Chapter Fourteen:

The Temple in the Hills Part 1

Skully POV

"What do you mean it's gone!?" Jake exclaimed. He and I had both come out of the hideout and onto the beach to meet Cubby, who had just returned from his expedition. The sun would be leaving us within the next hour which meant that, according to the letter, we were running out of time to get the cure for Izzy's snake bite.

"I mean it's not there anymore!" Cubby quickly replied. "The Temple in the Hills is not in the hills anymore! It's vanished! It's completely gone!"

"You're sure you went to the right—-."

"Yes Jake! I went exactly where we were last night! I could even see our footprints, but I didn't see a single sign of the temple!"

"That's impossible Cubby. You must have passed by it or something!"

"It's a giant building built into a mountain Jake. It would be pretty hard to miss!"

"I told you this was a trick, Cubby. I knew they didn't really have the cure!"

"But Jake, how is it a trick if we've already seen the building for ourselves? I mean, it couldn't have just been in our heads? Could it?"

"Right now that's the only logical explanation I can think of." the green eyed leader said. We all sighed heavily. We may have saved our friends from being corrupted and possessed by an evil parasitic monster of a spirit who threatened to kill us all and take over Neverland, all with the magic of a flower descending from the Forever Tree. But we weren't able to save her from a little bite with a cure that is right within our reach. As we all sat there, the sun started to descend into the Neverseas, casting pink and orange hues over the once faded blue sky.

"Oh crackers. The sun is setting." I pouted, perching on Cubby's shoulder.

"Uhm Jake," he began. "Did you ever figure out what it is that we have to return to these people?" The other teen nodded in response.

"As a matter of fact Cubby, I did." he said, reaching into his vest and pulling out the snake pendant Cubby found yesterday.

"You don't really think….." the blonde said as he stared at the necklace while Jake dangled it in front of him.

"Cubby I swear on my life that if this isn't what they're looking for, I will eat my bandana."

"Well if you say so. I mean I can't think of anything that we've stolen lately. Or ever." the blonde admitted.

"Crackers! So what are we waiting for!?" I squawked, flying off of Cubby's shoulder and up into the air. Let's go!"

"Hold on Skully!" Jake protested. "First of all, our destination has apparently vanished."

"Well….the letter said to go to the forest. It didn't explicitly say go to the Temple. So chances are they could meet us out there." I said.

"Whoever 'they' is."

"But Jake," Cubby voiced. "What about Izzy? You said we can't just leave her here."

"Can't we just…I dunno…bring her along?" I suggest.

"No," Jake said as he shook his head. "She's way too sick. And the letter only called for the three of us. I don't wanna press our luck."

"So…what do we do then?" the blue eyed boy asked. Jake shrugged.

"Well we'll just have to lock up the hideout and get there and back as fast as we can. Whoever needs this necklace, needs it as much as we need that cure….if it even exists," he said. "So, let's go lock—."

"Hey wait!" I say, grabbing at the tails of his bandana with my claws.

"What?"

"Shouldn't we tell Izzy that we're lockin' her in or at the very least that we're leaving?" I asked. Jake swatted the air.

"Oh you couldn't wake her up with a stick of dynamite. Besides, all we have to do is go to Neverland and back again real quickly. We'll be back before she even notices. That is if this works."

"But how're we gonna get there without waking Izzy up to use her pixie dust? We're not gonna swim there are we?" Cubby asked. Jake smiled slyly.

"Oh Cubby, you know me well enough to remember that I never leave this island without a way of getting back to it." he said confidently as he began to reach into his vest and look for something.

"Huh?" Cubby peeped. Jake then pulled out a small vile, with glowing golden dust tightly packed in it. "Is that…..pixie dust?"

"You bet matey." our leader responded, flicking off the cork lid.

"Crackers! Jake, where did you get that!?" I let out.

"That's not important right now Skully," he said, his confident tone turning to a determined one. "What is important is that we return this amulet and get Izzy's cure as fast as possible!"

"Well then let's hop to it. And Jake, since I evidently don't know where we're going, why don't you show us the way." Cubby said satirically, ushering for our leader to do so.

"Alrighty then," the teen said as he marched towards the spot where the beach met the ocean,only to be abruptly stopped by Cubby. "What?" he asked.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" the blonde inquired.

"Um….no?"

"What do you mean 'no'!? There's a little certain something that you have to say! You always used to say it!" Jake paused to think, and then realized what he meant.

"No Cubby! We're not toddlers anymore!" he scoffed.

"Saaaaaaay it." Cubby pressed, a smirk on his face.

