sultal's note: you seriously might want to look up the legend of Bluebeard b4 reading this chapter. hope it's understandable/readable- I usually don't separate POVs in one chapter. keep writing.

Chapter 22: The Graveyard

Billy Jukes tightened the knot. Plunking the line to test its strength, he smiled at the Indian brave, hanging by his wrists.

"Compliments of Captain Hook." Billy Jukes tugged the rope. Black Antler swayed without opening his eyes. The brave's chin rest on his chest. Blood was frozen in his long, black hair.

"Y-yyou're all-ll-l…an-i-ma-ma-mals."

Billy Jukes looked down at the mast. John was strapped to the base. His glasses were frosted blind, but John was defiant as ever.

"Indec-c-cent." John shivered as Billy Jukes drew his knife. "Cow-w-ward, das-tard-d-ly – "

Billy Jukes stabbed. The butt of his knife cracked John's glasses. The frames bent into his temples.

John cried, and Billy Jukes was pleased. Considering his wages earned, Billy Jukes strut across the deck. Feeling vicious and confident he joined Crow, Gentleman Johnny, and Shark at the bulwark. The seasoned pirates did not acknowledge Billy Jukes, but Crow's crow gargled nastily.

Billy Jukes smiled. Smugly he leaned over the icy rail. "Dirty Injun." he commented, trying to sound evil and fishing for praise. "Little whelp. Should'a ripped their stomachs open."

Crow glanced under his hood. His crow squawked.

Gentleman Johnny grinned. He squeezed Billy Juke's jaw. "Easy pirate boy. Ye have te grow whiskers before ye can rip out a proper stomach."

Billy Jukes wrenched away. "Off me, Johnny Gent! Damn you! I can cut open a billion bellies! Starting with yours!"

"Shut it. Both of ye."

Gentleman Johnny and Billy Jukes stopped. They lowered their daggers.

"Shark?" Gentleman Johnny watched Shark's back. "Sharkie? What is it? A mer? A monster?"

Shark stared. Then, he nodded at a ship rounding the Jolly Roger. "Bluebeard's makin' a sweep."

They turned. Billy Jukes lost his arrogance as Bluebeard's ship passed, filling the sky with stained sails and rotten stench.

"Agch!" Billy Jukes gagged. The stench was noxious. "What is that? What is that smell?"

"Poison!" Gentleman Johnny smoothed his silky blonde hair. "The Devil's poison! Used to kill the very angels!"

The crow hacked. Crow sucked the smell through his nose then spit it out. The mucous splattered on the hull of Bluebeard's ship, and dripped over the inscription…

DAVORADOR

"Davorador." Billy Jukes read the name of Bluebeard's ship. He shivered. "What does it mean?"

Crow was silent. Gentleman Johnny rubbed the tattoo on his chest.

"Davorador." Still as stone, Shark stared at Bluebeard's ship. "The Devourer."

Billy Jukes could not help himself. "Why's it called that?"

Shark breathed in the snow, "...because of what Bluebeard keeps rotting inside."

The Devorador crawled around the Jolly Roger. Stench burning up his nose and into his imagination, Billy Jukes turned from Bluebeard's ship. He inhaled the cold ocean air, hoping the ice and snow would dull his senses.

Suddenly, he saw the ice move.

"Shark."

Billy Jukes moved along the deck. Shark's black oily eyes followed him.

"Shark. Shark there's something moving – "

"—I see it."

The ice bubbled and popped. Ocean water fizzed through the cracks. Shadows bruised below the white surface. The pirates leaned over the rail. Gentleman Johnny lifted his spyglass.

"The ice." Gentleman Johnny said. "There's something under the ice – "

"Mer!"

Shark grabbed the spyglass. The ice splintered as he left his shipmates, passed John and Black Antler, and burst into Captain Hook's cabin.

"Mr. Shark!"

Shark threw Smee into the wall. He extended the spyglass to Captain Hook. Bluebeard watched from a dark corner. Tigerlily was tangled in his arms.

Shark glanced once at the Indian princess.

"Ice is giving. Seawater is boiling up." Shark crossed the spyglass to Hook, but looked to Bluebeard. It was as if Shark had never left Bluebeard's crew. He remembered every sound, every sign, and every warning of the Neversea. He remembered every detail of the mer hunts.

Shark licked his lips. He could almost taste the salty blue blood of a Neversea mer. He felt thrill. He felt hungry. He felt murderous. He felt alive.

"Mer are on a chase. They're coming."

Bluebeard grinned. "Then, my Shark, fetch the hooks."

Shark did not wait for Captain Hook's consent. "Aye…" he said, sounding the alarm. "MATES! TE THE HOOKS! AVAST!"

