It took forever to get the crew back into shape after the shit Tim and the other adults pulled.
Forever.
Not to mention all of his and Uma's skills at patching people up.
His mind was still reeling at the audacity of their former crewmates.
Fucking betrayers.
He personally hoped none of them had made it back to shore. At least not safely anyways.
A few missing limbs might teach them a lesson.
Dropping everyone but James and Yensid off on book club beach had been another sobering moment.
Where the fuck was the beach?
How was it so-
So much less?
How was there nothing left?
The thinnest of strips. And even then, that was only when the waves pulled back.
Fuck, the small place Deez made out of driftwood and trash was gone entirely.
That was when dread started filling him. Seeing that non-existent shoreline.
He should've known then.
Should've prepared himself-
Fuck.
Should have at least said something to Uma.
If this was what this beach looked like-
What the fuck were they going to find on the other side of the Isle?
But-
How the fuck could you possibly prepare for something like this?
How could you hold on to the hope that it was okay when you were preparing for the worst?
His stomach churns as bile fights its way up his throat.
His knuckles turn white around the oars as Uma's nails bite into his shoulder.
Normally he'd joke, be turned on, or make advances.
But even he couldn't manage to make light of the oppressive mood.
Not when-
He swallows hard as the cove comes into view.
Or rather, the place where the cove had once been.
Their small paradise.
Lovingly built for them-
His stomach plummets.
It was gone.
There was nothing here anymore.
Waves crashing against the arch of the cave entrance.
How?
How could the ocean invade like that?
Take up more room than it had before?
Cover the entrance to their beloved cave?
He turns away, tears gathering in his eyes as he looks to Uma, needing confirmation that this wasn't just some type of fucked up nightmare.
"Noooo!" Uma cries out, the notes echoing shrilly in his head.
Haunting.
Soul devastating.
The sound confirmed his worst fears.
He watches as she presses her firsts to her face, shaking him to his soul with how raw and hysterical she sounded, "No! Nononono!" She dives over the side of the dingy.
"UMA!" He calls after her as he shoots to his feet, wildly rocking the small boat so much he nearly falls in.
He couldn't bring himself to care. He drops back to the seat before he punches the oar.
Baby Girl.
Sweet Boy.
His chest constricts as his hand clutches the stiff fabric over his heart.
His brother. His sister.
He coughs, already choking on the bile.
His family.
Why? Why them? Why like this?
His heart freezes.
He couldn't fathom the fear.
The terror.
The utmost horror of what they felt when-
Their Baby Girl was so terrified of the water.
He could only imagine it had been a night terror come to life.
And their Sweet Boy?
As much as he wished to banish the thought, he couldn't shake the image of him curled around Deez, doing everything he could to shield them from their fate.
He grimaces as a pained noise leaves him.
Tears fall unchecked down his cheeks as he loses his fight against his rebellious stomach.
Was there any hope?
Any?
His shaking hands grip the side of the dingy as his stomach demands to be completely empty.
Fuck.
He hated getting sick.
He grits his teeth as he looks back at the-
Nonexistent cove.
Had they been here?
It was the slightest, tiniest, shriveled-up piece hope he'd ever clung to.
The idea that they might have left before.
Before all hell broke loose.
Could have left to get something.
Anything!
Maybe they hadn't been here.
Maybe they missed the wave.
"NO! FUCK! NO!"
His head snaps up at the sheer agony in Uma's howls of denial.
The shrieks penetrating so profoundly he could feel it in his bones.
Resonating.
Tormenting.
Tearing him apart.
No.
Just no.
Before he realizes what he's doing, he's in the water and swimming blindly to find her somewhere in the cave.
"Uma! Where?" He calls out in the darkness.
Darkness. It was everywhere.
Somehow he felt colder than the water around him.
Sea gods, were they still here?
His stomach shifts as he swallows the burning bile clawing its way up his throat.
For the love of every god under the sea and over it, please let them not be here.
Unless they were alive.
He jumps, alarmed when something large swims past his legs.
He nearly pisses himself as he screams.
What the fuck was that!?
A shark?
Tick-tock?
He nearly chokes as he tries to swallow.
Ursula?
"Harry! Harry, they were fucking here. Fuck!" Uma cries as she breaks the surface next to him.
"Uma!?" Harry whispers, "I be thinkin-'" He shudders, and not from the freezing water currently lapping over his face, "Yer mum bein' with us." He finishes quietly.
"She's not." Uma shakes her head as she swims up to him, "Harry, they were here. Deez tried to melt the rock at the mouth of the cave, but the-" she sobs, breaking up the rest of her words.
