The Wanderland: Rewritten

Chapter Five - Negotiations

Both Chris' and Alex's hearts were beating very hard. They had ran to a forest that was located near the school. "I... can't... believe... that we got... away!" Alex said. "I legitimately thought... that that would be the end..." Chris said. Chris sat down next to the closest tree. "What are we going to do next?" Alex asked. "I don't know. I don't even know what 'The Wanderland' is. I don't know where it is. I don't know anything about it. Our plan is already doomed." Chris said. He felt really frustrated. "Chris, I know this is hard but... we have to keep going. There is no other way. Or, you could just wait for Evilor's soldiers to catch you." Alex said. Chris was just staring at the night sky. It was pretty beautiful, actually. The stars and the moon were shining down from the sky. "Do you ever think where we would be now if Evilor wasn't here? I know we've been on the run for only about a day now, but Evilor has affected our lives way before this." Chris asked. "Well, sometimes. Our city used to be really advanced. Maybe that's going to change when we take down Evilor..." Alex said. "Don't be so confident just yet. Take a moment to think about this situation we are in right now. We are both 16 years old. Two teens against an entire army, plus an immortal leader. We know in theory, there is a way to take down Evilor. But the chances for succeeding are so slim, that it's easier to win a lottery." Chris explained. "Well, the people that won a lottery, they bought the lottery ticket. They gave it a shot. Even though they didn't really think they were going to win. That's all we can do, Chris. We just have to give it a shot." Alex said. Alex sat down next to a tree as well. Chris didn't say anything. He just looked at the sky. Those minutes he spent just staring at the sky, those minutes felt like hours.

"I got an idea." Alex said. Chris didn't respond. Alex stood up. "We can't stay here, someone will find us eventually." he said. Chris didn't want to leave. There was no hope. There was no way to get to The Wanderland. There was no way to find that stupid bracelet. There was no way to defeat Evilor. "We have to get going." Alex repeated. Chris stood up grudgingly. "Where are we going? To your house again?" he asked. "No, I don't think that would be safe to do. It's only a matter of time until Evilor's soldiers find out that I am your best friend. After that, my home is the worst possible place to be in. I just hope that my family will be alright..." Alex answered. "They will, I'm sure about that." Chris said, even though he was far from sure about that. He just wanted Alex to feel better. "Anyways, if we are going to get to The Wanderland, we have to find out where it is first. What a better way to find out, than going to the harbor." Alex said. "Whatever. Do you even know where the closest harbor is?" Chris asked. "Well, in fact, I do. We went there a few years ago with my family. Wanted to have a nice vacation on a cruise ship. But I don't think we will be able to get on a cruise this time." Alex said. "So how far the harbor is?" Chris asked. "Not that far away, only half an hour walk." Alex answered. "'Only' half an hour?" Chris said and rolled his eyes. "We better get going, then."

