Era of a Red Sky Page 13

  Once the serpent disappeared, Riggs rushed to the stairs to the lower decks, shouting, “Reload the cannons. That monster’s goin’ to attack again, and we’ve got to be ready for it.”

  K-DOOM

  Nearly all of the pirates were knocked off their feet as the serpent burst out of the water on the opposite side of the ship, tilting the Red Sky as it hit the hull. Riggs struggled to keep his balance, spinning around and keeping his sword between him and the monster. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Sapphire hovering in the air, flicking her wand at the terrifying creature.

  To the dismay of both of them, it did nothing.

  Suddenly, the serpent thrust its head toward the Captain, its mouth gaping wide open. Out of instinct, Riggs dropped to the ground, barely avoiding the sharp teeth as they snapped shut on empty air. The three scars from the puncture wounds of the trident were mere inches from the pirate’s face.

  Now was his chance.

  Riggs drove his sword straight up, slicing through the area close to the serpent’s scars. The blade pierced through the creature’s jaw and gauged the roof of its mouth. Blood spurted onto the deck of the ship as the serpent let out a loud scream.

  SHREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

  With a sudden jerk, the serpent ripped the sword out of Riggs’ hands. Scrambling to get his sword back, the Captain pulled out his pistol and shot at the monster, trying to get its attention. Without that sword, there would be no way for them to bring Hades back to the side of the pirates.

  Unfortunately, the shot from the pistol did nothing.

  Still screaming in pain, the serpent lowered its head to the side of the ship and started scraping its chin against the hull. From what Riggs could guess, it seemed like the creature was trying to remove the sword from its jaw.

  That left the rest of its body open for attack.

  Rushing back to the stairs to the lower decks, Riggs shouted down to Ripper, “Fire all the cannons that ye can at that monster.”

  BOOM

  BOOM

  Two cannonballs tore across the creature’s winding spine. The monster’s wet skin burned as the powder in the cannons exploded in close proximity to it.

  BOOM

  One more cannonball grazed the back of the serpent’s head, causing the entire creature to twist in the water.

  HnghSHREEEEEEAAAAAAEEEEEAAAAAAGH

  The sea serpent threw its head up in the air in a fit of rage. As it did so, Riggs saw something glisten in the sunlight as it whipped through the air.

  It was his sword.

  The Captain felt his stomach drop as his weapon fell end over end towards the water. With the creature recoiling away from the ship, there was no way he could regain his sword now.

  Down… down… down Riggs’ sword fell before it plunged into the sea. There was barely even a splash as the blade cut into the water, sinking fast.

  Riggs could do nothing but watch.

  HuuunghSHREEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAGH

  Looking up, the pirate saw the serpent staring at him, blood dripping from its mouth. He could tell that it was ready to feast on him, and without a sword, there was no way for him to stop it.

  The creature opened its mouth wide, not about to be denied its meal.

  Riggs jumped back, trying to escape.

  *splash* “AAAAARGH!”

  Something shot out of the water in front of the serpent. As Riggs fell to the ground, he could see a distinct purple fin and the reflection of sunlight off a blade.

  It was Valera… and she had his sword.

  Without wasting another second, the mermaid plunged the sword into the serpent’s underbelly. Almost instantaneously, the serpent wretched in pain and discomfort, its jaw snapping closed just before it reached Riggs. Valera was relentless, stabbing the sword repeatedly into the predator’s body.

  The monster recoiled as the blood flowed from its belly, turning the water around it red. In desperation, the serpent smashed itself against the ship, bashing Valera against the rail. Holding her side, the mermaid crumpled over the rail and onto the deck, her other hand still tightly clutching her captain’s sword.

  “Are ye alright, Val?” asked Coral Jack, arriving at the mermaid’s side just before Riggs could.

  Wincing a bit, Valera said, “I think so.”

  Turning to Riggs, she said, “By the way, Captain, I think you lost something.”

  She handed the sword back to him as the serpent thrashed around in the water beside the ship.

  “Aye, that I did. Thank ye,” Riggs replied.

  SHREEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGH

  All of the pirates turned toward the screaming serpent, watching as it writhed in the water, its body contorting at strange angles. It looked like they had ended the assault.

  Standing up, Riggs held his arms outstretched, almost taunting the monster.

  “Die already, ye bugger,” he shouted.

  The creature snapped its jaw shut and snarled at the pirate captain like it had heard him. Thrusting its head and body backwards, the serpent flipped over, plunging below the surface of the water.

  It seemed like the battle was over. The only thing they needed to do was escape the Flying Dutchman.

  However, before Riggs could look back to see where the Dutchman was, he heard a rumbling underneath the ship. Looking at the water below, he saw a brief flash of light, like lightning coursing through the water.

  What happened next, Riggs could not have predicted.

  With a horrendous screech, the sea serpent leapt out of the water, white bolts of magic scattering all over its body. Its sides split open, two appendages quickly morphing out of them. As the monster leapt closer to the ship, it seemed to shrink. The spines disappeared and the dragon head sprouted black hair. Black scales slid to cover the green underbelly of the serpent as the tail changed first to a mermaid tail and then to two, slender legs. The red eyes of the serpent remained unchanged as Ororis flew toward the ship.

  Before Riggs could even react, the evil mermaid had knocked him to the deck, sending him skidding across the boards.

  As the Captain scrambled to his feet, Coral Jack slashed his sword at Ororis. Seeing the mermaid caused him to seethe with anger. She had nearly killed him, her attack at her betrayal blinding him in one of his eyes. He was eager to return the favor.

  Evading the first couple strikes, Ororis raised her hand for a brief second. In a puff of smoke, her golden sword appeared in her hand, just in time to block a strike from the boatswain.

  Glaring at him, she snickered, saying, “Give me another minute, and I’ll cut out your other eye.”

  Coral Jack pulled his sword away from her, kicking the mermaid in the gut to create some distance between them.

  As he tried to lunge at her, Ororis merely stepped to the side, swinging her leg around and forcing him to bend at the knee. Before she could capitalize on her maneuver, she had to fend off an attack from Valera. Both mermaids snapped their fangs at each other with Valera briefly forcing Ororis to the rail.

  She thought that she had the evil mermaid right where she wanted her.

  She was wrong.

  In a surprise move, Ororis flipped herself backward, dragging Valera over the railing. The sudden counter caught Valera by surprise, leaving her open to attack as both of them hit the water below. In a flash, Ororis dragged her opponent underneath the Red Sky, blasting an orange bolt of magic straight into Valera. The poor mermaid was forced into unconsciousness just as they both flew out of the water on the other side of the ship.

  Leaping out of the water, Ororis tossed a limp Valera straight into Coral Jack, knocking him into a stack of boxes and barrels. Neither of them were able to stand up.

  As the villain took a step toward the fallen pirate and mermaid, she heard a voice yell out from behind her.

  “Ororis!”

  Riggs vaulted over a cannon, slashing his sword wildly. For Ororis, it almost seemed like blocking the strikes was effortless. The devious smile on her face was enough to
unnerve the pirate.

  Locking blades with Riggs, Ororis said, “Come now, Riggs. You needn’t prolong your meeting with death.”

  “Nah, I think I do,” he retorted.

  Before the mermaid could push back, he thrust both of their blades toward her, slicing his sword to the side. As he glared at her, he could see a gash running across Ororis’s cheek.

  The mermaid recoiled, grabbing her face and uttering the healing spell. Unfortunately for Riggs, it did not take long for her to recover.

  “You’ve made your last mistake, Captain,” she snarled as the wound stitched itself back together.

  Throwing her arm forward, Ororis shouted, “Nescius.”

  An orange beam blasted out of her hand, but it did not hit Riggs. The Captain spun around just in time to see the magic strike Julia just as she was rushing down the stairs. The girl fell limp in the middle of a step, tumbling down to the deck.

  “Julia!”

  Riggs let his guard down for one measly second, turning to rush to his love’s side.

  “Nescius.”

