Tales of the Caravan

by J. Avarez

  Drake grabbed the pendant and yanked it off, causing the gold links to shatter and fall across the floor. With a flick of his wrist, the pirate tossed the pendant over the temple floor and watched it fall into the endless hole in the sea.

  “No!” Cookie moaned, her hand helplessly reaching outward.

  Her heart felt a shudder as she looked back at Drake. His dark eyes lowered to a menacing squint.

  “Join your friend, you filthy lover!” He said, coldly.

  Drake snatched Cookie’s long braid of red hair and forced her face up toward the moon. It wasn't long before the curse claimed her too. Her beautiful freckles became nothing but dark indents upon her stone face.

  “Cookie.” Mia whispered, clutching Charlotte closer against her chest.

  It was a nightmare. They had arrived to make a difference, and yet Drake had found a way to crush them. No, Sarah growled inside her own head, I won't let it end like this. She looked toward her hand and saw a glimmer of gold shine over one of her nails. It would be risky, that much Sarah knew for certain, but it was the only bit of magic she had left.

  “Drake!” Sarah shouted. Her black hair blew with the wind, as she put her golden nail between her lips. She bit down and drank the potion till the last drop, she then threw Drake a fierce glare, as the outline of her body began to glow with white light. “Pray to whichever god you like…your life as a pirate ends tonight.”

  Chapter 23 A Reason to Hurt

  The gold potion had ignited her veins. She felt the pure magic of the Magi, like flames that tickled beneath her skin. Drake looked amused as he stood and watched the glow around her become brighter.

  “A Magi potion,” said Drake, smiling. “I can recognize that glow from anywhere. You must have a death wish, girl. The Magi are barely human, a commoner can't take in all that magic. Did they even bother to tell you the risk?”

  “Yeah, I’ve probably just shortened my life in half,” replied Sarah, raising a ball of water over her hand. “A small price to see you dead.”

  “You still need to chant the words,” said Drake, as his dark eyes began to glow. “As if I'll stand by and let it happen.”

  Dark rain clouds gathered above and blocked out the blue moon. The rain fell hard, which Drake used to his advantage. The pirate formed the rain above Sarah into a massive hand and slammed it downward. The force of the water sent her face against the floor and split her bottom lip.

  Sarah watched with clamped teeth, as her blood mixed with the rain over the temple floor. Drake was just a few feet from her, and raised a thin pillar of water beside him. His eyes glowed as the water froze into a spear of ice in his hand. She did her best to move her body, but Sarah felt the weight of Drake's Secreto in the rain itself. Each raindrop was like a hand that kept her pressed against the floor.

  Drake thrusted his spear toward her, but a cloud of red glitter formed between them. Sarah turned her head and found Mia standing behind her. The Royal’s hands were stretched outward, shielding them from the repeated attacks from Drake’s ice spear.

  “Stupid girl, get out of the way!” Drake shouted, thrusting his spear against the red mist again.

  “You can't get through my mist,” Mia shouted back. “Just give it up!”

  “Lady Rose!” A voice called out.

  Darlan raced to the top of the steps, and tackled Drake to the floor. With his pistol in hand, the kind pirate took a shot at Drake, but the captain had already dissolved into a puddle of water. Darlan felt a presence behind him and turned his heel. A cold metal barrel was pressed over his chest, then came the roar from the pistol.

  Drake grabbed Darlan by the neck and lifted him into air. It was difficult for the young Royal to watch, as drops of red trickled from the bottom of the kind pirate’s boots.

  “Now fall, you fool.” Said Drake, coldly.

  Mia gasped as he tossed Darlan over the edge of the temple. The tearful pirate fell helplessly into the hole in the sea and vanished. The Royal felt a rage inside of her that caused her red mist to flash with a bit of gold. Drake curiously approached the flashing mist and was met with a punch to his face.

  The sphere of red mist formed into a fist of gold, and knocked Drake backward along the floor. Mia’s wide eyes focused on her mist. The golden flakes quickly faded until only the red glitter was left. Her heart pounded as she pondered the thought. An awakened Secreto…had she somehow tapped into hers?

  Several feet away from them, Drake had begun to stir. The disgruntled pirate rose from the floor, his eyes followed the trail his body had carved through the temple floor. He angrily wiped the blood from his nose and dissolved into the water beneath him.

  “Mia,” Sarah shouted.

  Her eyes were over Mia's shoulder, where Drake had materialized. The pirate grabbed Mia with his hand, still made of water, and lifted the Royal by her face. Mia kicked her legs in the air and tried to free herself, but Drake tightened his watery fingers upon her face, as he continued to ruthlessly drown her to death.

  Sarah felt the weight of his Secreto lift and rose from the floor with her arm stretched out. “Get off of her!”

  A massive hand made of stone erupted from the floor and smacked Drake off the temple. His reflexes were surprisingly quick. The pirate spun his head as he soared off, and stretched his watery hand toward Sarah. Drake managed to land firmly onto one of the floating islands of rock that spun around the temple. His watery arm stretched like a long whip, and grabbed Sarah by the leg.