His arms snap around her as his world is ripped in two.
No.
More tears run down his face freely as he chokes on a sob and holds Uma close to him desperately.
No.
Nonono.
What little hope he'd clung to breaks.
They'd been here.
Here!
During that storm.
Here when those massive waves-
Here.
And now-
Fuck.
That wave!
They couldn't be.
Not Deez.
Not Gil.
His eyes squeeze shut on the image of Gil holding Deez protectively, watching as it shifts to them huddled in the cave.
His hold tightens around Uma.
Please!
He pleads desperately, please.
Just no.
The cave.
How were they supposed to-
Deez.
Their light.
Gil.
Their stability.
And now-
What were they supposed to-
Please?!
He screams his pain, the sound echoing around in the dark to create a despondent melody as they meld with Uma's sobs.
He closes his eyes as he holds her like she was the only thing keeping him from falling apart.
Because she was.
He whimpers as he looks around helplessly in the darkness of the cave.
Their cave.
They had-
Nightmares had come to life in their paradise.
Deez with the water and their Sweet Boy huddled in fear as the walls-
He can't shake the image.
Gil wrapped around their Baby Girl as the water rushed them.
The suffering.
The terror.
Both together as-
No!
His stomach drops as his body wracks with an agonized sob.
"Ya, ya, be ah sure!?" He chokes out as he hugs her tighter.
He needed to make sure he'd heard her right.
The waves were loud, maybe-
"I- I'm sure. It looks like the rock was still hot when-" Uma shakes her head as her shoulders shake, "And, and there-" she draws in a ragged breath, "there's something weird on the wall. Like a burned, melted area." Her head drops to his shoulder, "Like she was holding on-"
Something brushes against his leg again.
It was the only thing that could have possibly taken his attention away from Uma and the pain of the moment.
Away from her discoveries.
The only thing that could steal the details proving their family had been here.
The fear of losing Uma to whatever was here in the cave with them.
"FUCK-" He holds onto her tighter as he startles at another alarming sweep from the murky depths. What the fuck was- He swallows.
His devastation of Uma's discovery and the terror of what was lurking beneath him swirls in ways he's never experienced.
As if he had to decide between swimming through boiling water or hungry sharks.
Neither option was preferable.
No matter where he looked he was in for hurting.
He swallows hard as he holds Uma desperately.
He wanted out of the fucking water.
He wanted to hold Uma close.
He wanted to know what the fuck was with them, hiding whatever horror laid beneath them.
Wanted to hold onto Uma for all he was worth.
This was just a night terror.
It had to be.
He'd fallen asleep in the cabin after sewing up Uma's back.
It would be understandable.
They were exhausted.
Betrayed.
Frantic.
Adrenaline had pumped through his system for hours.
Obviously he crashed hard.
Deez and Gil were fine.
The cove was still a paradise, and Gil and Deez were fine.
They had to be.
Needed to be.
Which also meant there wasn't some beastie beneath the surf.
It was just his imagination.
All in his head.
It had to be, right?
His life couldn't be falling apart like this.
Not like this.
Sea gods willing, never like this.
"There's nothing there!" Uma shouts through her tears as she pushes away from him, "Nothing. They're not here!" She slams her hand against the water, "Fish aren't here!" She slaps the water again, "There's fucking nothing! Nothing's here but melted rocks and water." She draws in a heavy, shaky breath, "Oh fuck! Harry! What happened to my Sweet Boy and my Baby Girl?" She wails as she presses her hands to her face.
He chokes as he reaches for her, pulling her back to hug tightly.
This felt too real to be a night terror.
Night terrors scared him.
Tortured him.
But he'd never had one like this.
Not where he had to watch Uma fall apart.
Not where he was completely useless.
This was worse than a night terror.
Worse than any hell he'd ever dreamt up.
Her despair spears him like a fish in a barrel.
And there was nothing he could do.
Nothing he could say.
Nothing he could do to ease her pain.
Or his.
"They be- They be-" He says as if his mouth could come up with the answers his brain was scrambling to find.
With how massive the waves had been, could they have survived that?
His chest restricts to the point he was gasping for air.
He wanted so badly to be strong for Uma.
His Captain.
His Kraken.
The person who'd dragged him back to reality by sheer force of will time and time again.
But how the fuck was he supposed to reassure her.
Tell her that everything was going to work out. That everything would be okay?
How could he when he was breaking?
They were both breaking.
Breaking.
Shattering.
Fragmenting into pieces never to be whole again.
And there was nothing he could do.
