Thalia's Tale (A Team Crafted Spinoff)

Nineteen: Kevin of the Dead

It was getting dark during the funeral. The deck was busy and full of people, but only Thalia and Logan were mourning their loss. Venom was gone, Jack was gone, and Kevin was dead. Or so it seemed.
The two sat side by side leaning against the mast, remembering times with their friends. "How'd you meet him?" Thalia asked. "Kevin, I mean."
Logan smiled sadly to himself. "I'd just gotten to the base. I was sixteen, too young to be a real recruit, so I trained with the Star Cadets, to be a diplomat, just to stay in the army. My first mission was with him. We didn't get along too well at first, but then we were able to connect over things like animals and books and we were friends ever since." He looked at Thalia. "What about you?"
"Met him in the woods on the night of the attack a couple weeks ago." Thalia replied. "Venom likely would have shot me if it weren't for him." She sighed. "I didn't know him for long, but... He was always so cheerful about everything. He never let anything spoil his mood." She smiled sadly. "What sort of things did he like, anyway?"
"Well... He liked super heroes and Princess stories. And he loved Drake Columnade books." He hesitated. "It's so weird thinking that... He's just... Gone..." His voice cracked at the end. Thalia looked at him sympathetically, then rested her head on her knees curled up against her chest.
"Not dead yet, friend."
Logan's eyes flew open. Thalia's head shot up. She looked at the stairs leading down below deck and she couldn't quite believe her eyes. She'd seen the blood, she'd taken his pulse, she had watched him get stabbed. And yet, there he was. Kevin Murphey, leaning in the doorway with that elfish grin of his on his face.
Logan and Thalia both stood up. "Kevin...?!" Logan asked.
Kevin raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Yeah?" He replied.
Logan's eyes widened in shock. "Y-You were dead!"
"Yeah, I was." Kevin replied. He opened his fist, revealing a green orb. "Thacker Root. Temporarily stops the pulse. Technically, I was dead. For about five minutes." He crossed his arms and stood up straight. "So." He said. "What did I miss?"
Thalia just stared at him in awe, then looked at Jack as he ran up beside him. Logan couldn't help but smile. "Well, where's Venom hiding then?"
Kevin's expression grew stony. "She's not." He said quietly. "Venom is gone."
"Wait, wait!" Thalia said. "I saw you get stabbed! How did..." Thalia's voice trailed off as Kevin pulled his trick knife out of his sheath and showed her again how it retracted into itself. Thalia leaned back on her heels and stared at Kevin in shock, a mystified smiled on her face.
"But what about Venom?" Logan asked. "Why would she do that?"
"That, I don't know. However..." Kevin eyed the trick knife curiously and pulled the note off from around the hilt. He raised an eyebrow as he read it. Then he grinned. He let out a loud shout and jumped up and down on the deck in excitement. "Oh this is genius!"
"What is it?" Jack asked.
"I never should have put it past her!" Kevin cried. "Venom, you're a genius!"
"What does it say?" Thalia asked.
He looked at her, a wide smile on his face. "It says, 'The Illyrian Deception'!" Kevin replied excitedly.
Thalia and Jack exchanged confused glances, but Logan's eyes widened.
"What's the-"
"On our first mission, Venom and I went to Roma for reasons that would take too long to explain." Kevin interrupted Jack. "But anyways, while we were there, the king was threatened that unless he committed suicide in front of his entire kingdom, Roma would invade. So Venom and I came up with this plan. We used a trick knife and a Thacker Root and basically pulled what I just pulled. We ended up saving the King's life. So, Venom is telling me with this note that she had to do this because someone forced her to against her own will." He said. "Where is she, anyways, we gotta figure out what's going on."
Thalia shook her head sadly. "Venom is gone."
Kevin's smile faded and he grew considerably less excited. "Gone?" He asked.
"With the pirates." Thalia replied. "Right after she stabbed you she went with them and they withdrew."
Kevin's face fell. "So that's it." He said quietly. "She sacrificed her own freedom and went with them so they wouldn't kill the crew of the Raymond." He looked away. "Well... I suppose we won't be seeing her for a long time..."