BOO!
Ok, so after some hard thinking, I decided to come back. I just got completely overwhelmed with school work and everything, but I am
back, one year later as a junior not a sophomore like when I started this story! If I still have readers, I want to say thank you! Because
its because of you guys that I came back. So without further adieu, I give you the remaining chapters of The Secret of Atlantis.
Because I have this story done, the sequel and the sequels sequel up, I'm going to be posting about 2-3 chapters a day.
Chapter Twenty-Six
What He Wants
-Triton's Palace-
-First Day of the War-
"Sir?" Triton whirled around to look at his admiral running to meet him. Triton reluctantly turned away from the window, showing him the gorgeous view of his city, and looked down at the young man. He nodded for him to continue, and the man did. "The Queen has declared war against you. Mercer's gone, no doubt banding against. We're awaiting your orders."
Triton looked back out at the ocean. Dozens of ships were pulling into port, but the most distinguished of all were the ships with the sparrow flying over the sunset. He closed his eyes momentarily, before nodding. He popped open his dark eyes, and walked down from the stairs, towards his desk. "Fight back. This isn't her city, and if it's war she wants, it's war the Queen will get." His words seemed to pierce through the building with the harsh tone he was using. The way he said Queen was almost in a mocking way, as if he didn't think of her in that manner. That had something, the admiral was sure of, to do with what happened all those years ago with Neptune. And now, Triton was avenging his wife's death by destroying their navy, now run by Neptune's daughter. Triton picked up a sword, staring at it, and pointed it in the air, "We fight-" He lowered his gaze to meet his admiral's gaze, "-at dawn."
"Yes, Sir." The admiral said, with a slight nod, before walking back out of the office, leaving the king alone in his courters. Triton placed the sword back in his holder, and walked over to the painting that was on the wall. He placed his hand on the painting of Athena, and closed his eyes momentarily...
"Do you think she'll have mermaid powers?" Athena asked her husband with a smirk. Triton glanced over at his wife and smiled as he said, "Let's hope not. You got yourself into way too much trouble with them. Isn't that right, Saphira?" Athena smiled, and handed Triton their daughter. He smiled down at her, and kissed her forehead, before turning up to meet Neptune's piercing blue gaze. The King smiled at his friend, and said, "Are you ready, mate?"
"The Court is already here?" Triton asked, handing Saphira back to Athena. Athena was so overprotective of her daughter, since just a few years ago their only son was kidnapped by a member of the Royal Navy. They didn't know at that time that in a matter of a few months, their son would be joined by their daughter with a man so cruel, even Barbossa couldn't stand up against him.
"Yes." Neptune said, with a nod. He smiled over at Athena and said, "You can put Saphira in the nursery with Lila, Athie." Athena smiled at their friend, and made her way off of the ship to the palace. When she was gone, Neptune put an arm around his former admiral's shoulder's, and said with a smirk, "You ready to be king, mate?"
Triton laughed, and said, "You think that this will work?"
"I do." Neptune said. "I really do." Triton smiled up at Neptune, and together, the two men walked into the palace. Inside the palace, Athena walked into the lavender nursery. She smiled when she saw Lila already asleep, bundled up in a pink blanket. She kissed Saphira's head, and said, "Mummy will be right back, love." Saphira yawned, causing Athena to laugh as she placed Saphira down beside Lila. In a matter of moments, both babies were fast asleep. She smiled, and walked out...all the more thinking about her son Rupert, and who on earth could have kidnapped him. She knew. Or at least she had a clue as to who it was.
Her former lover...Mercer. Because wasn't he behind most everything? Athena paused, and looked back into the nursery, only to see that Saphira was still asleep beside Lila. Athena sighed, and walked back down the hallway, pushing thoughts out of her mind.
-Neptune's Palace-
-1707-
-Outside the City-
-The Queen's Navy-
"You call yourself a navy? Goodness, James Norrington could take the lot of you." Rupert spat, tossing one of the men a rifle. The man caught it rather fast, trying to show Admiral Dawson his quick reflexes, but of course Rupert wasn't paying much attention to that. Rolling his dark, brown eyes, he paced back and forth where the navy was lined up on the shoreline, "I expect you to do as I say. When she says it." He quickly added, more so for Will's sake who was standing behind him. Will rolled his eyes, and leaned on his sword which was pointing at the ground.
