Prizes, Plunder, and Adventure

Chapter Four: Cutthroat Crew

Emmet sat on the cot, chewing on his lip as he tried to listen to what was going on above him. He could hear Metalbeard shouting, but the words were too muffled to make out by the time they reached him. Whatever the captain was saying, though, got quite the reaction from his crew. The prince startled as the Sea Cow began firing her cannons, and he rushed to the porthole to try to see what he could. He yelped and bounced in excitement when he recognized the ship across from them. He could hear fighting above, and ran back to the bars, straining to see the action. He laughed when he heard Rex's enthusiastic yelling, hurling creative insults at the pirate crew, and from the number of bodies hitting the deck that he could hear, it was likely Mayhem had been brought along as well. It sounded like absolute chaos up there, and it was no surprise when a few minutes later, he heard a familiar gait descending the stairs.

"Emmet," the captain sighed in relief.

"Uncle Alastar!" Emmet chirped in response.

"They haven't hurt you?"

Emmet shook his head. "I've done my best not to give them reason to."

"Good lad," Alastar praised, reaching through the bars to ruffle his hair. Emmet gave him a good-natured huff and raked his fingers through his hair to fix it again. "Give us a moment, we'll have you out of there in a jiffy-"

"Not likely," drawled another voice, and they glanced over to see Benny standing at the bottom of the stairs, sword drawn. He rushed forward, barely giving them time to draw their own blade. "Slippery snake, should've known you'd make straight for the brig!"

"You mean it didn't occur to you that our entire goal here is to rescue our prince?" Cary shot back, smirking at the pirate's ire. It was the only cutting remark he was able to get in. Metalbeard's first mate was more skilled with a blade than they were expecting, the pirate easily keeping them on their toes. They danced in circles around the brig, Benny chasing them away from Emmet's cell every time they got close again. He seemed to use a blend of different fighting styles, some they were familiar with, some they were not. Cary found himself enjoying the fight, impressed by the pirate's skill and grace. He stepped just so, and-

Cary, don't!

The shout shocked him into stumbling and he realized what he'd just been about to do. Trying to keep his face from burning in embarrassment, he barely jolted back into action in time, deflecting the blow just enough that they only lost a few strings of fringe from an epaulet.

Finally Cary stepped back and lowered their blade, scowling at Metalbeard's wily first mate. Above, it sounded like the pirates had turned the tide of the battle, and were now overwhelming his crew. It took them only a moment to reach a decision. They may not have succeeded in freeing the prince, but they had learned some valuable information. Thus far it seemed the pirates intended to keep Emmet in good health, so perhaps they could afford a retreat. "This isn't over," he promised, and Benny shuddered at the threatening note in his voice, cowering back just enough for them to sprint past and back up onto the deck. There was a sharp whistle, and the sounds of the fighting quickly died down. Benny blinked and shook his head, then turned a questioning stare onto Emmet as though looking for answers.

"What..." He shivered again. "What- what was that thing he did with his voice?"

Emmet only smiled at him, sitting back down on the cot and picking at the leftovers on his plate. Benny huffed annoyance at him before making his way back up to the deck. Metalbeard took one look at him, and motioned for him to follow him into the cabin. "Somethin' on yer mind, matey?" he asked as Benny closed the door behind them.

"That blasted captain Callaghan," Benny grumbled, folding his arms across his chest. "Nearly made off with the prince before I caught him, the slippery bastard. And then he... did this thing with his voice... You know me, Jonas, I don't scare easily, but I swear all he did was growl at me and it felt like I'd been dunked in a tub of ice!"

Metalbeard frowned in consternation. "Aye, and them two landlubbers he brought on... They be a dangerous pair. I don't think this be a mere skirmish like all the times before- either we sink him, or die tryin', this time."

Benny nodded. "He's backed off before, but now that the prince is on the line..."

"He won't be givin' up this time. Methinks we'll be needin' some help."

"Oh- don't tell me-"

Metalbeard grinned at him. "Aye. If he be bringin' new members on his crew, then I be bringin' her on for this."

Benny whooped and thrust a fist into the air. "That's what I'm talking about!"

Cary glanced up as his door opened, trying not to look like he'd been contemplating slamming his head against his desk. Thankfully Alastar had decided to be mercifully silent, rather than subject him to relentless teasing for falling prey to instinct. That had been too close a call.

"So that... didn't go the way I expected it would," Mayhem spoke up as she sat across the desk from the captains. Rex plopped himself down in the other chair, silently fuming.

"No," Cary agreed. "It didn't. But we know what you're both capable of. We trust you'll know how to handle them next time?"

Rex snorted at that. "Of course."

"Just please, no destroying the ship until after we have Emmet off of it."

"Obviously." He sat up straight in his chair. "We could have had them if not for your 'capture not kill' order, though."

Cary removed his tinted spectacles, golden eyes pinning the younger man to his chair with a challenging stare. "You would be fine with leading our prince through a sea of carnage?"

"...Alright, point made."

"Besides, pirates are supposed to be tried before they're hanged, right?" Mayhem asked. The captains nodded.

"I believe His Majesty would prefer the honor of passing sentence on them himself, for this offense."

"Not that I can blame him," Mayhem sighed. "Prince Emmet really was alright, though?"

"They hadn't yet harmed a hair on his head by the time we found him," Cary confirmed. "Though you know our prince- if this goes on for much longer, it's going to be impossible to pry him away from them."

"Kid always was too soft..."

"Nothing wrong with that," Mayhem countered. "I think he's going to be an excellent king, once it's his time."

"Why don't you two get some rest," Alastar interrupted. "We're going to need all hands on deck to finish repairs tomorrow, so we can catch up to the Sea Cow again. We won't let them get away a second time."

"Yes, sir," Mayhem agreed, getting up out of her seat. She reached over to squeeze their shoulder. "But only if you get some rest too, you can't stay up all night worrying about him."

Alastar smirked at her. "Watch us."

"Nuh uh." Rex stood, stepping over to Mayhem's side. "I'm with her on this. We need you to stay sharp too, we know how you guys get when you burn the candle at both ends. Don't need you losing that iron control and accidentally hypnotizing the crew, or something."

"Oh? Ganging up on us, are you?"

"We can take you," Mayhem nodded, grinning.

The captains seemed to weigh their options, and Alastar gave in with a sigh. "Alright, you win. No more plotting and fretting for the night."