by Ryan Gilbert
Riggs and Julia soon found their answer.
The tendrils of Old Magic shot through the air, plunging directly into the hands of Ororis. Several other channels forced their way through Every’s eyes, immediately seeping through the air and into the eyes of the mermaid. As Every’s screams began to die with him, Ororis let out a cry as the Old Magic bore itself back into her body. Letting out a shriek, the mermaid thrust the golden sword forward, pushing the weakened body of Henry Every over the cliff.
There was no way to save himself now. His reign of terror had finally been brought to a close.
Ororis fell to one knee, still clutching the golden sword. Her breath had quickened, and she was panting, her head lowered. Neither Riggs nor Julia could see her eyes.
BANG BANG
Gathering his strength, Riggs pulled himself up to the edge of the cliff so that his whole arms rested on the ground above. As Julia tried to help him climb further, he could see the two remaining skeletons fall to the ground, their skulls shattered by Coral Jack’s pistols. Once he noticed Julia and his captain hanging over the edge of the cliff, he started to run to help them.
“Are ye alright, Captain?” he shouted, quickening his pace.
“Just get over here and help me, Jack,” said Julia, still trying to haul her lover back onto sturdy ground. Riggs swung his leg up onto the ledge, wincing as the wound on his shoulder aggravated him. They were all so close to escaping with their lives.
No one could have predicted what happened next.
Just as Coral Jack was about to reach his friends, Ororis spun around, slashing the golden sword through the air. A stream of blood shot into the air as the boatswain collapsed on the ground, a gash running across his cheek, eye, and forehead. Coral Jack’s entire face was covered in red as the blood poured from his wound. He lay on the ground, barely moving.
“Ororis, what are you doing?” Julia cried in terror.
Adrenaline running through his veins, Riggs scrambled to pull himself over the edge. After a second of struggling, he barely succeeding in rolling onto the cliff with Julia’s help. His worst nightmare was coming true.
The mermaid threw back her head, tossing her red and black hair out from in front of her face. Her red eyes were glowing once again, and there was a devilish smile on her face.
Admiring her bloody sword, Ororis replied, “I’m turning my life around.”
Riggs tried to leap to his feet, but a quick blast of magic from the traitorous mermaid knocked him back down. He fell at the edge of the cliff yet again, narrowly avoiding another fall.
“We trusted you, damn it!” the Captain shouted, his anger welling up inside him.
“Yes, you certainly did… and that will be your downfall,” said Ororis.
Throwing her hand toward Julia, the mermaid shouted, “Puella ad me.”
Riggs felt his love get ripped away from him as the mermaid’s spell yanked Julia back to their enemy. The Captain tried to lunge forward and stop Ororis, but the mermaid pointed the golden sword at him, daring him to come closer.
“One more step, and she meets a fate worse than Jack,” said Ororis, threatening her former captain.
Kneeling down next to Julia as the girl desperately reached out for Riggs’ hand, Ororis reached her own hand to the girl’s neck. Her long fingers wrapped around Julia’s neck, squeezing her throat and choking her. Riggs could see Julia growing weak as the betrayer squeezed harder.
“Let her go,” he ordered.
“Or what?” asked Ororis, “You can do nothing to stop me, you meddlesome fool.”
The mermaid dragged Julia to her feet as the girl gasped for breath. Julia tried to break Ororis’s hold, but the mermaid was far too strong now.
“There’s something I’ve not told you,” Ororis hissed at the girl, “Your arrival at Isla de Dolor last year was not an accident.”
Pulling Julia closer, the mermaid said, “I brought you there. I brought you there for one reason and one reason only.”
Grabbing the ruby heart necklace that hung around Julia’s neck, Ororis ripped it away from her. As she stared at the jewel, the mermaid shoved the girl to the ground. Julia immediately gasped for air, trying to suck oxygen into her lungs.
“This necklace has magic hidden inside of it. All of this time, it’s been hiding right under your noses, and you’ve never even seen it,” Ororis laughed.