"No! Now look, you're wasting our time!" Jake argued.

"I'm not going until you say it!" Cubby pouted, crossing his arms. Jake let out a growl and then rolled his eyes.

"Alright you win…"

"Say it!" Cubby ordered for the last time. Jake took a deep breath to flush all the embarrassment out,

"Yo ho mateys! Let's go to the Temple in the Hills!" he let out before quickly sprinkling the pixie dust over all of us. "Alright! There! I said it! Happy!?" Jake snapped at a snickering Cubby before immediately jetting into the sky. "Now let's go!"

Cubby POV

After we locked every door, hatch and window to the hideout and prayed that Izzy wouldn't wake up and panic, we were off to Neverland. But while we just wandered aimlessly, I couldn't shake the feeling that Peter really needed to whip up a new map for me. Getting lost like this all the time wasn't ideal. However Jake claimed that even if I had a map, the Temple in the Hills probably wouldn't be on it because nobody, probably not even Peter Pan himself had ever laid eyes on it.

"Boy I miss being the tubby little map boy." I pouted."

"Cubby, even if you had a map, I bet that temple would find a way to dodge it. According to you, it has a mind of its own."

"I never said that. I just said that it vanished!"

We continued our aimless search , the green and colorful foliage of Neverland surrounding us while the moon beamed from above. Suddenly, Jake came to an abrupt halt, leaving me no time to react. I crashed into his back, and Skully, who was flapping behind us, collided into my back.

"Hey what's the big idea, Jake!?" I protested, rubbing my nose. Jake remained silent, prompting me to peek out from behind him and then realized what made him come to a complete stop. "Uh oh."

"Popinjays!" Hook exclaimed with his not so terrific trio of pirates standing behind him. "What in blazes are you doing here!?"

"I knew I smelt a rat," Jake sneered. "Or rather, a codfish."

"Well if it isn't the glorious forever quester 'imself!" the pirate captain exclaimed. His small round first mate emerged out from behind him and adjusted his glasses as he got a look at Jake.

"Oh, I do say, you're no longer a sea pup anymore are you?" Smee observed enthusiastically. "Goodness, look how much he's grown Cap'n! Why, he be practically taller than you!" he chirped, although Hook completely ignored him while he continued to glare at Jake.

"Back from beyond the Nevaseas are you?" the captain hissed.

"Uh-huh." Jake replied. Hook then got in the teens face, and this time, he did not have to kneel like how he usually would have.

"Well I sure wish you would have stayed there." he growled.

"I bet you do after what you did to my crew." Jake said as he crossed his arms and tried to stand taller.

"Your crew?" Hook mirrored, surprised. He then turned to face me. "Mr. Cubby, did your lass sell all you popinjays to me after this brat left you or didn't she!?" he demanded to know.

"Uhm….we wanted a refund?" I squeaked nervously.

"Well that be a shame," Sharky said. "We sure do miss her."

"Aye," Bones, the skinny pirate in the purple bandana, agreed. "Where is the pretty little lady anyway?" he asked. I felt my cheeks flush red and I was about to give a fake answer, when my crew mate abruptly interrupted me.

"Uh—"

"Away from you," Jake snarled. "And it's gonna stay that way from now on. Understand?"

"Oh don't get all self righteous with me boy!" the codfish snapped. "Had you not flown the coop it wouldn't have happened! And you have no right to claim you treat her so well because if I remember correctly, popinjay, it was you who nearly beat her to a pulp back on that smoldering island!" Jake looked like he was about to fume, but he kept his cool…well..sorta.

"And if I remember correctly Hook, it was you who whipped her!" he barked. At this point the captain in red would've tried to smight his little three and a half foot rival, but he slowly backed away.

"You better thank your lucky Neverstars that you are not a little pipsqueak eight year old anymore." Hook growled.

"Why'd you grow up any way? You were so little and cute," Bones said, lowering his hand to demonstrate Jake's previous height. "Now you're big and scary."

"We don't have time for this," the green eyed teen said, evidently irritated. "Nice to see you again Captain Hook, and goodbye." We started to head off, but then Hook said something that caught our attention.

"Is sneaking out in the middle of the night something all ye popinjays do these days!?" Jake froze and turned around to face the codfish and his crew.

"What are you talkin' about Hook?" he asked. "These days?"

"Oh why of course!" the captain assured. "A couple of nights ago your lass was out flying about Neverland until we caught her and reeled 'er on to me ship. We were about to get some very overdue service from her, but she escaped before we got the chance!"

"What was Izzy doing on your ship?" I interrogated.

"Beets me puny pirate," Hook answered. "Although she wasn't alone, I will add."

