Pirates and the Golden Treasure ch.03

     The captain’s cabin aboard Cata’s massive ship, looks as one might expect of a wooden boat. A large desk cluttered with books and charts, a map on the wall of Aesperia’s sea ways, and large grid windows behind the desk.

 

   “Mr. Boarders,” says Cata as Mr. Boarders closes the door behind them, “I do believe by now the computer has finished its analysis.”

 

    She opens a normal looking closet, into a normal looking…well normal if one were to forget that the captain isn’t human…and female, wardrobe of men’s shirts and slacks. The only normal outfits, those Cata actually wears are kept in a dresser hidden way elsewhere on the ship, in her true room as she calls it, hidden from even her crew in fact. As far as anyone save for her first mate is concerned she lives in the captain’s cabin, a fact that does not escape her given the events earlier in the day with the pass-card she knows was in her pocket when she went to rest in her room.

 

    In the back of the closet is a mirror, on the right side of this mirror she places her paw of a hand, a flash or red light around it indicating an

activation of some mechanism, followed by the mirror fading away as though it didn’t even exist. The two of them step inside, the mirror reforming as quickly as it vanished behind them, showing no trace of this hidden space.

 

    The floor shakes briefly, before the hidden chamber begins its descent. At stopping the wall opens as twin doors, the doors of an elevator, a device unknown on this world. The room they enter stands out from the rest of the ship, a darker room lined with large mechanical devices and screens. Mr. Boarders sits in the cushioned chair before the one labeled “cell B12”.

 

    He scans forward on the tape showing Rhulan, Hollia, and LinLin resting,

talking, and finally sleeping, the tape ends at record time 4am, a phrase coming up “Genetic scan initiation”.

 

    “I don’t want to say I told you so Captain,” says Mr. Boarders, “but we really should have put secondary cameras in the cells for this part wouldn’t override the video function.”

 

    “You forget,” she says, “Mr. Boarders, but this is Aesperia, some of these people have what they call specialty powers that never come to the surface in their primitive way of living, abilities such as machine puppetry, and tech diving. The chances may be low, but I will not be one of those captains who is caught off guard by some tech advanced super-human suddenly taking over their ship by their powers suddenly awakening. I have seen too many weird things on this world to chance it. No one hidden camera per cell is enough, the scan coming on when they would naturally be asleep in a cell most can’t escape is just fine…besides.”

 

    She points at the camera as the scan time ends at 5am to show the trail end of their captives leaving, a brief hint of a coat end tells her someone helped them, “I was right, someone helped them.”

 

    With a broad, terrifying smile and knife eyes she demands, “read me back the scan Mr. Boarders.”

 

    “yes…captain.” he says with a nervous smile.

 

  “Scan 1: the first scanned was the small creature, the scan says…well this is odd.”

 

    “The scan this is odd, Mr. Boarders?” she says eyeing him.

 

   “Oh, no, its just, it says the small creature is a genuine dragon, maybe.” He says dumbfounded.

 

   Cata narrows her eyes as she pauses the image of the three of them exiting, with the brief image paused of what looks to be a coat, and perhaps part of the hand, and maybe a little tuft of brown hair from their benefactor, all things not helping Peter’s case.

 

     “a dragon?” she says, “Well, well, we certainly have some strange guests going after our treasure don’t we?”

 

    Mr. Boarders hand stroking beard says, “These read outs, ma’am, believe it or not but it gets weirder.”

 

   “Well?” she says

 

   “Sorry, Captain, it’s just, well first I can emphatically say Mr. Jones is not our thief.”

 

   “really?”

 

   “yes, there was a male who entered at the last moment of the scan, his read out is 100% Aesperian male, specialty power is listed as fire.”

 

   “Then, I suppose after this we better let Peter out of the cell, still needs to answer for being on deck though. But I fail to see how that’s stranger than a real, none-mutant beast, factual dragon hatchling being on board my ship.”

 

   “That was only first, captain. The scans of the two women are what I meant, and something else about the dragon.”

 

   “Then get too it, Mr. Boarders, what can be so strange about two women who needed some man to rescue them.”

 

   “Not sure they needed him captain. If these read outs are correct, which being the man who built our computer I can tell you they are, then the only reason they left quietly was for stealth.”

 

   Cata’s expression is one of frustration, clearly saying “get on with it.”

 

   “The first woman,” says Mr. Boarders, “The small white magician one, she is not pure Aesperian, her genetic scan shows Aesperian, Kuhrai, and one other we don’t have on file.”

 

   Cata thinks briefly, focusing on some internal pain, something from her own past, “Aesperian and…Kuhrai…rrrrr.”

