Wicked [Super 4]

XXIII.Captain

Ruby

The ocean wasn't giving us too much trouble. Of course, working a ship with four girls that had no previous experience was tough, but manageable. I wondered if my exasperation with those four was in some way similar to what went through Gene's mind when he was in the Chameleon with the rest of us.

It was during my time staring at the waves that I realised something: I had no idea of why Karma would join this madness. Leonora and Alien wanted to find the others as much as I did. Morgi said she just did it out of pure courtesy, though it was easy to tell that she just wanted to see the Baron safe and sound again. And Ana already mentioned her sister making her tag along, even tho she didn't tell who that mysterious sister of hers was.

But Karma? She had just appeared one day with Morgi, giving me a good scare, and then she just started mothering her way through all of this. I assumed she was just here to support her two friends. Still, why would she try so hard with Leonora and me if she was just here for Morgi and Ana?

People are just so weird sometimes. Well, demons. Or whatever she is.

...She had told me to observe other people to understand what could be seen as "nice" or "mean", but I began to think that she was the one I was meant to look up to. I had spent an awful lot of time thinking she was gonna kick my ass when I first met her, but turned out to be really kind with the people she trusted. And that, after giving it some thought, I decided was exactly the energy I wanted to give off too. Maybe not as nicey pants as her, though.

--Captain--Ana called, suddenly snapping me out of my thoughts--. Are you sure we can push through the fog and big ass rocks from the Lost World?

That was, in fact, the toughest part of getting there, and I still remembered perfectly the first time my friends and I made a trip there. Our ship got reduced to bits and pieces that you'd think belonged to a table at most. But that, of course, was not something I should tell any of them. What sort of image would I give off as a captain if I did?

--Do you think it's my first time, dummy? I could do it with my eyes closed--I replied, trying to sound as confident as possible.

--Allow me to disagree, captain--Morgi exclaimed--. We should show concern not in the physical act of passing through, but in the concept of coming to contact with the fog.

I held back a glare and tried not to sound too harsh when I answered:--What about it? Sure, it takes away our vision, but there's a lovely little thing called pirate instinct. We'll be fine.

That last sentence tended to work whenever Alex used it, so I figured out that I could give it a shot.

--I think she means that it could hurt them--Leonora chimed in, stepping away from the railing she had been leaning onto--. Because we don't know what the "Mist" does to outlanders like them. And, according to both Scelesta and Alien, it's not something of little importance.

Fuck, I hadn't thought about that.

Franz

I walk behind Brock and Twinkle, not looking at anything but the floor. They've both stepped out of the Chameleon, and I rather not have the group split in three instead of two. Gunpowder is as unsettling as I remember; vandalized stone and wooden walls, barrels everywhere and an unbearable stink of rotten fish.

My two friends are blabbering in front of me, talking about everything they can think of. Suddenly Brock turns around, as if he's just remembered how much I despise this place. I expect him to ask me to give him his hat back, but he doesn't.

--Franzy, you scared? Don't worry, I'm here! ROCK BROOOCK, HE KEEPS HIS BROS SAFEEEE!--He loudly sings.

Both me and Twinkle shush him before he can draw the attention of any pirate. What's weird is that there's... Nothing. Nothing in sight, no sounds... That's extremely odd in this land. I find that more scary than the usual, already hostile atmosphere that covers this town.

It isn't until we lose sight of the coast and the Chameleon that we start hearing voices. I stop in my tracks once I recognise him. Twinkle nudges my arm softly, a worried expression on her face.

--Hey, are you okay?

--Don't worry, Twi! He's just nervous because he doesn't want to...--Brock starts explaining, but I cut him off quickly so he doesn't tell Twinkle about my little incident with the pirates.

--Let's see what's going on--I whisper, making an effort to step forward and keep advancing towards the tavern which, if I'm not wrong, belongs to Ruby's father. The other two follow close behind.

When we reach the door, we're met with an unsettling sight. It's nowhere to be found. Wrecked. Whatever's left of it is scattered all over the street. I don't have it in me to peek in, so I signal for Twinkle to do it instead. She does, and shortly after, she turns her head back to us, looking horrified.

--Sharkbeard and his mean guys have Alex and Gene captured--She explains with a shaky voice.

I can't deny that I'm scared, but I must stay strong for my friends and my heroes.

Ruby

I was under the deck, investigating if there was anything in the small storage room that could help us to not starve to death. We couldn't possibly pass through the unknown on an empty stomach, and that's precisely why we had stopped our ship. I could've sworn that Ana had entered before me, but since she didn't come out, I decided to search around for myself.

All I found were barrels and more barrels full of wine and other drinks of the same sort. I was disappointed, yes, but in no way surprised. I was about to curse under my breath, when I heard something from a nearby corner. My hand rested on my saber, just in case I needed to unsheathe it, and I tried to find the source of it from behind one of the piles of barrels.

I couldn't believe my eyes when I found Ana sitting all by herself in there. I didn't understand her expression at all, but it wasn't good. I was perfectly aware of how much ass I sucked at comforting people, but I certainly thought of trying to do it, since I'm the captain of this ship. And besides, Alex did always try to help us out back at our normal group. Did those rules apply to me in that situation? It was certainly worth a shot.

Right as I was taking the first step out of my hiding spot, Karma entered the room and kneeled down beside Ana. I stayed back, observing.

--Everything alright?--She asked.

The other girl shook her head. She muttered a few sentences about missing her brother and her... Girlfriend? Was that a thing? Girls dating other girls? I thought I had misheard it.

I watched as Karma talked it through with her. I still don't know how she managed to have such an effect on people, because she managed to get Ana to stand back up in all her glory in the span of ten minutes or less. Damn.

Ana ran off to go back up, after having failed just like me in finding any sort of food. I was about to leave too, when I suddenly heard Karma sigh behind me. I turned around, scared that she had seen me for whatever reason, but it looked like my presence had gone unnoticed. She was just there, on her own, in the darkness of the room. I could've sworn that she looked kinda melancholic. Or something like that, I don't know.

I left anyway, because I had to see if we could fish something out of the sea before Ana started chewing on the railing of the ship. I was so sure that Karma was stronger than me, that she could handle it on her own, something the rest of us couldn't do.