At that moment, the necklace started to glow, much to the dismay of Riggs and Julia. They could not let Ororis reach Henry Every’s level of magic. It would spell doom for every pirate sailing the seas.
Julia crawled over to Coral Jack’s side, trying to get away from the mermaid. As Riggs watched, he could see her hand slip over the boatswain’s belt, feeling for a pistol. With Ororis distracted by Julia, Riggs slid his hand down to his belt, his fingers curling around his pistol. With no time to spare, the Captain leapt to the side, catching the mermaid’s eye.
Just as Ororis noticed Riggs’ movement, Julia ripped a pistol from Jack’s belt, aiming it at the mermaid.
*click*
The sound of the hammer caught the traitor’s attention for just long enough.
BANG
The shot from Riggs’ pistol buried itself in Ororis’s shoulder. To the Captain’s surprise, even as blood dripped from the hole and the pain etched itself on her face, Ororis was laughing.
“Vulnus vita,” she said, holding her hand over her shoulder.
With a loud cry, Riggs raised his sword, rushing forward and slashing it at the mermaid. They had fought by one another’s side. He was not going to let another traitor walk free.
He was going to kill her.
Even as Riggs attacked with all of his might, Ororis swung her golden sword with ease, warding off every one of the pirate’s attacks. After they had just defeated a massive threat, the Captain could not stand to let a worse villain loose upon the world. He was fighting with all of the passion that he could muster.
He had to win.
He had to.
As Ororis and Riggs locked blades once again, the pirate jumped away from her, hoping to catch her off guard. For a brief second, the mermaid held the golden sword away from her body, possibly unsure of what Riggs was going to do.
He was not about to let that go to waste.
Letting his fury drive him, Riggs thrust his sword forward. He watched Ororis step nimbly to the side, the blade cutting into her abdomen. The pirate cursed at himself.
He should have hit her heart.
He tried to yank his sword away from Ororis to stab her again, but he was met with a blast of magic. It knocked him on his back, pain flowing to his bleeding shoulder. He looked up, expecting to see the mermaid in pain.
Instead, she was smiling.
“You haven’t seen the last of me, Riggs. You will lose this war… and I will destroy everything that you hold dear.”
With hatred clouding his mind, Riggs snatched a pistol from the ground and aimed it directly at the mermaid. At the same moment, Ororis reached down and grabbed onto the unconscious body of Hades.
*click*
“Nave oneraria.”
Ororis and Hades disappeared in a storm of energy. As the anomaly dissipated, Riggs whipped the pistol at the cloud of smoke. It did nothing but fall harmlessly to the ground.
Both Ororis and Hades were gone.
Barely able to comprehend what had just happened, Riggs stood there, staring at the empty space where the mermaid and the god had been. Again, he had been betrayed by a member of his crew. How could he have let this happen? Clenching his fists, he cursed at himself.
If only he had listened to Hades, then none of this would have happened. The Dutchman would have helped destroy the Fancy before the three ships would have left the cluster of islands. Every would have been unable to lure them into the chamber. Ororis would have never regained her powers.
“Riggs, you need to come over here,” Julia begged.
Snapping out of his daze, Riggs hurried
over to Julia, crouching down next to Coral Jack. Blood was still trickling out of the gash across his face, even as the boatswain lay on the ground, barely even moving.
“Riggs… w-what can we do?” the girl cried.
Not saying a word, Riggs took off his jacket, grabbed the sleeve of his shirt, and ripped off a long strand of it. As quickly as he could, he wrapped it around Jack’s head, trying to stop the blood from flowing out of the wound. Even in the dim light, Riggs could see that Ororis’s attack had caused some nasty damage. They needed to get back to the ship as quick as possible.
K-BOOM
The sound of the Salvation’s cannons sent a shiver down the pirates’ spines. They needed to hurry.
Taking Coral Jack by the arm, Riggs tried to help him to his feet, but the boatswain was very weak. He could do nothing to assist his captain, leaving Riggs to haul him up from the ground.