Will's eyes drifted off to Lila, who was talking to Jack by the docks. Jack had been acting differently since he, Calypso and Lila reunited with them a few hours earlier. More so, around Lila. He saw Lila smile up at him, and wrap her arms around him. He watched as Jack did the same to her, and kiss her cheek. Feeling a pang, and a bit of deja vu, he quickly turned around and fixed his jacket that almost mirrored what Rupert's looked like, only a few more badges and things to make his prince status known.
"The Queen is not in the best of moods, so I suggest that you don't do anything stupid." Rupert said, with a slight sigh as he glanced over at Will. But the prince of the sea wasn't paying much attention to what was going on at the moment. He was too far in his thoughts.
"What happened? Her and the prince get into a fight again?" Snickered one of the naval officers. Rupert was about to say something, but at that moment, Lila walked in between the line that the naval officers were standing in, and smacked the back of his head. That got some laughs and smirks from the rest of the men. Lila smiled and leaned down to the officer and said, "Say another thing like that, Mr. Knight and not only will you be asked to step down, but I will see to it that your head will come off." She winked at him, and walked over to where Will and Rupert were standing. Much to everyone's amusement, Commodore Daniel Knight did not say another word.
Lila, who was also wearing a similar uniform as Will's, said, "I don't want you to get in there and randomly starting to blow people's heads off, alright?" She glared over at Daniel who looked as if he was about to say another smart remark. "You want to say something, love?" She took her finger and made a slit motion around her neck. When his eyes grew wide and he took a step back, she said with a smirk, "Didn't think so."
She put her sword in it's holder, and said, "We're going to split you up into three groups. One group will accompany William, Jack and myself to the palace. The other will stay with Rupert here in the city, and then the other group will stay by the ships and be prepared to fight at a minute's notice." She glanced over at Will, who hadn't looked at her since she walked over. Lila dropped her gaze from his and said, "Are we agreed?"
"Aye." Some of them said. She nodded, and said, "From this moment until I say so, any orders given by someone other than Rupert, William or me is prohibited. You are not to listen to anyone, not even the Royal Navy, understood? And if the time comes, you're also to listen to Jack." That made Will look over at her. Lila met his gaze for a moment, and dropped his key, which she had been twirling around, and let it fall back down to where it hung. Lila turned back to her navy and said, "Master Rowling, take your group back to the docks. Prepare the ships for battle." He nodded, and walked back to the ships with the dozens and dozens of men following behind him. "The rest of you, follow us into the city."
Will, Rupert, Lila and the hundreds of naval officers met up with Saphira, Ana and Jack moments later at the city gates. Saphira fell in step with Lila, and whispered, "You alright?"
"I think I should be asking the same to you." Lila glanced over at her as she said that, to see that her best friend was staring at the statue of Athena. Lila fixed one of the golden buttons on her jacket and said to Saphie, "Darling, don't worry about it, alright?"
"Lila, I can't help it. I mean..." She trailed off, and looked over at her. "I'm just nervous." Lila smiled and said, "Saphie, we all are. But you don't need to be. If anyone should be nervous, it should be me. At least you didn't sink this city when you were six." Lila shuddered slightly at that, causing Saphie to laugh. Lila smiled over at her and said, "You'll be fine. I'm sure Triton isn't...as...coldhearted as people have said. At least he won't be towards his daughter."
"You're right."
"I'm always right, lovie." Lila said, hugging Saphie. Saphie smiled as Lila said, releasing her, "Now, don't worry about it. I mean, come on, love. You're getting married soon. You can't be stressed out." Saphira blushed slightly at that, causing Lila to roll her eyes. A moment later, Will caught up to the two girls and said, "Li, Mercer's men are closing in on us. Calypso's back at the Sun trying to hold them back, but she can't."
Lila sighed, and glanced up at the palace. The shimmering, glasslike palace seemed so far away from where they were standing in the middle of the city. Lila turned around to look at Will as she said, "I'll try and hold them off for as long as I can. Saphira?" Saphie turned and looked over at Lila as she said, "Go with Rupert-"
"-but-"
"-just go with him, alright?" Saphie nodded, and hugged Lila. Lila smiled at her as she ran over to her brother, and the hundreds of naval officers behind him. Jack walked over to her, and whispered something to her before he kissed her. After a wink to her, he walked back over to where Will and Lila were standing.
