Waves of Destiny (Twisted Wonderland)

Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Thanks to Leona's stubbornness, I didn't get to bed until very early in the morning when he finally gave into my demands. Almost immediately, mermaids filled my dreams. The mermaid from before failed to fulfill her contract with the sea witch, who allowed her father - the king - to take her place. She wanted to steal everything from the start. When I awoke, I was left wondering... Was it just me, or were these dreams kind of linked to reality?

Leona's loud yawn broke me out of my thoughts. "Good morning," I said brightly.

Leona sat up and looked at me. "Huh...? What, you're up already? You sure are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Meanwhile, because of you, I'm sleep-deprived..."

I smirked. "Yeah, sorry not sorry about that."

"Tch. I guess today IS the third day of the agreement. Just remember that come sundown, I'm kicking you guys out, no matter how this goes down. Have your things packed and ready to go."

"Oh, I'll be ready to leave because I will be getting Ramshackle back."

Leona nodded in approval. "Good. You will need that attitude."

Not long after that, I met with my friends in the courtyard. Then I proceeded to tell them we were going to nab that photo. Ace, Deuce, and Jack stared at me like I was crazy. Without any context, I could see why they would think that, but I was too excited to slow down.

"Are you serious right now?" said Jack.

"Off to the Coral Sea we go!" I said cheerfully.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa..." said Ace. "I thought we agreed that nabbing the photo under the sea was a no-go because the Leech brothers would stop us!"

"This plan seems reckless, even by my standards..." said Deuce.

Grim shook his head, "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Okay, kiddos, listen up and I'll go over the plan..." He suddenly started coughing.

"You okay there?" said Ace with mild concern. "Got a furball or somethin'?"

"No! I'm still gettin' over all the yowling I did yesterday. Mm, anyway, back on topic. Here's how this is gonna go..." Grim laid out my plan in great detail, even adding extra parts with some flare. If they boys were surprised before, now they were downright stunned.

"WHAAAAAT?!" they all shouted.

"Dude, are you serious?!" said Ace. "This is crazy bold!"

I shrugged. "Go big or go home - or, in my case, don't go home."

"Wow, Ona," said Deuce. "I always knew you were gutsy, but this is a fresh reminder."

I smiled at him. "Thanks."

"Will this really go the way you hope, though?" said Jack.

"We've exhausted our leads, and we have one day to go," said Deuce. "Ona's idea is all we've got. Not even a whole day, either. We've only got until sunset."

"I guess anything beats sitting on our thumbs waiting around for sundown," said Ace.

"All right," said Jack. "Fine. Stressin' over what-ifs won't get us anywhere. I gotta say, Ona—nothing stops you once you put your mind to something."

"Sometimes our bud here's a tad TOO daring, but what's life without a little spice?" Ace said, appearing amused. "Okay, guys! Let's roll!"

Grim pumped his fist into the air. "Time to get ourselves a photo from the Atlantica Memorial Museum!" We set off immediately. Soon, we found ourselves submerged in water once more. But we were met with a disappointing sight.