“What are you doing?” Julia asked, her words teeming with fright, “He’s in no condition to be moving.”
After draping Jack’s arm over his stinging shoulder, Riggs said, “Would ye rather stay here and die? Get up and help me.”
Even from just a quick glance at Julia, Riggs could see that she was shaking. Everything was happening so fast, and it was far too much to comprehend all at once. It was terrifying. It was cold-hearted.
It was evil.
K-BOOM
Taking hold of Coral Jack’s other arm, Julia crouched underneath it, keeping the bleeding boatswain from falling to the ground. Together, she and Riggs hauled their friend out of the cave amidst the sound of the Navy’s cannons.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
K-BOOM
K-BOOM
Cannonballs tore into the HMS Regality even faster than Sapphire could imagine. To make matters even worse, Eli and the Commodore were starting to tire. Their exhaustion was starting to show as they became more sluggish and sloppy. Even their adrenaline could barely keep them going.
The fairy was encountering her own problems as well. The wound in her side was sapping her strength from her with each passing moment. At the rate at which she was going, she could only control her magic for a little while longer.
K-BOOM
“Saph! We need you down here,” Eli shouted.
Holding onto the ropes at the top of the mast, the fairy looked down, trying to see what had forced Eli to call for her help. To her shock, a large crowd of the remaining soldiers were nearly about to attack, and the carpenter certainly looked like he needed some magical assistance.
Diving down to the deck, Sapphire flew to Eli’s side, blasting her wand at the sailors. Try as she might, she could not muster up enough power to stop them all at once.
“What happened to you, Saph?” asked a concerned Eli.
“I never used this much magic before,” she said as the front of her face and neck were lined with blood.
“Do you think you can keep it up for a little while longer?” he asked, kicking a soldier away from him.
The fairy threw a bolt of magic at another one of the soldiers, barely knocking him down.
“I don’t think I can,” she said weakly.
Stabbing the same soldier in the gut, Eli said, “Please tell me you’re able to get us all back to the Sky…”
The uncertain look in the fairy’s eyes said it all.
A soldier rushed at Eli, but Commodore Hamond blocked his former comrade’s attack. With a strong punch to the face, he knocked the man out, dropping him to the ground.
“You two go,” Hamond ordered, “I’ll take care of them.”
“No. There’s no way that we’re leaving you here,” Eli protested.
Grabbing the carpenter by the shirt, Matthew Hamond said, “If you won’t listen to me as a pirate, then listen to me as a commander. I order you to get off this ship right now, and save yourself.”
“But I…”
“Listen to me, damn it!” Hamond shouted, pushing Eli and Sapphire towards the rail.
The two watched in awe as the Commodore reached down and grabbed a fallen soldier’s rapier. Standing there with a sword in each hand, he was ready to fight.
Turning his head toward Eli and Sapphire, Hamond said in a calm voice, “Tell Julia that I love her.”
The two had little choice in the matter. With as much speed as they could muster, Eli draped his arm over Sapphire’s shoulders and held on as they both leapt over the rail.
Once he heard the flutter of the fairy’s wings, Matthew turned his attention toward the fatigued soldiers standing in front of him. They held their weapons in sweaty hands as cuts and burns covered their clothes and skin. Hamond could feel the perspiration dripping from his own forehead as well. He was ready to topple, but he was not giving up.
Letting out a courageous battle cry, he rushed at the crowd of soldiers, swinging his swords through the air. The blades cut through the weakened soldiers, paving a path for the Commodore straight toward the helm. Dodging a strike, Matthew rushed up the stairs, grabbing the man at the top and shoving him against the railing. The man toppled down the stairs, knocking down several other soldiers on his way to the deck.
Hurrying to the wheel, Hamond spun it to the side, sailing the Regality straight into the Salvation’s path. He was putting himself between the pirates of the Red Sky and the armada. He was ready to show where his true loyalties laid.
Glaring straight at the white sails of the Admiral’s ship, Hamond shouted, “This is where I choose to make my stand, Carter. You’ll have to kill me to get to them.”