Captain Hook seethed. "Going fishing with my crew, are we? And with my tackle?"

Smee cowered as Captain Hook approached the pirate lord. "Then I assume, Lord Bluebeard, you shall supply the bait?"

Bluebeard's fingers curled into Tigerlily's hair. "Si tu veux."

"Squirt! Squirt, DOWN!"

"Mom!" Brine yelled. "Mom! No!"

BAM. Water crunched into Wendy's chest. Doubled over she slammed into Peter. Wendy tried to breath but Queen Celadon swiped her trident again, hitting them with a second cartridge of water.

"Guards!" Herman the crab scuttled across the floor. "Guards! Guards! The humans! Seize them!"

Barracuda the shrimp buzzed Wendy's ear. "Rock em! Sock em! Lock em – "

"—MOVE!"

Conch grabbed Peter and Wendy as Queen Celadon blasted the ice. Counting the dear seconds as Brine blocked the queen's aim, Conch shoved a fist into a crack. Hot water spread from his fingers. The ice melted like butter.

"Conch!" Wendy buckled. She felt Peter's hands. Terrified she sagged as mer warriors and Hadal's narwhale charged. "Conch! What – "

"Brine!" Conch shoved boiling water through the ice. Face red, he turned. "Nix! NOW!"

Brine released his mother's trident. Without pause he turned as Nixie sprinted overhead. Seizing Peter and Wendy, they hurtled through the melted ice.

"Swim!" Conch called as the tunnel turned black. "Swim! They're coming after y – "

Mer warriors swarmed into the ice. Hadal's narwhale drilled after them, scraping the tunnel with its tusk.

"Faster!" Nixie yanked Peter into open water. Brine followed with Wendy. Luminous creatures flickered away as the narwhale screamed.

"Faster! How can you be so slow? You can fly! It's the same thing as swimming! Just underwater instead of the air – "

"Nixie!" Brine tumbled over Wendy. A trident sliced over her head. "Nixie! Clam it and swim!"

They retraced their path across the kingdom, corralled back the way they'd come. Guided blindly by Brine, Wendy struggled to maneuver the iceberg maze. A fin flick ahead, she heard Peter gulping mouthfuls of water.

Ice shook as the narwhale stabbed at Wendy's tail. Wrenching around her, Brine slammed Wendy into the iceberg wall. As the narwhale crashed overhead, Brine scuttled away.

"They're human? They're human?" Brine's tone was lethal. Behind him the narwhale roared. Mer warriors threw tridents as Brine hauled Wendy left, right, up, and down. "Nixie! Why would I tell Mom and Dad they're human!? Look out!"

Nixie ducked. A trident grazed her shoulder as she dropped Peter.

"What was I supposed to think?" Nixie retorted, yanking Peter upright. "I only told them about Shark! I didn't bring him home! You were the dumb rockfish that shoved them up Mom and Dad's gills! Literally!"

"We were getting away with it, Nixie!"

"No you weren't! Mom was about to feed Wendy to the worms!"

"NOT helping!"

"CODFISH!" Peter yelled. His eyes darted to Wendy. "Behind!"

The ice shattered. Fragments broke across Wendy's back as Brine lurched away. Tail twitching she crumpled to the ocean floor.

Thunk! Thunk thunk thunk! The narwhale stabbed at her face. Panicking, Wendy clawed the icy sand, forgetting to use her fins to swim. The narwhale burrowed after her, building enormous currents in its wake. Wendy called for help, but all she could see were mer warriors aiming tridents at her heart.

Suddenly she felt a hand. "Wendy!"

The narwhale screamed. Wendy turned. "Brine?"

Peter growled. Then squeezing Wendy, he kicked his fin and dove for the mer warriors. "Come on, codfish! Right here! Fire!"

"What?" Wendy closed her eyes as the tridents flew. "Peter!"

Peter curled into a ball. And as he and Wendy sunk, the narwhale charged over them and crashed into the mermen. The ranks scattered, and Peter – reminding himself how clever he was – heaved Wendy through the opening.

"No!" Wendy heard Brine. She tried to turn but Peter wrench so hard, her neck snapped back. But Brine still screamed. Loud. And desperate. "No! No! Not that way! Not the Graveyard! Wendy! Wendy! No!"

Brine's voice broke and Wendy tried to look back. But Peter surged forward, flying over mermen, under tridents, through water, across ice and into…

"Ah!"

Peter reeled. Wendy screamed as he pulled her from the terrible sight.

Hooks. Hundreds and thousands and too many to count, hanging from the ocean surface like thorns. They were snarled in nets, chains, barbs, wires, lines, and…mer remains. Mer remains slowly eaten by giant worms.

