The clouds were a stone grey, hovering ominously over Shipwreck Bay. Ali kept her hands gripped tightly on the wheel as she carefully steered the galleon through the rocks surrounding the island. Koa was busy adjusting the sails so that the ship went through nice and slow so Ali could easily correct the ship's position while Zhen called out directions from the crow's nest. Stella stood at the bow, watching the island get closer and closer. "Ok, this should be close enough. We can take the rowboat closer." Stella called out as she grabbed the capstan's wheel and lowered the anchor, bringing the Icebreaker to a gentle stop. "Alright. Everyone ready?" Stella asked as the crew walked to the back of the ship where the rowboat was. "Ready when you are, cap." Zhen replied. "I'm scared…" Ali whispered. "It'll be ok, Ali." Koa reassured softly, "We can do this."

"Alrighty. Let's do this." Stella said as she climbed into the rowboat, the others following suit before she detached the boat from the ropes and Koa grabbed the oars, beginning to row towards the shore.

As they left the boat and stepped onto the sandy beach, Koa raised a hand and signalled everyone to be quiet. They could hear a female voice nearby.

"Fire. Heat. Soon they'll be more than just words."

"Is that…?" Ali whispered. "Briggsy." Koa confirmed. The crew crept forward as they heard Briggsy continue, seeming to be talking to some skeletons, "Oh, to have flesh once more. I'll be able to smell the sea air! Feel the weight of coins in my palm! Taste the bottom of a barrel of Grog! There wasn't a pirate alive who didn't cheer when they heard the name 'Briggsy' — Kraken Slayer, Shroudbreaker and Adventurer Extraordinaire! Now look at me… Camped out in some nameless backwater with just you brainless boneheads for company…It's all because of that damned curse! Even my old shipmates think I'm dead, or that I'm some sort of monster! And maybe I am! Once I'm free of it, everyone will know my name again!"

Stella frowned upon hearing Briggsy speak. She couldn't help but feel bad for her. "Ok, the second she sees us, it's on." Koa explained in a whisper, "Ali, there's several high rocks you can aim your daggers from that will also keep you above the fight. Just watch out for gunfire."

"O-ok."

"Zhen, the area seems to be nice and open so there's plenty of room for you to chuck your bombs and for us to stay clear. Just remember to let us know when you're throwing them."

"You got it."

"I'll focus on doing as much damage to Briggsy as I can. Stella, can you-?"

It was then everyone noticed Stella was gone.

"S-Stella?!" Koa whisper-yelled, "Where did you-?!"

"Uh, hi there! Miss Briggsy?"

"She isn't…" Zhen's face paled. "She is." Koa took off to where he heard Stella was.

Meanwhile Stella emerged from behind a rock where she saw three skeletons sitting on the ground. Two of them where your bog-standard skellies, but the middle one had golden bones with a scarlet coat and hat, both adorned with jewels and plumes, leather trousers, a leather boot and a gold pegleg. She also wore what seemed to be some sort of bird-like mask with black stripes and a large hole in one of the eyes, exposing a ruby in place of one of her eye sockets. She immediately snapped her head in Stella's direction upon hearing her speak. "Well, well, well! What do we have here then?" she chuckled, getting to her feet, "A sailor too far from home?"

"Uh, I'm a pirate, not a sailor. My name's Stella. Stella Icewind."

"Oho! Icewind, eh? So, what brings you here to take on THE Captain Briggsy?"

"Well…my crew and I were hoping to restore the Shroudbreaker, and we were hoping maybe you could help us…?"

"…"

"…"

"…PFFT!" Briggsy burst out laughing, along with the skeletons beside her, "You-you're kidding, right?! Why should I help a puny wannabe like you?"

"W-well, it's just that I heard you were a great pirate who loved adventure like my mom, so I was hoping maybe you could help me make it to the Shores of Gold, since she never got to."