Directly in front of him, Matthew saw the chase cannons of the Salvation being loaded. Carter was not going to stop. Gripping his two swords even tighter, Hamond stood at the helm, ready to fight.
K-BOOM
K-BOOM
K-BOOM
The cabin below him exploded in a mess of wood and glass, throwing him over the railing. As he plummeted to the deck below, he could see even more cannonballs obliterate the stern of the vessel, blasting the wheel from its pedestal and catapulting it into the ocean.
Hamond landed hard on the deck, knocking the sense out of him. The swords flew out of his hands, leaving him defenseless… if he could have even defended himself. As his vision blurred, he could barely even lift his arms.
As Matthew lay there, he had no idea how quickly time passed. The clunking of a gangplank being lowered broke the monotony of the silence of the cannons. With great difficulty, Hamond lifted his head toward the noise.
Even with his blurred vision, he could see Admiral Carter standing over him, his face impossible to read. A frightful lack of emotion showed on the Navy officer’s face as he looked down at the criminal lying at his feet.
“I warned you what would happen if you crossed me, Commodore.”
Hamond said nothing.
With a huff, Carter said, “Everyone that stands in the path of justice… and I do mean everyone… will be beaten. I will trample them until they are nothing more than dust. I will find your daughter and her pirate friends, and I will bring them to justice. Do I make myself clear?”
Hamond again said nothing.
Reaching down, Carter grabbed Hamond by the shirt and said, “Matthew Hamond, I hereby charge you with treason against the Crown. How do you plead?”
Matthew looked up at the Admiral as he knelt on the ground. Hate and anger were evident on his face as he spit on the shoes of his superior.
“Go… to… Hell,” he said, still catching his breath.
Straightening his back, Carter said, “Just as I thought… guilty.”
The Admiral’s boot was the last thing that Matthew Hamond saw before collapsing into unconsciousness.
Luckily for Riggs, Julia, and Coral Jack, a longboat was waiting for them on the beach when they rushed out of the cave. As the two took care of the boatswain, the other crewmembers rowed as fast as they could back to the Red Sky. They could not count on the Salvation being preoccupied with the Regality for long.
As carefully as they
could, Riggs and Julia carried Coral Jack onto the deck. The makeshift bandages had kept the boatswain from bleeding out of control, but he still looked as pale as could be.
“Captain, what happened in… oh my God in heaven,” said Clint, catching sight of Coral Jack’s bloodied face.
Gasps could be heard coming from every direction as the crew watched the three bruised and bloody pirates make their way onto the ship. Riggs’ torn coat hung over his shoulder, barely covering the gory mess that was his shoulder. The crew had never seen an aftermath of a battle where the survivors looked like they had sustained that much damage.
As the pirates began to murmur, they heard the voice of Valera coming from the midst of them.
“Did they all return? Is Jack with them?” she asked frantically.
Trying to protect her from the sight, some of the crew tried to block her from reaching the three.
“We can’t let ye through, lass.”
“Like hell you won’t,” she said, her green eyes burning with passion.
She tried to push through the wall of men, but they kept her at bay, crowding around her. Where most people would have become angry, Valera became concerned. She knew something was wrong.
“What happened to Jack?” she asked, her eyes starting to grow wet.
When the crew still would not let her through, the mermaid felt a strong hand on her shoulder, a hand that belonged to Ripper. Valera clutched the Jamaican’s arm like a frightened child, not knowing what waited on the other side of the crowd.
Looking over at his crewmates, Ripper said, “If de lady wants ta see Jack, then let ‘er see ‘im.”
Still, the crew would not part.
Riggs stood up from Jack’s side, carefully rubbing his shoulder. Valera needed to see.
“Enough,” said the Captain sternly, shoving his way through his men, “Let her through… and that’s an order.”
As the crew reluctantly split down the middle, Riggs stood in the center. On his face was a look of sorrow and regret as he reached his hand out to Valera. Terrified, the mermaid still kept a firm grip on Ripper’s arm as Riggs led them both to Coral Jack.