Chapter Two
(Song in this chapter is "Where are We Going from Here" by Blackmore's Night)
"On a long road, miles to go
It's winding and cold and it's covered with snow
But I ask you what we all want to know
Where are we going from here…
Lines on my face, lines on my hands
Lead to a future I don't understand
Some things don't go as they're planned…
Where are we going from here…
Tracing the trails through the mirrors of time
Spinning in circles with riddles in rhyme
We lose our way, trying to find
Searching to find our way home…
Trying to find our way home…
As the day dies, with tears in our eyes
There's too few hellos and too many goodbyes
Silence answers our cries…
Where are we going from here…
We're all on this road, with miles to go
Braving new pathways into the unknown
But who do you ask, when no one really knows
Where we are going from here…
Tracing the trails through the mirrors of time
Spinning in circles with riddles in rhyme
We lose our way, trying to find
Searching to find our way home…
Trying to find my way home…
Please help me find my way home…"
Over at Siren's castle, she sat in her throne room, staring off into space, thinking. Knowing Aralyne, she would be absolutely heartbroken by now with Tulio dead. Finding her wouldn't be so much of a problem, but killing her would prove difficult. Even if Aralyne was weak and vulnerable, she would be heavily protected. Her scarlet gaze roved over the villains waiting patiently in the room. All of these nefarious characters were both useful and useless to her. She was okay with them being killed again, because she can just have Chernabog bring them back to continue their use, but at the same time she felt as if she were surrounded by idiots and wished for all of them to remain dead. Maybe after she killed Aralyne, she would get rid of some of the more annoying villains.
Siren finally spoke up, "If anyone can kill Aralyne, and bring me proof, I'll allow them to wreak havoc wherever, whenever, and on whoever they want. That also includes other worlds."
All of the villains exchanged excited glances before rushing out of the throne room. The pirates seemed to have had a silent mutual agreement that they were splitting up, each believing they had a better idea on how to kill Aralyne.
I woke up and found myself inside my room at the Benbow Inn. With a groan, I stretched, glad I decided to come to Incantationen for some sleep. At least here, I can take all the time I need to rest, and not have to worry about missing school. Unfortunately yesterday I had just discovered Siren had her own body that was an exact replica of mine but with longer hair and scarlet eyes, and now I had to figure out a way to destroy her. I had saved Incantationen from the Horned King nine months ago, and now my evil side wanted to take up his job. Great! Couldn't I get any rest here?
With a sigh, I got up from bed and went to the dresser to tame the knotted mess that was my hair. There wasn't much I could do with it, now that it was shoulder-length, but I did manage to pull most of it into a small ponytail. The rest of it was my bangs area that couldn't reach the elastic band and so fell in my face. Once that was accomplished, I left the room and walked past Mrs. Hawkins, and Jim working about the place. Thankfully it was my day off from the kitchen, so after waving at the two Hawkins, I left the inn and walked towards the beach. I needed time alone to figure out how to defeat Siren. As I walked by everyone, I smiled and waved, some of them seeming startled, others worried, which obviously grabbed my attention. Why was everyone acting so weird? Shaking my head to push the thought aside, I continued on my way.
Arriving at the beach, I sat on an outcropping of boulders and stared out over the ocean, watching the sunlight sparkle on the waves. This only lasted a minute until I saw a speck heading towards the beach. As it got nearer, I realized it was a rowboat and watched it come ever closer until it got stuck near the reef. There was some sort of giant salamander in the boat wearing a coat and sailing hat, and he looked injured. Jumping off the boulders, I ran across the beach and trudged through the ocean towards the rowboat. By the time I had reached the reef where it was stuck, the water had come up to my torso.
"Mister, are you okay?" I demanded, grabbing the boat with my hands. The salamander crawled out of the rowboat, tipping it over, a small trunk tucked under his arm. I got splashed and was soaked.
"He's a-comin'," the salamander wheezed out in a panic, "Can you hear him? Those gears and gyros clickin' and whirrin' like the devil himself! He's after me chest, that fiendish cyborg and his band of cutthroats. But they'll have to pry it from old Billy Bones' cold dead fingers afore I -" He suddenly started coughing and hunched over.
"Come on, give me your arm," I said reaching out towards him. I got his arm to go around my shoulders and I helped him towards the beach.