"Crackers! She wasn't?" Skully squawked.

"No. With her was…a boy. A boy from the mainland itself!" he told us.

"The mainland!?" all three of us exclaimed in unison.

"What was Izzy doing all the way over there!?" I questioned to Jake, only to be ignored.

"Captain Hook, this boy….what was his name?" he asked, rubbing his chin. "Was it…Nikki? Or anything like that?"

"Truth be told, popinjays, I have no idea who he was. However your lass seemed to know him pretty well. Who knows? Maybe she plans to run off with him and go explore the Neverseas the same way you did with Pan," Jake fell silent after Hook finished explaining. That mere sentence seemed to have planted several horrible ideas in Jake's head. There was a dim twinkle in his emerald eyes, a dim twinkle that made him look saddened and slightly betrayed. "Well, I'm afraid that is all the tea I can spill tonight, pubescent popinjays. I must be off, I have treasure to find!" he announced before he and his crew disappeared into the forest.

I turned back to Jake, who still had a small frown on his face.

"You ok Jake?" I asked. He shook his head in dismissal.

"I'm fine Cubby." he responded, but I didn't believe him.

"Aw don't let the old codfish's words get to you Jake. He just wants to make you mad."

"Well he's doing a pretty good job," he grumbled, before taking a few steps. "Now uh, come on. Let's keep going. We're runnin' out of time."

About half an hour had slipped away since we tangled with Hook and his pirates, but it was time to find out if the Temple in the Hills was still playing hide and seek with us. Jake had been uncharacteristically quiet ever since our run-in with the codfish and his crew, and his brooding silence was starting to make me antsy. I couldn't take it anymore.

"For real Jake, what's chewin' at ya?" I asked, giving him a concerned look. His emerald eyes seemed clouded with worry, and I could tell something was eating at him. He sighed before responding.

"What if Hook is right Cubby? What if Izzy's planning to run off? What if she doesn't want to be here with us anymore?" he asked and then lowered his head. "I certainly would if I were her, especially after the way I've been talking to her lately." I shook my head, trying to dispel the doubts that threatened to settle in Jake's mind.

"Nah, Jake, that can't be true. Remember, we're on a mission to find a cure for Izzy….again. She can't just run off. Heck, right now she can barely stand up without a treatment. We gotta keep going, find that temple, and get it for her." Jake looked at me, his expression a mix of frustration and uncertainty.

"But what if she's had enough of Neverland? And of us? What if after we cure her she ends up running off again with her new mainland friend so she can grow old and die?" I put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Jake, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. If we get to it. Right now, we need to focus on helping Izzy. If we don't find that cure, it won't matter where she wants to go because she won't make it far. Now, let's keep moving."

We pressed on through the vibrant foliage of Neverland, tracing back our steps to the forest where Izzy had been bitten by the snake. When we arrived, I turned to Jake,

"Uh…but what exactly do we do if the Temple isn't there?" I asked.

"Oh don't be ridiculous, mate." he grumbled.

"No Jake! I'm serious! It's gone!"

"Oh really? Well then let's see it. Or rather, let's not see it."

"Fine."

Leading him through the familiar path, I expected to find an empty clearing where the temple should be. But to my surprise, it stood tall and proud against the moonlit sky.

"How?" I muttered, scratching my head.

"See Cubby," Jake let out. "I told you buildings don't just disappear out of the blue."

"But..but I tell you….this morning it was gone! G-O-N-E!" I argued.

"Crackers! What difference does it make now matey! We're here! Now let's get that cure!" Skully said as Jake pulled out the snake necklace.

"I don't understand….." I whispered to myself.

"Neverland's a peculiar place, Cubby. Things change when you least expect 'em to. Or it was just the fog playin' tricks on you." he said, before making his way in the direction of the palace.

"Maybe you're right." I grumbled as I looked at the ground, before following after him. We continued to walk closer and closer to the mountain, until we were met with loads and loads of stairs that led up to the temple's entrance. And although it would be easier to just fly there, Jake said that we only had enough pixie dust left to get back to Pirate Island. So the stairs it was.

When we finally reached the top of the never ending stairs, there it was—the Temple in the Hills, standing tall and mysterious. This place was massive when you were up close. The main door had to be about fifteen feet tall! The stone castle seemed plain, but as I looked closer, I noticed intricate carvings of fleur de lis, roses, and even snakes, giving it a medieval storybook vibe. Boy, I am crazy. How could something so substantial vanish and then reappear? Moss clung to the stone walls, further adding to the time that this palace has been here.