He curses himself. Where the fuck were the words he was searching for.
His mind flashes to Deez.
How many times had she stood speechless?
Confused.
Frustrated.
At a loss for words.
Was this how Deez felt?
The thought rips through him like a sword to his heart.
He couldn't think of anything to say.
Nothing could fix this.
Nothing would ever fix this.
All he could do was pull her close and press her face into his shoulder, hold her for dear life.
Hold her like she was his lifeline.
His grip goes from comforting to bruising at another brush against his leg.
He shudders and lets out a cry of terror as he starts paddling and kicking them both towards the boat.
Everything felt so turbulent.
So fucking confusing.
Like the world was going in slow motion and falling apart in one breath.
It was debilitating.
He could only guess how overwhelming Uma's grief had to be for her to be missing whatever the fuck was beneath them- But he'd be fucking damned if the fucking Sea God's thought they could steal another from him.
He refused.
Not on his fucking watch.
There'd be nothing left of him.
Harry blinks, still frozen to his seat and unable to move.
Unable to move and blinking down at her for the past hour at least.
Not that she could blame him.
She currently had a similar dilemma.
"Uma…" Harry's quiet, fervent voice finally breaks the silence, like a sword in the charged air.
"Aye?" She whispers.
She was just so fucking drained.
Her chest ached.
Her eyes stung.
But Gil and Deez were gone.
Gone.
The word sends another spear through her heart.
And now this.
Any other time-
She lets out a heavy sigh.
Fucking sea gods.
"I think I be knowin' what be in the water."
She props her chin up, elbow on the edge of the dinghy. "Aye..." Another heavy sigh passes her cracked lips, her eyes drop back to her lap with a frown.
All she wanted to do was go home.
She couldn't even bring herself to care.
Deez and Gil would have cared, but they-
Warmth slides down her face, a stark contrast to the freezing downpour.
How?
Where were they coming from?
Her tears.
How could there be any left to shed.
"Can we just get back to the ship?" She pleads.
There were things she had to do-
Shit, she had to-
Fuck.
There were others she had to worry about.
T.
T. And the other's that had been on the Isle.
But how was she going to find the energy?
The strength.
The willpower?
Harry puffs up his cheeks, "Aye." He breathes out as he collects the oars and starts the painful trip back.
He could feel the rail biting into his palm.
Could tell his knuckles were white from the strength of his grip.
He and James make brief eye contact, both of them grim.
Deez and Gil had been at the cove.
Uma knew they'd been in the cave.
Could they survive that?
He closes his eyes before he looks back to Harry and Uma.
He'd never seen the two so vanquished.
Lifeless.
He knew he should say something.
Anything.
But-
Even in his hundreds of years-
He'd never learned the right words.
He was pretty sure none existed.
Loss was painful.
Grief was overwhelming.
Death was permanent.
And social customs and practices were nothing but empty gestures in the face of that.
He reaches out with a hand that shakes to clasps Uma's shoulder, knowing she responded well to touch.
It was the best he could do.
I'm here.
I'm hurting with you.
It's okay to hurt.
"Go rest." He finally manages to say. "I believe me and James can handle the ship while you two-" He sighs, "It's been a few long and trying days."
"Aye Cap'n." James nods, "We can be handlin' this."
She looks between them, her face expressionless before she nods listlessly.
"Harry," She turns to the first mate, "We're going to bed." She says, her tone lackluster as her dull eyes fall on the boy who looked just as diminished.
He grimaces as he looks away.
As if the Captain's pliancy wasn't enough to bring tears to his eyes.
"Aye, love." Harry steps forward to hug her to his side, "I can be readyin' the room."
He watches the two as they walk off, and though he would never admit it, he could tell Harry was the only reason Uma was standing.
Just as she was the only reason he was.
It was excruciating to witness. To see two usually lively teenagers so broken-
It had been years, decades even since he'd felt such harrow.
But watching the two was worse than any torture he'd ever experienced.
He'd grown to love these kids.
He admired them.
Their tenacity.
Their intelligence.
Their will to learn.
To fight.
To love.
The loss was making his chest ache fiercely.
The Isle had already taken so much. His frown deepens as he watches their retreating backs.
It was atrocious it would rip this family apart too.
The family that had his sole attention.
He lets out a long-suffering sigh.
Fate was a cruel mistress.
The moment the door closes on the cabin, he hears James slam his fists against the railing.
"Fuck!" James bashes his hands again before he looks out over the Isle.
"I know." He frowns as he follows his gaze, at a loss and cursing himself.
How?
He'd lived so long.