"Good lass," he groaned out. When I got him onto the sand, he suddenly collapsed and I could take him no further. "Me chest, lass," he gasped, his breathing strained. I pushed it closer to him and he unlocked it pushing three buttons in a specific order. "He'll be comin' soon. Can't let them find this."
"Who's coming?" I asked and he suddenly grabbed my arm, pulling me close.
"The cyborg!" he whispered urgently into my ear at the same time pressing something into my hand, "Beware the cyborg!" He fell back and moved no more.
Cyborg? I only knew of two cyborgs. One was from the group Teen Titans and the other was Captain John Silver. The latter was dead, and the former I'm pretty sure wasn't a villain. So who could Billy Bones have been talking about?
Looking down, I saw I held some sort of sphere with strange symbols all over it. Well, whoever the cyborg is, he is certainly going through a lot of trouble over this odd little sphere. I knew I should have gone to Nesidy for help, but the ball had me intrigued. These markings baffle me. Unlike anything I've ever encountered. I poked at some of the symbols and the sphere suddenly expanded a bit. Tilting my head to the side, I studied it a bit more, twisting the top and sides until it popped open and a multitude of green lights sprung into the air in certain formations.
"Why, it's a map!" I said in amazement staring at a swirling galaxy labeled as The Milky Way. I poked at a spot on the galaxy and it suddenly zoomed in. To my left was a solar system I recognized from my years in school. There was the sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, the asteroid belt, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. Some distance away from that was another planet labeled Incantationen. "No way," I breathed staring at the word and touching the planet. The map zoomed in even more allowing me to see literally everything in Incantationen. "The Island Montressor. That's the Magellanic Country! The Coral City! That's the Cygnus Cross and that's the Kerian Abyss. Wait. What's this?" I inquired seeing a deserted island.
I stared at the island, recalling I had seen a picture of it in a book I read a couple of months ago from Nesidy's library. The text flashed before my mind almost as if I were reading the book again. On the clearest of nights when the winds of the Etherium were calm and peaceful, the greatest merchant ships with their cargoes of Arcturian sura crystals felt safe and secure. Little did they suspect that they were pursued by pirates. And the most feared of all these pirates was the notorious Captain Nathaniel Flint. Like a Candarian zap-wing overtaking its prey, Flint and his band of renegades swooped in out of nowhere. And then, gathering up their spoils, vanished without a trace. Flint's secret trove was never found, but stories have persisted that it remains hidden somewhere at the farthest reaches of Incantationen stowed with riches beyond imagination - the loot of a thousand worlds. "Why, it-it's... Treasure Island?!" I gasped out my mind suddenly racing, "That's Treasure Island?! Flint's trove?! The loot of a thousand worlds? All that treasure is only a boat ride away! Whoever brings it back would hold an eternal place atop the pantheon of explorers!" Not to mention I could possibly find a weapon to help me defeat Siren! "This is it. This is the answer to all my problems!" Pushing another button on the side of the sphere, it sucked back all of the green lights and snapped shut in my hand.
"There he is!" I suddenly heard a voice shout out. Startled, I looked back up to see a couple of rowboats heading my way, both filled with fiendish looking creatures.
"Oh, no," I groaned. Stuffing the map into my pants pocket, I took off running down the beach, leaving behind Billy's body. The sound of gunshots made me cringe and I ducked behind the boulders I had been on earlier. I had to get back to Nesidy, but if I kept running, I'd be in plain view and it would give them easier access to shoot me.
Peeking around the boulders, I saw the creatures had gotten to shore and were disrespecting Billy's body by searching through his empty trunk and clothes.
"It's got to be here somewhere! Find it!" snarled what looked like a giant red scorpion with greasy long hair. He suddenly looked at the sand, and I silently swore. My footprints! When his head turned in my direction, I quickly dove back behind the boulders, my heart hammering in my chest. I wish I had a weapon with me! Preferably Excalibur, as it was my sword. Thinking it safe,I peered around the boulders again, but found the scorpion creature had vanished, but his companions were heading back to the rowboats.
"Where did it go?" I murmured, and a second later, a giant red pincher wrapped around my throat, squeezing slightly so that I was choking to get air. I reached up to try and pry the giant claw off, but my fingers just slid over its smooth skin. Just one snip, and my head would be rolling through the sand!