"W-well J-J-Jake?" I said, anxiety rising. The teen walked up to the door and knocked. No response. He knocked again, this time announcing,

"Uh….hello? It's us. The Neverland Pirates—well, just the boys and the parrot like you asked for. And we think we brought what is yours."

Just as he said that, the massive temple door slowly creaked open and it led to nothing but pure darkness. But the darkness isn't what scared me. It was the fact that the door opened all byitself.

Alright, this could be one of two things.

One, whoever built this temple has somehow time traveled to the future and brought back some mind blowing very convincing automatic electronics that make anything move at any time.

Two, the place is haunted.

"Did that door just open by itself?" Skully asked, only to be left unanswered.

"Uhm…..ladies first." Jake said, gesturing me to go on first. I shot him an insulted glare when I realized what he meant.

"Very funny." I uttered.

"Well if you're not gonna go first then I wi—."

"Hold it right there. You think I'm scared of a stupid door? Because I, for one, am not!" I stated confidently. However I began to slowly back away. "I'll go in there Jake. Don't you worry. I'll go into the…pure pitch blankness…..I…just need a flashlight." And before I know it I'm about to make an escape, but Jake quickly grabbed me.

"Where do you think you're going?" he demanded.

"To go get a flashlight. I left mine back in London." I say, as I try to escape again but he only grabs me once more.

"Oh no you don't mister. We're doing this and we're doing this together as a team." I slipped out of his grip once more but this time I didn't run away. I only stood and peered at him.

"Why as a team? You saved Neverland by yourself, you can do this by yourself." I said. However that seemed to have more of an effect than I thought it would. Jake looked like he had just been shot in the chest. It was almost as if the forever quest was what was exactly on his mind right now. He didn't continue to further argue with me, and instead only stepped closer to the door.

"If you wanna go Cubby, then go. " he said, looking at the ground, hiding his sadness, though not very well. Guilt shot through me and I quickly tried to cover it up with.

"Hey….I wasn't serious Jake. It was just a joke…"

"Well maybe next time you wouldn't mind keeping your jokes to yourself." he grumbled, still looking at the door that led into complete darkness. Before I could respond, he had already stepped into the temple. As he stepped into the darkness of the temple, I feel a shiver run down my spine. I take a deep breath, my heart pounding in my chest, and follow closely behind him, Skully perched on my shoulder. 'This is for Izzy' I repeat in my head over and over again. But the darkness inside is like a thick blanket, wrapping around me, making it impossible to see where I'm going. I stumble forward, trying to feel my way through the darkness, until I crash right into Jake's back.

"Ow!" I mutter. "Hey watch where you're goin'!" I hissed.

"No can do Cubby! I can't see a thing in here." he whispers back.

The palace remains shrouded in darkness for what feels like an eternity, but then, out of nowhere, a soft, feminine voice echoes through the room.

"So Jake..…at last we meet," it says, sending a shiver down my spine.

My fellow pirate gasped at the sound of his name being called from the darkness. But before he could say anything, all the torches in the palace suddenly burst into flame, bathing the room in a warm, flickering light. And what I see takes my breath away. We had been standing in a huge, high-ceilinged room, the walls painted a deep crimson red, the floor made of dark stone. Tapestries line the walls and torches are scattered all around, their flames dancing in the gentle breeze that drifts in through the tall windows.

In the center of the room, there's a massive staircase, winding its way up to a platform where a tall woman stands, dressed in flowing black robes with red outlines, a confident smirk playing on her lips. Her skin was somewhat the same shade as Izzy's and her hair was curly and had streaks of red in it. To her left stands a man in swashbuckled pirate attire, his expression stern and unforgiving. His head was topped off in a gingery blonde and his eyes were a reddish brown. To the woman's right stands a teenage girl who looked to be around Jake's age if not slightly older. Her face was pale, her eyes dark and her hair straight, long and black . She was wearing a white blouse, a black skirt and knee high black boots.

All three of them may have looked incredibly different feature wise, but they had one thing in common: They were all staring at us with sly conniving smirks.

"Jake what do we do?" I quietly whispered to my matey. He didn't turn around, for his gaze was still locked on the three strangers at the top of the stairs.

"I dunno Cubby, but just let me handle this." he replied, quietly.

"So you followed my directions…good," the woman's voice echoed down to us. She then descended down the stairs and approached us. Jake shielded me and Skully as we all backed up together when the women came a bit too close. "There is no need to fear me, young pirates. I do not wish to hurt you." she spoke assuringly.

"Who are you?" Jake interrogated. The woman rolled her eyes with a smile.

"That will be addressed in due time." she replied.