  With a strong tug, Drake swung Sarah several feet into the air and pulled her toward the floating piece of rock. He watched Mia lay on the floor unconscious and felt an air of relief, Dreamstead is all alone now. Sarah crashed onto the floating rock just a few feet from him, and stumbled to get back onto her feet. The glow around her had begun to fade…it wouldn't be much longer now.

  “Come on, Dreamstead!” Said Drake, as he slowly walked toward her. “Surely Merla taught you better than this. Your glow is going away, wait any longer and that spell of yours won't do a thing.”

  Sarah looked at her hand, moist and slightly red from her own blood. The outline of her fingers caused her the most panic. The glow of the Magi had begun to flicker. She had to cast the spell soon, or watch the magic fade from her common blood. Her emerald eyes glared toward Drake as her lips began to speak the spell. He scoffed at her attempt and smacked her with back of his watery hand.

  The force of Drake’s attack sent Sarah to soar off. Her body spun as she flew over the hole in the sea, and crashed into the surface of the cold water. The sound of thunder was muffled, and her numbed ears were filled with the gurgle of the sea. She opened her eyes and fought to look through the seawater that burned her eyes.

  She felt herself slipping. With each release of air bubbles from her mouth, her vision darkened and her body sunk deeper into the sea. The melodic cries of water dragons echoed from a far, but still caused her heart to panic. Forbidden waters were the home of dangerous beasts, and she dreaded the thought of being consumed by one of them.

  The sudden image of Cookie and Charlotte caused her fists to clench. She was a captain, whether the empire wanted to believe it or not…and drowning wasn't a luxury she could afford. Sarah clenched her teeth and moved her hand toward her mouth. With a bite of her fingernail, she drank the last of her merwater potion.

  Sarah swam her body to face the black depths of the sea, and had begun to spin her hands around. She controlled the water and spun the sea in front of her into a whirlpool. Her body comfortably sank and rested at the center of the swirling waves. The would-be captain rose her arms into the air and swiped them downward, which caused the whirlpool to pop upward and launch her out of the sea.

  Sarah flew through the dark sky and back toward the moon temple, narrowly dodging a few lightning bolts as she went. Drake was unaware that Sarah flew toward him, all he felt was her foot kick into the middle of his back. The force of her kick sent the pirate captain into one of th
e temple walls. The loud smack caused Mia to open her eyes, the Royal then watched satisfyingly as Drake fell from the wall and crumpled over the floor.

  Sarah quickly rose to her feet, eager to start the chant that would activate her spell. Drake had been a bit quicker. The pirate rose to his feet first and aimed his rifle at Sarah’s chest.

  “This is the end for you, you wretched child,” said Drake, angrily. “Join your friend in the abyss.”

  A loud bang echoed across the temple. For a moment Sarah felt as though she had been shot through her heart. To her relief, it was Drake that had been shot and pinned to the wall, by a metal bolt covered in lightning. She turned her eyes to the left and saw Jayden towering next to her. Mira was on his shoulder, and gazed at Sarah with a pair of glowing topaz eyes.

  “Surprise!” Said the black cat, happily.

  Drake was firmly impaled onto the wall and struggled to free himself. The pirate captain turned his dark eyes toward Jayden and muttered a curse.

  “Jayden, you fool,” he snarled, pulling out the rod from his chest. “I’ll kill you both.”

  Sarah took her opening, and started to pull strength from the Magi spell inside of her. As her lips moved, she felt her heart had tightened. Half of her life would be taken from her…that was the cost of casting a Magi spell. She’d always imagined having a family after her life at sea. She would kill those dreams in a moment. Much to her sadness, her chance of being a grandmother would likely fade after tonight.

  “I was never broken,” she said, as small wisps of light circled around her. “I’m as whole as can be.”

  “You’ll be dead before you can finish that spell.” Drake shouted.

  His eyes glowed as he extended a hand toward her. Sarah was ready. Her hands clamped together, and two hands made of stone erupted from the temple floor. The pair of golem hands had Drake between them, and clamped against the pirate captain. He spat blood from his mouth, the stone hands squeezing him like a tube of dragun jelly.

  “I wore this shell to comfort the pain,” Sarah went on. “But now that pain has turned to shame.”

  “Enough!” Drake barked.

  He punched through the stone and freed his right hand. Drake then activated his Secreto once more, this time a jet of water left his hand and pushed Sarah to the floor.

  “I was…never broken,” said Sarah tiredly, struggling to get up to her feet. “I’ve just grown to be me.”

  “I won't die by your hand, do you hear me?!” Drake smashed his left hand free from the rock, his fingers still clenched onto his rifle.

  He aimed toward Sarah’s neck with a crazed look and fired. The power of Jayden's Secreto intervened and entered her body, as it did at the Maiden’s Lounge. Sarah zipped to the left and dodged Drake's bullet, which punctured a hole through the temple floor.

  “When these cracks stretch across this shell…maybe then you’ll see,” said Sarah. Drake shot at her again, but her body shifted past the bullet. She appeared in front of Drake in a blink of an eye, with her glowing hand over his startled face. “I was never broken…I was breaking free.”