Briggsy finally calmed down from her laughing fit, wiping an imaginary tear from her mask, "Oh…oho…I haven't laughed like that in a while. Thank you for that! But my answer is no chance. If I ever want to be rid of this wretched curse, I can't let it fall into anyone else's hands. But also…" Briggsy unsheathed her cutlass, "Now that you've seen me in this shameful state…I can't LET YOU LIVE!"

Briggsy lunged at Stella who froze up in shock.

*CLANG!*

Briggsy was parried by Koa blocking her attack with his own sword. "Well, at least you weren't stupid enough to come alone!" Briggsy laughed, "It's been so long since I've had a good fight. So, try not to disappoint too much!"

"Stella, get ready!" Koa yelled. "R-right!" Stella replied, 'So much for reasoning with her.'

Stella went to reach for her sword, but her palm began to glow, and a sword materialised in her hand. It was a beautiful silver and steel cutlass with a teal handle and a crystal similar to her own on the bottom. The blade was adorned with pieces of ice. Stella was surprised at first but shook it off as she went to attack Briggsy. Their blades clanged against each other, both parrying each of the others attacks.

"Incoming!"

Stella leapt backwards as a firebomb hit Briggsy directly. "GAH! You little pest!" Briggsy growled before sprinkling some sort of dust on the ground, "Time to even the odds!" Skeletons emerged from the ground and began to attack Koa and Stella quickly became surrounded by skeletons while Zhen tried to help by chucking more of his bombs. Briggsy went to aim her pistol at Stella, but it was suddenly knocked out of her hand by a dagger. She glanced to the side to see Ali dashing towards her with a dagger, "L-leave my friends alone!"

"Ali, no!" Stella yelled, trying to cut through the skeletons. Ali went to slice at Briggsy who dodged most of the attempts, but Ali managed to land a few blows on her. Having enough, Briggsy grabbed Ali's arm tightly, the navigator struggling to wriggle free. "L-let me go!" Ali squeaked. "Aww, you're so adorable." Briggsy chuckled, "I almost feel bad for having to kill you. Almost." Briggsy grabbed the dagger from Ali's hand and knocked her to the ground. Before she could get up, Briggsy grabbed two chests from the ground and slammed them with herculean force into the ground, sending Ali flying through the air and slamming into a rock as she let out a pained yell. Stella became trapped under a dogpile of skeletons as Koa and Zhen struggled to fend off the groups attacking them. Stella tried desperately to crawl out of the pile as she was forced to watch Briggsy slowly walk towards the injured Ali. She felt her breathing quicken as thoughts began swarming her head, yelling at her.

'She needs you! You can't give up! She'll die! Get up! What are you doing?! Don't you dare quit! Get up! Save her! Get up! Get up! GETUPGETUPGETUPGETUPGETUPGETUPGETUPGETUPGETUPGETUP!'

'DO SOMETHING!'

"NO!"

With an ear-piercing scream, a gust of icy wind exploded from Stella, sending the skeletons flying. Briggsy spun around to see what was happening, giving Ali some time to crawl away. Stella's markings and crystals seemed to be glowing brighter as well as a light blue glow emanating from the scar over her eye. Her pupils had become slits and her scleras pitch-black. A fang poked out from under her upper lip and her hair was now a bright teal with white tips. She snarled at Briggsy with a fierce glare, "Don't. Touch. Her."

"So, this is the fabled power of the Glacial Dragon, eh?" Briggsy chuckled, "Good! It'll be even more satisfying to rip you to shreds!"

Stella let out an angry roar before lunging at Briggsy. The Skeleton Lord tried to block it, but the impact sent her skidding back several feet. Stella pierced the ground with her sword, causing giant spikes of ice to come jutting out of the earth towards Briggsy who barely managed to dodge. But distracted by the ice, she didn't see Stella lunge at her again and was knocked to the ground. As Stella went to slice at her with her cutlass, Briggsy managed to grab a handful of sand and throw it in Stella's face, causing the pirate to cry out and stumble backwards, trying to rub the sand out of her eyes. Briggsy used this opportunity to lunge at Stella, getting several slashes in before knocking the Glacial Dragon to the ground. Stella let out a pained yell as Briggsy placed her pegleg on her chest.

