control them freely."
Amu looked at Ikuto, unable to move. The chains weren't just holding her in place, they were draining her energy. She felt weaker with each passing second that went by. These weren't ordinary chains.
"You'll be a prisoner on my ship," Ikuto finished, "I'll release you from my chains when you're on the verge of death. When you've regained the ability to move, I'll bind you up again like this."
"You can't turn me into a prisoner…" Amu struggled to say.
"No one will rescue you," Ikuto said, "no one will know you're on my ship to begin with. Don't blame me. You were the one who chose this option."
Ikuto gave her a triumphant smile and slowly made his way to the door.
"No…don't…" Amu breathed heavily. Damn it Ikuto, Amu cursed watching him slowly open the door. There's no way I'm going to spend the rest of my life in these chains… "I…I'll be…I'll be a maid."
The door closed shut and Ikuto clicked his fingers. The chains vanished from Amu's body. She dropped to the floor, now muttering to herself endlessly at how stupid she was. "I completely fell into his trap," Amu uttered. Damn, what does he want from me anyway? Why doesn't he just kill me? I can't believe I said I'll be his maid….my pride….
"I didn't hear you properly," Ikuto deliberately said, "can you tell me again which option you're choosing?"
Amu glared at Ikuto who was clearly enjoying himself now. "MAID," she shouted in anger, "I'll be a maid. Are you satisfied now?"
"Welcome on board my ship, maid," Ikuto said with a satisfied smile. Now that I know of that man's whereabouts, I have a little more time to deal with you Amu, Ikuto thought, I can take my time finding the connection between you and the Seventh Treasure.