  By the time the Captain had even taken one step, an orange glow flashed in front of his eyes. The next second, all he saw was blackness.

  CHAPTER NINE

  “Wake up, Captain Riggs.”

  “I don’t think he’s waking up.”

  “Maybe this’ll wake him.”

  *slap*

  Riggs’ eyes shot open. What had happened? Was he still alive? Was he dead?

  His present company seemed to answer all of those questions.

  Directly in front of him crouched Ororis, her arms crossed in front of her as she glared at him with her devilish eyes. Behind her stood the crew of the Flying Dutchman, their mangled bodies still terrifying to behold. Even Grim stood on the deck, his full body cloak still covering every bit of his skinny features. At the head of his crew stood Hades, his half-melted face on full display for the crew of the Red Sky to behold.

  As the situation finally sank into Riggs’ mind, he tried to reach down to push off of the deck to stand up. Unfortunately for him, his ears were greeted with the sound of clanging metal.

  Shackles were locked tight on each of his wrists, effectively chaining him to the mast. He tried to pull on them to slide his hand through the clamps, but they were far too tight to even allow any wiggle room. Looking to each side, he could see nearly all of his crewmembers. He could even see Julia as she roused from her unconsciousness.

  Everyone was chained to the ship.

  “It’s nice to have you back with us, Captain,” said Ororis with a teasing smile.

  “I’d hoped for better,” Riggs replied, trying to bide his time.

  “Yes, I’m sure you were,” said the mermaid.

  Taking out her golden sword, she pulled the sleeve of Riggs’ coat down past his wrist. Exposed for all to see was the jagged scar that ran down his arm.

  “Tell me… what does that scar mean to you?” asked Ororis.

  Without even giving his enemy time to finish a breath, Riggs said, “It means nothin’.”

  “Liar.”

  Behind Ororis, Hades strode forward, his eyes locked with Riggs. He could tell that the pirate captain was lying.

  “You forget that I am the ruler of death’s realm. I am there to lead the dead to the afterlife. I know everyone who dies.”

  Grabbing Riggs by the coat and hauling him to his feet, Hades pushed him back against the mast and growled, “If the scar doesn’t mean anything to you, then does the name Philip Briggs mean anything?”

  At that, Riggs clenched his fists tightly. Hearing his father’s name again was enough to anger him. After everything that he had done, all the notoriety that he had won, his father still affected him.

  At Hades’ side, Ororis looked dumbfounded.

  “Philip Briggs? Who the hell is he?”

  Letting go of the restrained pirate, Hades answered, “This cretin’s father.”

  The god of death clutched the pirate captain by the neck, just barely keeping from strangling him.

  “Ain’t that right, Captain? He was the father you never wanted… a man so vile that he would carve a jagged wound into your arm. I know the memory of him still eats away at you from the inside. You want so hard to be able to escape from that, but I’m not going to let that happen. By the end of this day, you’ll be seeing your dear ol’ father in Hell.”

  As he spat the last word, Hades let go of Riggs, allowing the pirate to slouch back against the wood of the mast.

  The mermaid burst out laughing.

  “It looks like things never change. You must’ve been a failure then, and you’re a failure now.”

  “How is that any different from you?” asked Julia, just now fully gaining her senses.

  Ororis held her sword in front of her, her fangs slowly protruding from below her top lip. She did not like the girl’s tone.

  “What did you say?”

  Julia took a deep breath, saying, “As much as you try to hide it, you know you have your own demons, Ororis. Remember those pearls that used to hang around your neck?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the evil mermaid lied.

  “Of course you do,” said Julia, “You told me your mother went searching for pearls with you when you were young. Do you remember how those really felt? Or have you forgotten?”

  Before another word could escape Julia’s mouth, Ororis gave her a hard slap across the face. As the girl gingerly felt her cheek, she turned toward Riggs, and he could already see the red mark from where the mermaid had struck her.

  Angry, the pirate pulled against his chains, trying to reach Ororis. He wanted to wring her neck. He needed to.