"Are you the one who wrote us the letters?"

"Yes…and no," the robed woman answered. "Let's just say, I had a little bit of help." she said, pointing up at her two acquaintances at the top of the stares.

"Do you have the cure then?" our leader asked.

"That depends. Have you brought what is mine?"

"You mean what is ours?" the strawberry blonde man at the top of the stairs quipped. The woman in front of us sighed.

"I mean what is ours?" she repeated.

Jake nodded.

"We have," He reached into his vest and then pulled out the snake pendant, but didn't give it to her. "Now do you have what we want?"

"You're talking about the cure for the snake bite aren't you?" the woman asked, putting her hands behind her back and smirking.

"Yes. Now if I give you back this pendant, will you please give it to me in return. My friend is really sick and she needs it."

"Oh don't worry. The cure will be yours if you give me my amulet right this very minute, so says the Mistress of the Mountain, or in other words, me." she said, pointing to herself.

"Well here you go Miss 'Mistress of the Mounatins'," Jake mocked. "It's all yours," he said before dropping the necklace into the woman's waiting hands. "Now give me the cure!" he ordered.

When the small trinket touched the self proclaimed 'Mistress of the Mountains' hands, its ruby stone glowed bright red, but only for a moment. The woman crackled with joy and let out a victorious laugh. A laugh that soon turned into a disturbing hyena crackle. I looked at Jake, who had an expression on his face making him look like he had just made the biggest mistake of his life.

"Thank you!" she let out. "You don't know how much you have done for me!"

"The cure!" Jake demanded, growing impatient.

"Yes..well, there is something about that cure that I have not possessed your pathetic little minds of. You see, I have the potential to make it and give it to you, however it would take about forty eight hours and I haven't even begun on hour one, let alone minute one. And I'm afraid I have no intention to, now that I have found my amulet."

"So all of that was a lie?" Jake sneered, crossing his arms. The woman rubbed her chin, pretending to be in deep thought, when we all knew the answer to that question.

"I do believe so."

Jake turned his head around and scowled at me.

"I told you this was all a hoax." he growled through teeth.

"Oh forget it Jake!" I hissed. "We have to get back to Izzy now!" I made my way back towards the door with him and Skully following me. "Least we had no trouble getting in or anything."

"Oh it's not getting in that's the hard part," the woman spoke, and we turned around to see her, eyes closed, arms crossed and a smirk on her lips. "It's getting out." she said. She twirled her index finger around and a small red glow surrounded it. Before we knew it, the large door slammed shut in front of us, trapping us in.

"Oh no." the teen with the red bandana mumbled before we all ran to the door and started banging, pounding and pushing it to get it to open, but it didn't budge.

"Jake, it's locked!" I exclaimed, still trying to pound it open.

"I know!" he responded, his tone worried.

"Crackers lady!" Skully screeched. "Let us out!"

"But you want the cure don't you?"

"The cure, yes. Being trapped in this haunted mansion, no!" I spat at her. "Now let us out, you creepy creep lady!" That received an even scarier response than what I had predicted.

"Insult me again you little bastard and your skull will find out what it's like to become the newest addition to my collection of craniums," she snarled, menacingly pointing a finger at me. She turned around. "Titan!" she shouted up to the man at the top of the star case.

"Yes mistress?" he responded obediently.

"Prepare a space for our new visitors. They will be staying with us for quite some time." she ordered and then turned back to shoot us a devilish grin. The man at the top, now known to us as Titan, began to descend down the stairs.

"But my love," he spoke, and rather clearly despite the fact that he was dressed in full pirate/sailor attire. "Just why are we welcoming these pirates into the Temple in the Hills? More importantly, why don't they recognize you?" he asked. 'Recognized her?' I thought. 'I don't ever remember meeting this woman until tonight, and I'm supposed to recognise her?" The mistress snickered.

"These pirates have never seen me before dear," she said to him. "But that brat Izzy has," she growled. "And if she sees me here in Neverland," she said, rubbing her palms together. "…she'll wish she never had."

"Who are you!?" Jake demanded one last time. "And what is your name!?"

"Yeah!" I added. "And how do you know Izzy!?"

The anonymous woman rolled her eyes.

"You never stop do you?" she asked, and Jake only further squinted his eyes. "Very well then. My name is Ria gentlemen, and that is all you need to know for now."

To Be Continued…..

Well I guarantee that was unexpected. But somebody here seems familiar...other than the obvious choice.

Anyways, happy Super Bowl Sunday and Valentines Day week! And happy 13th anniversary to the first ever episode of this show! Well, this Wednesday at least.