 

    She cracks her neck, “I see, a human Aesperian no doubt, and a Kuhrai, and…something else”

 

    She cocks her head back brought back to reality, “that we don’t have on file?! How in hell fire’s name is that possible?”

 

   “I don’t know captain, but its right there.” He shrugs, “but as weird as that is, her specialty can’t be read as a result, the best we have is perhaps 55% chance of it being wind related. Seems magic is her stronger point.”

 

  Cata says laughs softly, “Don’t think about it too hard Mr. Boarders,” she sighs internally laughing at her own unfounded jealous thoughts, “this Aesperia, I suppose it can’t be helped, the Kuhrai seem to like mating with what ever they can find, a Kuhrai with a human, a human coming in later should be no surprise. As for our unknown, this world is filled with humanoid races, we already know many can breed with other races. No doubt some ancestor of this girl’s at some point screwed some monster or another.”

 

    Mr. Boarders shrugs, he knows better than to interrupt her self reassuring rant, he knows all too well about her past, about her parents, a subject that could very well earn him a scar if he brought it up.

 

   *rrrar* “Mr. Boarders, I don’t think this girls is who you meant could have broken out on their own, or the small dragon. So rather than continue this…as you say…dramatic pause…no…foreshadowing…no…what ever this is, building up to the big news thing. Just tell me what’s no damn special about that dark sorceress.”

 

    “uh…yes..yes, yes captain.”  He zooms in all her for dramatic effect.

 

  “This woman’s genetic scan, shows she is Aesperian, but, like a super-Aesperian, a genetic profile showing regeneration, along with incredibly durability, and adaptive abilities. Yet this isn’t her specialty, her specialty is reading out as…celestial…” he shrugs.

 

   “Celestial?” says Cata cocking her head like confused dog, “what the hell does that mean.”

 

   “Sorry Captain,” he says, “Power Cosmic, Quantum Manipulation, true magic…its like its trying to say she has god powers or something, but the genetic profile is Aesperian, its confusing the equipment. Like I said, a Super-Aesperian, like she has moved beyond specialty power limiting her magic like the others we have had on the ship, crew, and prisoners, she is magic with magic.”

 

   “What ever.” Cata says, “She didn’t leave the cell on her own in any case. I want to know how the hell this other guy got past all my sensors, including my personal ones.” *rrrrrrr* “stealth” she growls, “The last time I limit budget just to look like the ship belongs on this planet. When we get back home I want the halls and deck fixed with stealth detectors.”

 

   “Yes captain,” says Mr. Boarders, sure not to bring up that he too had mentioned back when they first commissioned the ship to have those, but Cata insisted on minimizing technology despite her access to enough hardware that the ship could easily have looked like a typical Aesperian ship on the outside and been a Kuhrai war-driver on the inside. Heck he figures as over-sized as she made the ship they might as well have, not like it could draw any more attention from the local pirates.

 

    “Now Mr. Boarders!” she yells out drawing his attention with her commanding voice, “Rouse the crew, we are going ashore. You’re right, these people aren’t like our usual adventurers, there is no doubt these unusual characters have come to Los Rodos for the very same reason we have! Magic…with magic, a dragon, some mutt-girl, and a sneak running around, bailing them out so as not to wake us, I have no doubt now…no one uses me for a free ride to MY treasure!”

 

    Mr. Boarders looks at the read outs one last time, focusing on the dragon, “Maybe the computer is malfunctioning,” he thinks to himself, “How could a dragon also be the daughter of that white magician?”

 

   Not too far away, about thirty miles maybe, from Cata’s confused ranting the trio…quartet…what ever one calls three people and a dragon, are searching. Hollia had dreamed of this moment, a hot tropical jungle, the sun beating down its beams between the leaves illuminating the forest floor’s clearings, the wetness, beasts and monsters waiting around in every shadow. Of course this is not a jungle, it is summer so yes it is hot and muggy in this mosquito infested swampy forest with its many hills, hidden creeks, and nests of biting flies and muck. Much to everyone’s delight amongst the myriad of spells Hollia knows is an insect repellent spell. Even Rhulan doesn’t have one like that in her arsenal.

 

 

     “Okay,” says Rhulan as they near a strange crack in the ground going down in a black abyss, “Hollia, lets try that levitation spell again, this time with out a sandy beach or floor to soften your fall.”

 

    Rhulan floats effortlessly over the three foot gap. Looking down Hollia swears somewhere deep down there is an odd hum, and a green and yellow blinking light, a trick of the eyes perhaps, she can’t be certain.