"Any last words, oh great and powerful dragon?" Briggsy cackled.

"Sí ... detrás de ti." Stella groaned.

"Wha…? What the hell does that mean?"

"…behind you."

Before she could react, Briggsy let out a scream as she felt a sharp pain in her back. She slowly looked over her shoulder to see a pained and frightened looking Ali digging her dagger into Briggsy's back, panting heavily. Briggsy was silent before chuckling weakly, "Ha...haha…not bad, shorty…not…bad…"

And with that, Briggsy exploded into a pile of bones, only her skull left intact. Ali fell onto her back, exhausted. Stella, tired herself, felt the adrenaline leave her body as the changes to her disappeared before getting to her feet and rushing to Ali's side, "Ali! You…are you ok?!"

"…I…I wanna go back to the boat now…please…" Ali panted. Stella let out a light chuckle as she helped the navigator to her feet. "You guys alright?!" Koa yelled as he rushed over, followed by Zhen – the skeletons had disappeared along with Briggsy. "We could be worse…" Stella gave a thumbs up, "Sorry for going off on my own. Just hearing what she said…I thought maybe I could reason with her…"

Koa sighed, "I know. But unfortunately, most people lose their logic and reasoning upon becoming a skeleton. I know you meant well. C'mon. Let's get the skull back to Olivia so we can get a start on finding the other gems."

Stella nodded before gently picking up Briggsy's skull. She stared at it for a while pondering before following her exhausted but triumphant crew back to the Icebreaker.


"The skull of a Skeleton Lord! Oh, I've waited years for this moment…"

Olivia stared at Briggsy's skull in awe as she examined it while the Glacial Dragons stood in her tent. Olivia glanced at each of them with a thankful smile on her face, "So few people stop to wonder what the Order of Souls does with the bounties once we have them. Each skull holds many secrets, memories of old hoards and old encounters, long forgotten. If Briggsy truly did possess the Shroudbreaker, the missing pieces should lie somewhere within her recollection. But be warned, such visions are not always easy to interpret."

With that, Olivia peppered Briggsy's skull with glowing dust before inhaling it to blow onto the skull. She whispered an incantation into the skull's ear (or where Stella guessed the ear would be), then inhaled the dust once more. After a brief pause, she began to speak, "Such a long life…There are many memories to sift through, but I can make out a few names…Tasha, a girl in a tavern, staring in awe as the firelight flickers and great tale are told…Sudds…A dear friend who threads his way across the wildest oceans by the light of the stars…Salty…trembling before a blade, revealing the lair of a Trickster…Wild Rose…True love shining like a beacon that calls across the waves…" Olivia once again glanced at the four adventurers, "Fate has bound you to meet with these wanderers, for they alone know of the precious stones you seek. I can offer you nothing more than my gratitude and faith that you have the strength to reach the Shores of Gold."

"Thanks for all your help, Madame Olivia." Koa smiled, "We'll get right on it. Let's go, guys."

The crew went to leave but Koa noticed Stella hesitate, "Captain? Is something wrong?"

"…hey, Madame Olivia?" Stella began.

"Yes, my dear?" Olivia replied.

"If it's ok…can I have Briggsy's skull back?"

Olivia looked at Stella curiously for a moment but seemed to understand by looking at Stella's expression, "Of course. I trust you'll take good care of it."

"I will." Stella smiled as she left the tent. "What do you need Briggsy's skull for?" Zhen asked. "You'll see. Mind if we make a pitstop back at Shipwreck Bay, Ali?" Stella asked. "Uh…s-sure?" Ali replied as the crew made their way back to the ship.

To Be Continued…