With all his years, how had he never found the right words to say in these situations?
His eyes settle on the strip of land where the remaining crew was told to gather after checking on or bringing back the ones they cared about. "My sentiments exactly."
He wanted to throw something.
Break something at the injustice.
But alas, he couldn't.
Not when his other pupils, he closes his eyes, no.
Not when his remaining pupils trusted him to look after the only thing standing between them and utter chaos.
"This be some right fuckin' whale shit," James growls as he slams the railing again. "They were such good fucking kids. How they managed that in this shit hole I-" He slams his fist down with a thud. "I'll never understand." He lets his head hang.
Deez.
She had been one of the first children to show any curiosity. She and Carlos followed him home after school one day-
Poorly followed, he can't help but correct himself.
They'd been terrified but so desperate to see if he meant what he said.
If he meant that he was willing to teach any who sought to learn.
He'd seen the two of them genuinely grow, had seen Deez grow by leaps and bounds in the past few months.
Her curiosity. Her empathy. Her desire to finally belong, abandoning all her preconceived notions of what she was and was not able to do.
Be.
To see her finally gain the family she'd always wanted- He feels his chest tighten before he takes a deep breath, not turning his attention from the shore.
And Gil.
He shuts his eyes until he exhales. The pain in his chest creeping like acid up the back of his throat.
He'd taken a liking to Gil through the years without even meeting the boy, just on the accounts he received from Deez.
And then later Carlos spoke highly of him as well.
Even T, when T actually spoke, had only praise for the young man.
He felt a connection at their shared 'disability' the moment Deez brought it to his attention.
And then to meet him, to see the level of dedication and determination the young man possessed.
To see him willingly waiting in the cold, unwilling to leave someone whom he cared so deeply for.
And his unwavering faith in his family. His knowledge that if anyone could force someone to survive, could force T-
His mind slams shut on the thought.
T had been on the Isle. There was no point in worrying until they'd gone out to look.
"I truly believe they were some of the best I've ever met." He adds heavily, hoping he wasn't speaking to the loss of three of his students, though it was true nonetheless.
"They be at the cove when-" James sighs without lifting his head, "but do ya think them on the Isle could be survivin' that?"
His eyes move to the mainland, searching for any sign of life before he gives up. "It's hard to tell- But I would believe so."
"So there be ah good chance T- and people like 'im could-" He taps his fist on the rail.
Yensid takes a deep breath as he studies the young man, a man barely out of his teens, "There's a chance, yes. I believe those with magic would have the greatest chance of survival, but I can't be sure." He admits. "I am a man of magic and science, but until recently, fate was never a subject that interested me." He admits as he leans against the railing, attention back to the shoreline.
"We were just tryin' ta do something right," James whispers.
The words were so despondent-
His tone so lost-
His heart sinks at the crack of emotion in the young man's voice.
"You did, have, and are. The Captain and her First Mate are going to need you more than ever, James. These next few days are going to be harsh waters to navigate. Especially when you are feeling the loss as well. The best thing we can do now is silently support them and each other during this trying time."
"Aye," James nods before he runs the back of his hand over his eyes and stands up, "right ya be, sir."
"James," He hesitantly puts his hand on the young pirate's shoulder, "I'm also here for you if you need me. This is not a weight one should carry alone."
"Aye," He nods, "an I be 'perciating that."
Yensid drops his hand with a nod. "As long as you know."
"An there may be ah time I will be ah needin' ta take ya up on it here soon."
"My door is always open." He adds with the barest hint of a smile.
"Aye, sir." James taps his fist against the railing, "How the galley holdin' up?"
"Banged up and in disarray, but all in all, surprisingly no worse for wear." Not like they had much in there to be knocked around to begin with.
Wooden bowls.
Metal pots and pans.
One or two spices and some woodware utensils.
None of it had been in great shape to begin with, but knowing these kids-
He sighs. This crew could make anything work.
"Good ta be hearin'. I were thinkin' I should start workin' on the-" James takes a deep breath, "On the Shadow's workroom. I know he be havin' ah lot o' glass in there."
A pang shoots through his chest at the expression on Jame's face at the mention of T.
He knew the two shared a bond he didn't quite understand, but could easily see. "That would probably be for the best." He admits reluctantly.
Uma and Harry didn't need to think about that right now.
T's workroom was bound to be a disaster that neither needed to see in the midst of this. "Though if you'd rather-"
"For as spry as you are, you're still an old man." James's grin doesn't reach his eyes, "Besides, I need to do somethin' with my hands, and you can't break somethin' that's already broken."
