The Lost Panacea [ ✓ ]

Chapter Six: Prince Alex Charming & Luciarella

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Day 2 -·- 5:00AM (Dawn)

Location: Isle of Eye

Mission: Operation Lost Panacea

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While I was worrying about my endangered head, my hand acted on its own volition. Funny how reflexes work. One minute, you're unsure as a novice goalie, the next minute, you're flying like you own a Nimbus Two Thousand.

A twist of my wrist and an upward flick of my sword made the dark creature growl in pain. At the same time, I duck to evade its glinting claws. The Maneless Bush Lion went flying over me (like the novice goalie I mentioned earlier), and was sliced into two bloody pieces whilst mid-air.

Oops, I almost forgot. And dead too.

Leaves rustled behind me. Anxiety, adrenaline and instinct almost caused my secret lover to lose her head to my sharp katana, but thanks to my sharper reflexes, she didn't.

Literally, my sword hand stopped short mid-arc, only a few inches from giving Lucia the same fate as that of the twitching Maneless Bush Lion.

"At least, make a human sound next time and not just scare me from behind."

"Guys aren't this dramatic as you are, Alex. I wasn't trying to scare you. On the contrary, I'm here to save you and Finn but it looks like you've got everything under control." said Lucia as she looked at the twitching body of the sliced creature.

"But you just appeared like a thief in the night behind me."

"Don't tell me you're Catholic like Craig," Lucia snorted. "May his soul rest in peace."

She was expecting me to say "Amen," cross my heart or act like the Pope but I didn't do any of those. Instead, I grabbed her and smooched her hungrily. I could feel her muscles tense, like she was trying to resist but then relaxed. I knew she wanted it. I have always known.

Stop. Reading. About. My. Romantic. Life!

"Where's Finn?" asked Lucia. She poked her head around like an agitated wild horse.

I shook my head slowly for a long time and said only one word, "Gone." I was too terrified to even search for Finn's corpse. The gory sight would haunt my dreams and hallucinations for the rest of my life.

I'd never seen Lucia cry. But that moment, she held her head and screamed the longest, high-pitched scream I've ever heard. Then she hung her head low and began to sob. Heavy sobs.

What could I do? What could I do? I get clueless with this kind of stuff, you see and I'm always at the receiving end. I pulled her closer and fondled her hair. "Sorry about that," I am doing great, right? Thumbs up. "I didn't know you were that close." Bloody heck, I can be disastrous with this cursed wad of meat I call my tongue.

Not minding my prattling, she rested her head on my chest. Awkward as it was — I mean — the height, I hugged back her head.

I've encountered mean people in this life but I've never met someone as mean as SJ Gallagher. Despite the fact that I've been putting up with his endless bunkums about archeological theories and his crazy scientific facts, he has never respected my privacy. Never for once!

What a destroyer of magical moments.

Lucia quickly detached herself from me when she noticed the Prof, standing hands akimbo, glaring at us. A moment later, a panting Tracy joined him, too breathless to even notice a thing.

"Well, well," SJ Gallagher began. "Prince Charming and Cinderella out on a moonful night ball, having some time away from the evil sisters and their witch of a mother?"

I marched towards him and towered over him as though he were a disobedient schoolboy. I have to admit, the gesture was rather disparaging. It belittled the fifty-four-year old Prof who was only five-foot-three tall. Meanwhile, I was built like a skyscraper with a whopping eight-foot-five when I'm not wearing my hiking boots. As of now, I'm eight-foot-seven. "Finn's dead all thanks to your bloody fault." I jabbed his forehead, channeling all the pain, anger and blame into him with my index.

"Don't you dare ask me to shoulder his death," said SJ Gallagher, swatting my finger away. "We all knew about what we signed for before venturing here. If you have a problem with the deaths, then go bother who you believe created death!"

"Atheist!"

"Hallucinating psycho!"

"Dickhead!"

"Blue-eyed nincompoop!"

"Learned pussyboy! Oops, pussyman, buhaha"

"Tall doof—"

"Stop!" Lucia and Tracy interrupted the Professor in unison.

"—us," said the Prof, completing his derogation.

When the yelling was finally extinguished, a cold wave of deafening hush washed over us all. In the short span of silence, I exchanged evil looks with the Prof who returned the same evil energy. I didn't want to attack an old man like him. I swear, I'll only give him a black eye, a broken nose and maybe a fractured suture. He must have forgotten I used to be a black belt in karate.

And thank you very much. I seldom bluff.

At least, I was almost a black belt.

"I'm so tired. I think we should all have some rest, sleep, dream...La-La land," suggested Tracy melodiously, yawning at the same time.

"No," three upset adventurers declined her idea profusely. She was the only lazybones among us. She needed rest for doing absolutely nothing. Ohh, she saved us once and I owed her that, if no one else.

"I think two should keep watch till daybreak while two should have some sleep. It's almost like the sun will be shining its rays upon us any minute. I'll keep first watch with — "

"— me!" Lucia interjected excitedly. As soon as she said this, six sleep-deprived eyes were on her. "What?? Why are you all staring? I'm not sleepy."

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