"Wha's the plan, love?" Lila flipped open Jack's compass, and let it spin for a moment. She snapped it shut and yelled over to Rupert, "Admiral Dawson?" Rupert snapped his head up, and looked at Lila as she said, "Send word back to the docks to declare war. Mercer's not going to give up-"
"-Lil..-" Rembering that Lila and Rupert were told by Neptune to not use a first name basis around the navy, Rupert quickly said, "-Your Majesty, are you sure?" Lila smiled over at him and said, "Yes. I trust you to take over for me with them." Rupert nodded at her, and said to them, "Be careful." And with that, he put an arm around Saphie and the other around Ana, and began walking down the hill. Saphie looked back at Jack one last time, before following her brother down the hill.
Guns were shooting, cannons were blaring, screams and shouts were filling the air as Lila turned back to the palace. "Lila?" Will and Jack looked down at Lila, trying to understand what was going through her head. She nodded and said, "To the palace." She began walking, motioning for the hundred or so men behind her to follow her. Will glanced at Jack, who seemed to be as confused as he was.
"And if he refuses to listen?" Will said, when he and Jack caught up to her. She whirled around, and said, "We do what we do best, darling." Will nodded as Lila turned to the ocean. Closing her eyes, she invisoned the biggest tidal wave she had ever created. And in a matter of moments, there it was.
-Triton's Palace-
He walked out of his palace to see his city in panic. Not only was the Royal Navy closing in from one side of the city, but the Queen's Navy was as well. Triton glanced down from the balcony to see his own men forming a line in front of the palace, some of them walking out into the city to fight. After closing his eyes momentarily, he walked back into the palace, and down the stairs.
"Admiral? What's the latest?" Triton asked, coming to stand beside him. The young admiral glanced back out at the city in distress, and said, "They're closing in. Apparently the Queen wiped out a good number of Mercer's men with a tidal wave a few moments ago-"
"-no doubt with help from Calypso. She escaped, didn't she?"
"Yes, sir. But the Queen was released." The admiral said, turning his blue eyes up to meet that of Triton's. "At least that's what I was told." Triton closed his eyes once more, before opening them and saying, "That'll make things harder. If she's anything like her mother, she won't stand down." The admiral followed Triton's gaze out towards the city, as more gunshots rang out into the early morning air. "And we know Mercer won't."
The time was now. Three kingdoms were about to collide.
When she neared the bottom of the stairs, Triton walked down to meet her. "Your Majesty." He hissed at her. Lila returned his cold gaze, and replied to him in a mocking tone, "Your Highness." Triton looked behind her, and then lowered his gaze to meet her as he said in that same tone, "Come alone I see?"
"Oh, on the contrary." Lila said with a smile, as Jack and Will stepped out from behind her, swords drawn. Will took a step forward and said, "She never comes alone." And as he said that, hundreds of the Queen's Navy came out from the shadows that were casted from the smoke filling the air. Lila paused for a moment, taking Triton in. It was, to her, like looking at Rupert in a few years. That distracted her for a moment, as she stared up at Triton. She had been right, there was no doubt about that now. Will slightly nudged her, and she came out of the trance she had been set in.
"It seems that you and I have a need to discuss some things, as it were." Lila said, losing that tone that she had had earlier. As mad as she was towards Triton and for all that he had helped do in the last month, when she saw how much he resembled Rupert, she somewhat forgot about that. Triton hinted that she had standed down for some reason, but didn't stand back himself.
"I don't think I know what you're talking about, Your Majesty." He spat.
"Oh, I think you do, love." Lila said, taking a step towards him and away from Jack and Will who were still standing behind her, with their swords drawn. Lila turned around and nodded at them, causing them to lower their swords. "Triton, I don't want this war anymore than you do. My men just came out of a war less than a year ago, and do you know how many men I lost? Do you honestly think I want to go through this again?"
Triton stared down at the young queen for a long moment, before he asked in her a somewhat different tone, though not losing it's harshness, "What do you want from me?"
"Question is-" Came a voice from behind them. Triton and Lila looked off to the right of them to see Mercer walking towards him. That same twisted smile of his creeped up on his face as he examined his sword, "-what do I want from both of you?"