It was a graveyard. A graveyard of hooks.

Wendy was sick. Paralyzed, she felt Peter floundering between the hook graveyard and advancing warriors. And just as Wendy couldn't possibly image who had created this dreadful place, two pirate ships broke the ice overhead.

Nixie suddenly shrieked. "OH NO! MOM!"

"WENDY!" Brine screamed. "LOOK OUT!"

Peter turned, trapped from all sides. He held Wendy. He started to swim.

But he was too late.

All at once, three things happened. Queen Celadon blasted Peter and Wendy apart. The pirates dropped hooks through the ice. And Hadal, Brine's brother, seized Wendy…

…and both plunged into the graveyard of hooks.

Lord Bluebeard heard the screaming. Even underwater. It was a relishing sound. A powerful sound. A sound that reminded the Neversea the Bluebeard – not Basalt – was king.

Openly pleased, Bluebeard watched his men. Intermingled with the Jolly Roger crew, the pirates of the Devorador cast hooks into the sea. Shark lead the rally, hurling hooks like a madman. The ice glimmered with silver as Shark fed hooks into the graveyard, hungry for a catch.

Bluebeard smiled. Shark had been his deadliest pirate, trained by non-other than he. Shark craved bloodshed and wasted little thought on treasure, adventure, or gold. Shark, like Bluebeard himself, was a killer.

But…

Bluebeard frowned. Also like himself, Shark had two weaknesses. The first was that he was unsubservient, untrainable. A pirate that was not disobedient but, devilishly autarchic. And as for the second weakness…

Bluebeard looked down. Tigerlily, bound by his arms, struggled for freedom.

Wickedly, Bluebeard laughed. Dragging the Indian princess he brought her to a red door. Shoving a black key into the black lock, Bluebeard probed Tigerlily's waist.

"Shark's weakness is for one lady…" Bluebeard opened the door. Tigerlily started to fight but she suddenly staggered, crippled by the smell. Gagging, she fell as Bluebeard threw her inside.

"…but my weakness." Bluebeard breathed in the rot and decay. "…is for them all."

Tigerlily looked up.

And then she screamed.

Bodies. Some in bags. Others not. But bodies. All women. All dead.

"Farewell savage princess…" Bluebeard unhooked a hanging corpse. The head lagged as he bowed out the door. "….keep my little Merrow company. Till again, I return. Or till death…do us part."

The door slammed. A body swung from the hinges and banged dully against the wood. The body was a girl's, no bigger than Tigerlily herself. Horrified Tigerlily stared but could not see the face, because it was entirely wrapped in a wedding veil. The wedding veil was stained, and braided down the girl's body to bind her arms, legs, ankles, and wrists.

Then, suddenly, the head moved.

A small voice spoke through the white veil.

"Hello? Is someone there? Can you help me? Can you save me?"

Tigerlily stared. She trembled as the mummified head listened in the dark.

"Hello? Please. Help me. My name is Merrow. And I...and all of these…am Bluebeard's bride."

Tigerlily breathed.

And then, as Bluebeard cackled outside, she fainted.

All of a sudden, Wendy remembered her dream. Hooks poking into her eyes and sticking into her spine. Every gesture, every blink snared hooks deeper into her skin. Someone yelled for her not to move, but Wendy panicked when Hadal clawed her face, hooks tangled in his long hair.

"Stop moving!" Tearing from the mer army, Brine hovered against the graveyard. Heart freezing, he tried to keep calm. "Wendy! Wendy! Don't move! The hooks will only get worse! And you'll attract the worms! Don't move!"

"They'll eat her alive!" Teal pulled Conch's arm. "Conch! The worms! They'll eat Hadal and the human girl alive!"

Conch looked. Giant worms, long as his arms, nuzzled between hooks, searching for remains. Glancing once at his parent's Conch joined Brine.

"Hadal! Squirt! Both of you freeze!" Urgently Conch held Brine back. "The worms are slow, but you both have to get out before they start to smell – "

Crash!

Wendy cried. A net of hooks, weighted by anchors, cracked through the ice. Plunging into the graveyard, the hook mass pulled at the existing chains. Wendy felt metal scraping against her scales, pulling her hair, and stretching her skin. She flailed, trying to fall with the hooks before they sliced her apart.

Suddenly, the hooks caught. With a jolt, they suspended in the graveyard, thickening the mass.

Wendy gasped. She looked, listening to Brine and trying not to breath.

Then something else floated from the mass of hooks. Bobbing upward like a grotesque puppet, it nodded into Wendy's face.

It was a corpse. The corpse of a woman.

Wendy screamed.

The hooks pulled. And the worms, smelling the rot, came sniffing for dinner.