  In seconds, Hades’ sword was pointed at the Captain’s neck, barely pricking his skin.

  “One more word out of your mouth, and I will gut you right in front of the person you care about most,” said the god.

  Defiantly, Riggs spoke, saying, “I have a feelin’ you’re goin’ to kill me regardless.”

  Staring down at the god, he asked, “Do you really want to know what happened in that cave, Hades? All ye need to do is ask.”

  Riggs hand fumbled at his side, reaching for where his sword had last been. To his misfortune, it was no longer there.

  “I already know what happened,” the god of death growled, “Ororis told…”

  “I wasn’t tryin’ to kill ye,” interrupted Riggs, “I could care less about power. Me ship and me crew is all I need.”

  For a few moments, it seemed like Riggs’ reasoning was actually working its way into Hades’ mind. The god seemed lost in thought as his blade rested precariously against the Captain’s neck. His eyes seemed to wander off as if he was trying to think.

  “Listen to me, Hades. You know I’m speakin’ the truth,” Riggs begged.

  Slowly, Hades peered back at his former ally. He seemed much more calm than he had been a few seconds earlier.

  “You say that all you need is your ship and your crew…” said Hades.

  “Aye,” said Riggs, sure that he had finally reached though to the god.

  “Good…”

  The tranquil look on Hades’ face suddenly turned to a mask of pure evil.

  “…then they will all join you in the ocean depths.”

  Without another word, Hades spun around, his back to Riggs as he walked away, leaving the Captain and his crew behind. The god of death had chosen his side.

  “No…” said Riggs, not believing what he was hearing, “No, Hades, you can’t do this to us.”

  The god said nothing, walking to the gangplank. With a jerk of his head, he ordered his frightful crew to make their way back to the Dutchman. While Hades was preoccupied, Ororis leaned close to Riggs and Julia, sneering as she did so. The pirate captain yanked on his chains, but there was no use.

  He could not get free.

  With a vicious smile on her face, Ororis whispered, “And now we come to the end of your journey, Captain. You s
hould have always known that I would defeat you.”

  “This is far from over, ye witch,” Riggs snarled.

  Looking down at the shackles that held the pirates, the mermaid said, “I doubt that.”

  At that moment, Riggs heard a noise above his head, like a fly fluttering in the air. If it was who he thought it was, then she would need to move quickly if she wanted to…

  “Crescere magna etrahere.”

  Without even so much as a look, Ororis shot a beam of magic out of her hand, hitting whatever had been hovering in the air. Sapphire fell to the ground in a heap, crashing into the deck.

  Hades and his crew ripped out their weapons once they heard the noise. The dazed fairy tried to wave her wand at Ororis, but the mermaid just grabbed her by the neck, hauling Sapphire to her feet.

  “Is this really the best that you can do?” Ororis asked, glaring at Riggs.

  “Let go of her,” the Captain snarled.

  The fairy struggled to breath as Ororis’s fingers clamped down on her throat. Her wings twitched as she slowly grew weaker and weaker. She was barely even able to hold onto her wand.

  Turning her attention from the Captain, Ororis stared down at the poor fairy. Riggs could see the wheels turning in the villain’s head. She already had a god on her side, along with his supernatural ship, crew, and powers. The evil smile on her face said it all.

  Why not force a fairy to do her bidding?

  Just as Sapphire was about to pass out, Ororis pushed her straight into the clutches of Hades’ crew. Instantly, a hooked chain and a scythe were trained on the fairy as she gasped for air. With a terrified look on her face, Sapphire tried to regain her breath.

  She was under their control now.

  As his crew dragged Sapphire aboard the Flying Dutchman, Hades shouted to Riggs, “Death is just the start of your pain. Ye’ll have an eternity waiting for you.”

  “Hades! Jones! Just give me a chance,” said Riggs, pleading with the god.

  His words meant nothing.

  Ororis peered back at Riggs, giving the pirate a mocking bow. Her plan was nearing its end, as was the Red Sky and its crew. In the past, no matter how hopeless the situation, it had always seemed like Riggs had found a way out of it.