"Well, well, well. Looks like we have a little spy," said the scorpion coming into my line of vision, "And it's the savior, no less. The Captain will be pleased to see you!"
I kicked my legs, hoping to strike him, but I couldn't tell if I was close to my target. The blood was rushing to my head and everything started going gray. I couldn't think straight to defend myself. Gah! Where was a hero when I needed one?! With a final kick, everything went black...
When Aralyne had stopped struggling, Scroop scuttled back over to his companions, and they all climbed into their rowboats, the young woman flung carelessly onto the floor.
"What luck," he said when they headed back towards their ship, the R.L.S. Legacy, "We go to get the map, and instead find Aralyne."
"Silver will be cross we didn't get the map," growled out one of the other pirates.
"Wait, what's that?" hissed out another one pointing at Aralyne's pocket.
Scroop reached inside the pocket, and produced the sphere, a horrid grin crossing his face. "It's the map!"
Everyone in the rowboats cheered, and within minutes, they arrived at the R.L.S. Legacy and were pulled on board. Scroop, with map in hand, picked up Aralyne and carried her to John Silver's stateroom. The Captain wasn't there at the moment, so he left the girl and the map on Silver's bed and left.
I woke up with a pounding headache, and my throat sore. Quickly getting my bearings, I found myself in an unfamiliar room, the map right at my side. Sitting up, I grabbed the ball and held it close, looking about the room. Before I could move, I heard whistling, and something whirring like a machine. The door to the room flew open and in came a cyborg wearing a pirate's outfit, and holding a bowl of something. I had met this man once when I had first arrived in Incantationen, but I thought he had died! How is he alive?!
"John Silver," I croaked out, glaring at him, particularly his robot half. Billy Bones did say for me to beware the cyborg!
"Now, don't be too put off by this hunk of hardware," he said moving his robotic arm and wiggling the electronic fingers, "These gears have been tough getting used to... but they do come in mighty handy from time to time." He turned his robotic arm into a sword, pointing it right at me. I backed up against the wall, not saying anything. Despite the physical threat, he kept his voice friendly as he spoke, handing me the bowl, "Here, now, have a taste of me famous bonzabeast stew. Old family recipe." I stared down into the bowl, not trusting him, sure it was poisoned. An eyeball suddenly floated to the top of the stew, the blue iris looking right at me. With a gasp, I dropped the bowl and it bounced on the bed, spilling about half of it onto the mattress. "ln fact, that was part of the old family!" Silver joked before laughing as if it was the funniest thing in the world. I gave him a disgusted look. "l'm just kiddin'! l'm nothin' if l ain't a kidder. Go on, Lynnie. Have a swig."
I scowled at the nickname he bestowed upon me and glanced back down at the bowl, wary of what other body parts may be floating around in it. Suddenly the silver spoon turned into a straw and sucked up the stew in one swig.
"Morph! You jiggle-headed blob of mischief! So that's where you was hiding!" said Silver as the straw then turned into an adorable pink blob with a face.
The blob belched and rested inside the bowl.
I was curious as to what kind of creature it was, and despite the fact I couldn't stand John Silver right now, I inquired, "What is that thing?" The blob floated out of the bowl and nuzzled my face.
''What is that thing?'' it repeated transforming into a tiny replica of me.
"He's a morph; I rescued the little shape-shifter on Proteus One," Silver explained as Morph turned back into the pink blob and zoomed over to the pirate, "He took a shine to me. We been together ever since. Right? Yeah. Nice boy."
I was somewhat surprised this dastardly villain had a bit of a soft spot, treating Morph like a dear pet.
"Now, down to business, Lynnie," said the pirate his voice becoming stern and pressing the tip of the sword into the center of my chest, "You have the map and know how to work it, yes?"
I glared at him, and held the sphere even closer to me. That was all the answer he needed.
"Siren wants you dead, but seeing as how you have what I want, I'm going to keep you alive. However, if you cross my path, I swear I will make you suffer. Am I understood?"
"You're just going to kill me anyway, so get on with it," I snapped. His one eye narrowed at me, and his robotic arm slashed out. I gasped, placing a hand on my left cheek, feeling blood drip between my fingers.
Without saying another word, he left the room with Morph.