The boys had been walking for about half an hour now. Neither of them said a word during the walk. They did still avoid the most crowded places of the city, walked through forests, and paranoidly hid from every single person they saw. Finally, they reached the harbor. The harbor was quite big. There were lots of ships everywhere. From big cruises, to small fisher boats. "So, do you have any idea what we are going to do now?" Chris asked Alex. "I think that we are just going to ask the captains here if they would want to take us to The Wanderland." Alex answered. "Alex... think about this situation for a second. We are two underage boys, in the harbor, begging for a trip to god knows where, in the middle of the night. Oh, and we have no money either." Chris said. "That's a good point, but not entirely true. Yes, we are just a two kids begging for a ship trip. But, we do have money. Chris, as I said, I prepared for this journey unlike you." Alex said and pulled out fifty bucks from his pocket. "Is that all you have? There is no way that anyone would take us with them with that low amount of cash." Chris said and stared at the bill in Alex's hand. "We have to hope for the best. I do know that there is no way we can get on a cruise, but we are talking about only one trip here. We could get a fisher boat." Alex said. The boys started walking towards the area where the fisher boats and other smaller boats were in. "Hi, excuse me, how much would a small boat trip cost?" Alex asked the first fisher boat owner they saw. "Sorry bro, but the boat's only leavin' on mornings." a young looking captain answered. Chris and Alex asked many different captains if they could offer a trip to The Wanderland. Some had never heard about The Wanderland, and the ones that had, refused to sail that far. Some of the captains also told Chris and Alex that if they didn't leave instantly, they would call the police. "I'm done with this stupid plan. Nobody wants to take us anywhere. I'm going back to the city and I'm going to... do something..." Chris said exhaustingly. "Please, Chris, let's ask one more captain, at least." Alex begged. "Whatever, but only one more. It's just a matter of time when someone calls the police and we're screwed." Chris replied. The boys walked closer to a ship. It wasn't just a regular fisher boat, it was a bit more "luxury", if you could call it that. At least it had two floors in it, and a bit of space on the deck as well. There was a captain that was cleaning the deck with a mop, and whistling at the same time. "Hey, excuse me!" Alex yelled at the captain. The captain turned around and looked at Alex. "What do you want?" he yelled back. "How much would it cost, if you'd take me and my friend to The Wanderland?" Alex asked. "Why would you want to go there? It's a very boring place to spend your vacations in." the captain said. "That's none of your business. Tell us, how much would it cost." Chris said. "100 bucks and I'll take you there. Even though I don't understand why you'd want to go there." the captain said. "We... don't have that much..." Alex said. "How much do you have?" the captain asked. "50 bucks, that's all we got." Alex told him. "Hmm... whatever, that's enough. I have to earn money from somewhere. This is the only time I'll give you a discount, then! And that's only because I have to go to The Wanderland too... business stuff." he told. "That's brilliant! When are we going to leave?" Alex asked. "Right now. Hop in the ship. I was just getting ready to leave." the captain said. Chris and Alex hopped on the deck.

The ship started sailing towards the unknown. There were two floors on this ship, the main deck where you could spend time outside, looking at the ocean. The second floor was a pretty small, but it had a few beds so that the passengers could sleep. The captain had told the boys that they would reach The Wanderland tomorrow afternoon, so Chris and Alex had left their backpacks in the lower floor. For some reason, neither of them were sleepy, so they decided to hang out on the upper deck, and watch the sunrise. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Alex said while looking at the sun that was getting up behind the mountains in the distance. "Very beautiful. I just wish we could actually enjoy things like watching the sunrise, without having to worry about anything. We could have a normal vacation." Chris thought. Chris and Alex suddenly heard footsteps behind them. The captain had arrived on the deck. "I am sorry for being so rude a while ago. I even forgot to introduce myself! My name is Captain Howards. This ship you're in right now is called 'Flying Penguin'. The name is a bit silly, but my at least my daughter thinks it's a good one. It's always heartbreaking when I have to leave for these ship trips to get money, I wish I could spend more time with my family... But I'm starting to get emotional! How about you two would introduce yourselves, and then maybe open up your plan for me a little bit?" the captain said. "Well, my name is Chris, and this is Alex. The reason why we are trying to get to The Wanderland is a bit confusing, but I can try my best to explain it to you as clearly as possible." Chris said, and continued to explain the entire story, from the point where Evilor's soldier had arrived on his door, to the point where Chris and Alex broke into their old school to get information about the The Bracelet of Dimensions. They also explained the bracelet, and their plan to defeat Evilor, to the captain. The captain was just listening, without interrupting the story. "I... I'm sorry for the loss of your family, Chris. Although, I don't really know what the bracelet you keep mentioning is about. Your plan sounds very dangerous. It can cost you your lives. I don't think it's a good idea." the captain asked. "But this is everything we can do! I'm dead if I'm caught by Evilor or one of his soldiers. All I can do, is to give it a go. Even though it might fail." Chris explained. "I understand. I think you both need sleep now. Sounds like you have been through a lot today." Howards said. Neither of the boys complained, they stood up and walked downstairs. There were a few somewhat comfortable beds waiting for them. Chris laid on his bed, without even bothering to change clothes. He was that tired.

"Good morning... or well, afternoon, boys! We have reached our destination!" the captain yelled from upstairs. "Welcome to The Wanderland!"