Chapter 28: The Great Escape

Outside of the portal, Jim, Rose, and Silver ran straight toward the entrance and jumped through on the other side. The auburn-redhead heaved a sigh of relief, and patted her satchel that she carried her collected treasure in. Artemis crawled out of the girl's skirt pocket and climbed up to her mistress's shoulder, cuddling her cheek.

"Silver, you gave up?" Jim asked.

"Just a lifelong obsession, Jim," Silver said. "I'll get over it."

"Aloha, Jimmy and Rose Budders!" the trio heard B.E.N.'s voice. They looked up to see the R.L.S. Legacy parking next to them.

"Hurry, people!" the robot announced, pointing to his compass, which had now switched to a clock. "We got exactly two minutes and thirty-four seconds till planet's destruction!"

Jim, Silver, and Rose looked at each other fearfully from hearing B.E.N.'s warning. Captain Amelia was lying by the mast, still clutching her injured side and Delbert was in charge of driving the Legacy.

"You're doing fine, Doctor," she assured him. "Now ease her over gently… gently!

Delbert's sudden jolt crashed to the side and shook the ship, making Jim, Rose, and Silver back off.

Below decks, the last of the surviving pirates: Onus, Bird Brain Mary, Mertock, Oxy, and Moron were all tied up and imprisoned beneath to prevent another mutiny from happening. They were terrified that they were about to face certain death from the explosion.

"We were better off on exploding planet!" exclaimed Onus.

Jim and Rose climbed onto the ship and turned back, pulling in Silver as the ship lifted up.

"Take us out of here, metal man!" ordered Captain Amelia.

"Aye, Captain!" B.E.N. saluted, he pulled some levers and the ship took off.

Jim and Rose hurried up the stairs to join the others. Silver stopped mid-stairway and said, "Captain, you dropped from the heavens in the nick of—"

"Save your claptrap for the judge, Silver!" the feline woman snapped with venom in her voice.

Silver chuckles nervously and then frowns from the captain's remark. He realized that once the voyage is over, he won't be getting off easy.

Above them, a sudden chunk of the planet takes out the main sail. Jim, Rose, Delbert, and Captain Amelia all looked up to see a piece of the mast falling off. The mast piece lands on the deck and crushes the ship's cannon, shattering it to pieces. The impact caused the jets in the engine to lose power and the ship was now moving slow.

"Mizzen tail demobilized, Captain!" B.E.N. said, inspecting the damage through his compass. "Thrusters at only 30% of capacity."

"30%? That means we're..." Delbert thought carefully and looked back at the captain with fear and realization. "We'll never clear the planet's explosion in time."

Jim looked back and noticed that the portal was still working. He glanced back at the destroyed cannon with the separate jet, still functioning. Then, he got an idea.

"We gotta turn around," he said, jumping off the platform.

"What?" Amelia asked.

"What do you mean by turning around?" Rose asked.

"There's a portal back there. It can get us out of here!" Jim explained, making his way over to the rubble.

Silver watched the boy before looking back. His cyborg eye activated and zoomed in seeing the portal leading to the center of Treasure Planet.

"Pardon me, Jim, but didn't that portal open onto a raging inferno?!" Delbert asked, with terror in his tone.

"Yes, but I'm gonna change that," said Jim. He pulled out a long piece of metal in the shape of a surfboard, and planned to fashion it with other parts to make a solar surfer. "I'm gonna open a different door."

Silver looked back again at the portal, and glanced down to see the map activated with the green sphere still showing the locations. Rose looked back, beginning to understand Jim's idea.

"Captain, really, I don't see how this is possible—"

"Listen to the boy!" Silver interrupted, making his way to Jim.

"I think he's onto something," Rose agreed.

"One minute, twenty-nine seconds till planet's destruction!" B.E.N. yelled.

Silver and Rose hurried over to Jim's side and knelt next to him. "What do you need, Jim?" asked the cyborg.

"Just some way to attach this," the boy said, pulling out a rope to attach the jet to the metal. Rose looked at it, and realized that the rope wouldn't be able to keep the vehicle together.

"All right. Stand back. Stand back, now." Silver switched his cyborg hand to a blow torch. His blow torch releases white and light blue sparks, welding the jet and board together.

Rose nearly jumped back, but remained calm.

"There you go."

Jim, Rose, and Silver lifted up the makeshift solar surfer to the rail.

"There you go," Morph added, giving support underneath.

Once the board was balanced on the railing, Jim jumped up on the solar surfer and looked back at Silver and Rose straight in the eyes.

"Okay. Now, no matter what happens, keep the ship heading straight for that portal," Jim insisted.

Silver and Rose both nodded in hesitation.

"Fifty-eight seconds!"

Jim looks back at B.E.N. and back at his mentor. The cyborg frowns in fear and concern, not wanting to lose the boy. Rose nodded nervously, gulping in fear. She gripped his hand into hers, and looked at him in his blue eyes with her turquoise eyes looking back.

"Stay alive."

"I will."

With that, Jim looked away and his boot makes contact with the lever, igniting the jet. He takes off with his surfer and flew towards the portal.

"Well, you heard him!" Silver called back to the Captain and Doctor. "Get this blasted heap turned 'round!" He made a gesture with his left arm, making it clear to turn back.

Captain Amelia looks at Silver with surprise and turns to Delbert. "Doctor, head us back to the portal."

"Aye, Captain," he said, reluctantly turning the wheel.

The R.L.S. Legacy made a swerve around and turns back. Rose looks over the railing and keeps her eyes out for Jim. All she could do was watch him and pray for his life, hers, and the others.

Up ahead, Jim flew through the planet's explosions, avoiding the flames and flying debris. The jet on sputtered and died. Jim stepped on the lever, activating it again. The boy swerved through, watching out for the obstacles and his board came into contact with a wall, scraping the side and creating sparks.

The R.L.S. Legacy followed behind and lost one of its rudders on a wall.

"Go to the right! The right!" Amelia screamed at the Doctor.

"I know, I know! Will you just let me drive?!" Delbert snapped back.

"Twenty-five seconds!" B.E.N. hollered.

Jim was beginning to near towards the portal. But then, his jet began to lose power. He stepped onto the lever more, but the flames wouldn't come out.

"No! No!" Jim yelled.

Then, the brunette and his surfer began to plummet towards a ravine filled with lava. Rose's heart began to pace faster in terror, believing this was the end for Jim.

"Come on, lad." Silver groaned, through his gritting teeth.

"Jim, please!" the girl murmured.

Jim kept trying to restart jet.

"Seventeen seconds!"

Morph covered his eyes, becoming fearful.

Artemis turned black and covered her eyes.

Realizing that he was about to face life-or-death, Jim glanced at the wall and spun the board towards it. The board and the wall created friction combined with the sparks gets the engine started again. Jim flew back up from the ravine, and saw the Legacy flying over. Now that he was in control of his surfer, he began to make his way to the portal.

Back on the Legacy, Delbert stayed at the helm and clutches the wheel in his hands. He gritted his teeth hard as the explosions reflected on the surface of his glasses. Rose covered her head as the flames grew bigger, and she braced herself.

All she could hear was the countdown of the planet's destruction from B.E.N.

"Seven, six, five, four, three, two…"

Right at the last second, Jim tilted his board and leaned over, pressing the Montressor Space Port button.