  A beam of light, as bright as the sun, erupted out of Sarah’s hand. The force of the spell caused everyone to fall backward, even Blackbeard’s massive body struggled to keep his feet planted onto the floor. The blast completely devoured Drake. Not so much as a scream had left his lips. The beam of light shot upward and faded away, carving a small hole through the dark rain clouds.

  The blue light from the moon poured through the hole in the sky, and tinted Sarah’s exhausted face. Her long black hair fell off, and left it short and spiky. Her face looked as though it had aged a few years. She panicked at the thought of her life being cut so short, but the satisfaction of Drake’s death made it all worthwhile.

  “An impressive battle, Dreamstead,” said Blackbeard, his chuckle boomed into her ears as he stood by a white altar. “You have the strength of a true captain.”

  Mia looked behind Blackbeard and noticed only part of the temple had been built. The other side was missing, as if the gods cut the temple in half with a jagged knife.

  “The temple…?” Said Mia, looking bewildered.

  “The altar is already built,” replied Blackbeard, his forest eyes turned toward the white altar. “This is all we need to return the pearl. There’s no need to build the rest of the temple, now. I tried to focus the sacrifice on the old and dying, but sadly I had to sacrifice the young as well. I apologize if some of your own were taken.”

  It was bizarre to see a pirate juggle compassion and ruthlessness all at the same time. That uncharacteristic charm of Blackbeard’s is what made Mia struggle to hate him.

  “So this is over, am I right?” Asked Mira. “Jayden and I can walk free?”

  “Yes, you’ve fulfilled your end of the bargain, however,” Blackbeard turned his gaze toward Sarah. “There’s still one last knot to tie. I’m truly sorry, Ms. Dreamstead, but my Queen has made her wishes clear. I can’t allow you to walk away alive.”

  “What?” Mia blurted out, looking concerned.

  “You told me if I joined you that you’d try to keep her safe.” Said Jayden, angrily. “I did try,” replied Blackbeard. “And I admire everything you’ve done to keep her from harm’s way. Love is a riddle in itself, isn’t it? I’m sure it was quite difficult for you to keep such a fearless girl away from here, but you failed. I could have spent years hunting you, Sarah, but here you are, trapped inside the lions den.”

  Blackbeard tossed Jayden the blue pearl. His silver eyes gazed at the treasure for a moment, before he shot Blackbeard a confused look.

  “Why are you giving me this?” Asked Jayden.

  “I don’t like killing women if I can help it,” replied Blackbeard. “I want you to use the pearl and give Dreamstead a painless death. You see, returning the pearl will bring everyone back who gazed at the moon, but those turned to stone by the pearl itself, well, they won’t be among those restored to life.”

  “You’re a nasty soul,” said Mira, the black cat appeared to be sneering at Blackbeard. “Why force Jayden to do your dirty work?”

  “I’m curious to see what he’ll do,” replied Blackbeard, he grabbed one of the pistols strapped to his chest and pointed it toward Jayden. “This doesn't have to be hard. All I'm asking is for you to finish what you started. Time to choose, Jayden. It’s your life or hers.”

  Jayden looked toward Sarah and spun the pearl in his hand. She waited with a panicked breath, unable to read his fleeting face. Finally the captain sighed, and pressed the pearl cruelly against the spot where he had shot her.

  “I’m sorry, Sarah.” Said Jayden, softly.

  “Jayden…” Her voice was barely above a whisper, and her eyes darted between him and the glowing pearl.

  A flash of blue light engulfed Sarah and transformed her into stone. Mia’s hazel eyes had begun to glaze. She wanted to attack Jayden, but her fight with Drake had somehow exhausted her Secreto.

  “Very good,” said Blackbeard smiling, taking the pearl from Jayden's loose grip. “I’m glad I didn’t have to watch another captain fall tonight.”

  The rain clouds had begun to clear. The fading storm left the temple eerily quiet. Far away from the temple, the booming of exploding dark hawks filled the air, as they continued to battle against Daisy and the others. It looked as though the storm Drake created had completely vanished, the last of the rain drops splashing quietly over Sarah’s stone face.

  “I’m leaving.” Jayden told Blackbeard. “My deal with you is done.”

  The young captain walked with Mira down the steps of the temple. Mia looked furious, and called Jayden a coward as he left. Her insult seemed to cause him no offense. She knelt forward and pressed her fists against the floor. The Royal felt powerless, as she feebly watched her own tears fall onto the floor.

  “Don’t cry, little rose,” said Blackbeard, the Royal looked up and saw a wide smile over his beard. “After all�
�this is a man’s world.”

  A loud bang roared into the air, and caused the captain's eyes to go wild. With a shaky hand, he pressed against his chest and saw red blood dripping from his palm. Soon the light in his eyes gave way to darkness, and the great Captain Blackbeard fell with a tremendous thud. Mia looked over his massive body, and there she saw Sarah, with a smoking pistol in her hand.

  The grey stone slowly turned into flesh. First Sarah’s face and hands, then her legs and torso. The stone had retreated, like water down a drain, toward a single grey spot over her heart.