 

   *woooooooo….” Scrags has dropped a pebble into the hole listening for hit, *tik…clik…*

 

   “huh,” he says, “must have hit the sides on the way down, can’t be certain.”

 

    *huuuh-hewww* with a deep breath Hollia says, “Mr. Scrags, no offense but that really isn’t helping…okay I can do this.”

 

   LinLin floats from around her shoulders to over next to Rhulan, smiling her cute little canine like smile.

 

   Hands out to her sides, a look of focus on her face, more intense than before with the boat, Hollia levitates into the air, and up, and up.

 

    “Hollia.” Says Rhulan, “you want to go forward not up, you’re crossing a crack in the ground with this lesson not picking coconuts.”

 

  “Coconuts?” Hollia’s eyes snap open realizing she is twenty feet in the air, but despite this sudden fear she doesn’t fall, no she just freezes in the air.

 

  “Okay, Hollia,” says Rhulan with a smile, “Now just come down to me and LinLin. Come on.”

 

   Rhulan’s beckoning arms, as though calling her in for an embrace cause Hollia to blush and while looking directly at Rhulan her body moves of its own accord, no spell, no hand movement to direct action, just floating directly down right in front of the taller woman.

 

   “Good work Hollia,” she says with a wide smile of encouragement and patting her on the shoulders, “You’re a natural at flying, you just need confidence and clear goal of where you want to go.”

 

   Hollia nods, steps to the side, and LinLin licks her face startling her.

 

   Scrags just shrugs, “This is going to take awhile if we are going to be doing these lessons things along the way.” With a simple hop he’s over the division in the earth, spitting back into as though defying it to be worth their time.

 

   “Scrags,” says Rhulan hands on hips, “Hollia is still a student, and I am still her tutor. I said I would continue to teach her, and I will, with my vast knowledge she will learn real world skills, spells, and history, she would never learn back in Stratalia.”

 

   “That aside,” he says, “Do we have a clue where on this island this golden oracle is supposed to be? I mean really, even the guild has only heard of a golden treasure supposedly buried in the tunnels beneath this island. But the whole damn underground is booby trapped by surviving Rhulan Empire tech.”

 

   “Its not Rhulan Empire tech,” says Rhulan coldly, “I spread that rumor myself actually to keep the local kings out of it. My own research deduced it’s a self repairing pre-Aesperian structure, the older tunnels are all technology maintaining its self, the younger tunnels either dug out by those robots for material and local creatures using them to live in. I don’t believe our oracle is down there. If anything she’s in the center of the island near the lake.”

 

   Hollia and Scrags are both confused, but Rhulan doesn’t have time to explain before, “tee, hee, I see you know more than you should lad. I can’t let you get in the way of Betty’s destiny.”

 

    “What the hell was that?” asks Scrags, blades drawn and blazing faster than the blink of an eye.

 

  “meeee,” says the high pitched somehow cute, yet equally annoying to the ears voice.

 

 

   From behind a bush comes a most unusual sight, a three foot tall black hooded robed figure. The face can’t be seen, or the feet. The hands are black gloves with oversized sausage shaped fingers, with the pinky missing. In this little creature’s right hand it holds an equally tiny scythe.

 

   “A reaper?” asks Hollia materializing the white staff she had compressed in the mystic space up her sleeve.

 

   “Maybe.” Says Rhulan stepping forward, “What are you, and what do you want?”

 

    “I am the Adorable Death Bringer, tee hee, my employer wants Betty to meet the oracle, my employer gave her a map that will take her right to it.”

 

   The little creature wags her left finger as if to scold, “I didn’t think anyone else knew anything about her, but you lady, you do. I can’t have that, tee hee.”

 

    The Adorable Death Bringer floats into the air, “Sorry, but you have to die, tee hee…”

 

   She swings her scythe, “Death Arc!” a green arc of energy flies from the blade coming for them.

 

   “Spirit Shield!” yells out Rhulan erecting a light blue barrier between them and the incoming attack. To everyone’s surprise, including Rhulan’s the attack doesn’t deflect, instead it’s absorbed by the barrier, turning it green briefly before fading back to blue, but a darker blue, a stronger barrier. The power has been absorbed and used by Rhulan’s own spell.

 

    A growl, if it can be called a growl, escapes from the small creature calling its self the Adorable Death Bringer. It fades away, fleeing the battle as it were, just as voices can be heard up ahead. Walking ahead peering through some vegetation they can see down the cliff side a figure wearing an orange pirate’s outfit with several small foot to three foot tall fuzzy and mouse like pirate costume wearing creatures around this figure.