"Understood." He nods sagely, "Then I shall go retrieve a set of binoculars and keep watch."
Even in the warm haze of drunken sleep, her mind would not let go.
It ached.
Ached with loss and too much rum.
Or maybe it was not enough rum.
They were gone.
She would never see Gil or Deez again.
Never smell them again.
Never drink in their looks of excitement or curiosity again.
Never catch them in the middle of something and receive that guilty-looking smile.
Never see their delight again.
Never feel her Baby Girl's soft hair between her fingers or her Sweet Boy's massive muscles under her hands.
Never hear their voices.
Gil's soft and stern.
Deez's bright and light.
They were gone.
It was just her and Harry, and sea gods willing, T.
The wave rises in front of her. Flashing dark green in the black of night.
Except it had been the middle of the morning.
As if to mock her, a single ray of light shines on the wave, illuminating two small figures fighting the drag.
Deez.
Gil.
"Uma!"
"Uma! Harry!"
No! They were scared! They were calling for her, screaming for her!
And she wasn't there.
Her Sweet Boy.
Her Baby Girl.
"Noooooo!" She cries out as she rushes for the railing.
Or tries to.
She looks down to find tentacles wrapped around her legs, keeping her from them.
Her mother's laugh echoes in her ears.
"NOOO!"
Not like this.
She couldn't let them die again!
"Uma!" Her Baby Girl cries, her chest restricting at the familiar cadence.
She fights the grip on her legs, but it seems to only make the tentacles tighten.
"Uma!" Her Sweet Boy's desperation pierces her like a spear through her heart.
"YO!"
T?
A tentacle hits her face, making her pull away.
"Uma, wake up!"
If only she could. If only she could wake up to find this was all nothing more than a nightmare.
But they were gone.
Still, she blinks, looking around in confusion as the ocean slowly dissolves, giving way to blankets.
The tentacles twisting around her legs steadily shift to tangled sheets.
The mist becomes nothing more than a thin sheen of sweat as she's unwillingly pulled out of her drunken stupor.
What?
She blinks, her vision blurring no matter how hard she tries to clear it.
Harry.
She moans miserably as she gives up and curls into a tighter ball.
Please.
Please just make it stop.
So...
Anyone else feeling devastated?
Things aren't looking good.
That was a lot, and I ain't talkin' bout the length of this chapter.
Poor Uma and Harry.
Fuck, poor D and Gil.
Talk about a fucking way to go.
Being stuck.
Nowhere to go.
Watching as the person you love drowns, or worse being the first to go- knowing how much it will hurt the one left behind for the scarce moments before they join you.
It's fucking intense.
Especially with D being so scared of the water, and Gil being claustrophobic as fuck.
I'd hit the fucking bottle too Umes, it's okay.
You too, Hook.
Even Yensid and James are at their wits fucking end.
Just how?
Why?
Seriously.
Are ya feeling desperate to know what happens next?
I know I would be if I wasn't the one who wrote this.
Albeit, if any of you are sick of this cliffhanger bullshit, you can take a trip over to P.A.T.R.E.A.O.N and hit us up there. ← Shameless plug
Three dollars a month and you can be a week ahead.
Just saying, might be a pain in the ass to drop a line, but for a couple dollars of month you can both be the glutton for punishment you all clearly are at this point, while giving us some love without so much as a word to our obnoxious asses.
Win-Win.
Where else can you enable someone while fueling your own addiction?
Well, actually now that I'm thinking about it, a lot of places, bars mostly-
Or in this case, the Captain's Quarters.
Because I mean seriously?
How the fuck could D and Gil have survived that?
If the only thing that kept the ship from being ripped plank from plank was magic-
What chances did those two have at the cove?
Really?
Are we that cruel though?
Was this what we needed to rewrite?
I hope these are the questions you're asking yourself.
Cause not gonna lie, ten main characters is a fucking lot, and if there ever was time to cull the heard- Just sayin' a natural disaster would be a golden opportunity.
Oh! And if your pissed about this-
Which honestly? I'd punch me right now so I get it, smug bitch-
you can cuss us out any Friday on our Cove Club Chat which again, only starts at three dollars… ← Shameless plug take two. Pat reon.
Moving on any guesses as to what the fuck was brushing against Harry?
Which by the way, I'd piss myself too Hook.
Scary dark ass water, no fucking light to be found, pouring rain and green lightning- floating in the middle of the fucking sea with rapid angry ass waves and rain attempting to drown me- And then have something brush against my legs?
Ha!
Fuck that.
That's be one dead fuckin' Twisted.
Much love and appreciation
-Twisted