Captain Vejita was pleasantly surprised that most of his former crew was alive. De Barlow has provided him with a few new faces to replace what he had lost of his crew, luckily enough. The only problem Vejita faced now was finding Caspian.
"Dammit. He could bloody be anywhere!" Vejita held his head in his hand, and leaned further back into his chair. "What's the use of having the fastest ship on the sea when it has no idea where to go? Damn you, De Barlow."
Mother Nature was not going to make his task easy either. The sky was black with storms and the waters were violent. But the captain hardly took notice of the turmoil commencing outside. He was dealing with internal wounds. And he wasn't necessarily speaking of the wounds that the devil had dealt him that fateful night either.
He just couldn't get the image of the duchess out of his head. He kept imagining that if he waited long enough, she would come storming into his cabin and yell at him for something. And after she was done giving him a piece of her mind, he would silence her by making love to her, putting her fast asleep on his bed like a child. He would never tell her this, but she took the most beautiful form when she was sleeping.
"Ah!" He cursed out loud. "When did I become so weak?" He slammed a fist down onto his desk. She could be anywhere, and the devil could be doing anything to her. Once he took the Sapphirine Orbs from her, he would have no further use of her. He would then kill her, mercilessly.
Vejita hissed, and squeezed his eyes shut, battling between feelings of worry and fury. He knew that he couldn't let his anger control him. He had to focus. Worrying wasn't going to find Caspian or Bulma either. He took deep breaths, and reached inside his desk for a cigar. Not finding one, he remembered that this wasn't his ship anymore.
"Maldición del dios todo al infierno!" he cursed, slamming his fist into the desk once more, creating a dent. " No matter what, I'll get her back. I'll do whatever it takes. I swear it."
Bulma felt as if she were floating. Floating above the earth, the sea, the sky, and the clouds. She didn't feel as if she were in touch with reality anymore. It was as if she was drowning in the air. She was vaguely aware of her surroundings. Vaguely aware of the noise and turmoil around her. Vaguely aware of the impending doom of her world.
"Wake up, Bulma! Bulma! Wake up!"
The voice. Who was it? An angel? It was masculine and soft at the same time.
"Bulma! C'mon! I know you aren't dead!"
Her body shook. The voice was shaking it, she realized. Oh, what she would give to drown herself in the ocean now. Half-alive and half-dead. No energy to carry on and all that was left was to await the end of the earth. Vejita was dead by now, she knew. Caspian had killed him, and he was going to kill more of her loved ones. What was the use?
"Bulma! You need to get up!"
'Help me.' she tried to tell the voice, but her mouth made a sound like a gurgling donkey. She hoped that this voice, whoever it belonged to, could give her solace and peace. She listened for it to speak once again, it was her only tie to reality now.
"Bulma."
She was being lifted, gently cradled in those masculine arms. After a few moments, she heard a heartbeat. A continuous, soft thumping. She felt tears fill her eyes and roll down her cheeks.
"Vejita…" she mumbled.
Fingers ran through her hair, brushing away the stray strands from her face. They were gentle, comforting hands. She was slowly coming to.
"Mmmmm…" she groaned, trying to focus on what was happening. Creaking. She was still on the ship. Warmth on her skin, she was clothed. Her stomach was nauseated.
All of a sudden, reality hit her like a ton of bricks, and she leaped from the voice's arms, and to the nearest corner of the room, emptying the contents of her stomach. She was surprised she had anything in her stomach to regurgitate.
After a few agonizing minutes, she fell to her knees, moaning like a child.
"It's okay, Bulma." A blanket rested on her shoulders. She clutched it close around her body, shivering and feeling weaker than a baby did.
"Who…" she inquired, trying to look into the face of her savior.
"Shh…" they whispered, kneeling down to pick her up in their arms again. The seated once again where she had woken. She could tell that they were in the bilges of a ship. The smell was atrocious and the air was damp.
"Are you feeling better now?" the voice gently asked.
"A little. Who is this?"
"An old friend."
"Who?"
"Heh. You'll see."
Silence ensued between the two, as Bulma's consciousness became more and more clear.
"I know your voice."
"You should."
"Why is it muffled?"
"Because of my mask."
"Mask?"
"I had an accident a few months back that left my entire body in pieces."
"How awful."
"I'm sure it's nothing compared to what you've been through, milady."
Bulma shifted in the man's arm's once again. A feeling of nausea overtook her body again.
"Ugh, what is this?" Bulma put her hands on her stomach.
The voice said nothing, but carried her back to the corner that she ran to earlier. As soon as he set her down, she released everything in her stomach again.
"This is so embarrassing." She murmured, wiping her mouth on the blanket.
"How long have you been doing this?"
"A few weeks now. I think that it's the way my body deals with stress. I feel trapped, just like an animal. I have nothing now and…" Tears fell down her face as she curled into a ball on the floor.
"You have nothing to be ashamed of." She was picked up in his arms again. "All is not lost."
"I'll never see my family again…or Vejita…and now Caspian has the jewels. What am I going to do?" she began to sob.
"Lady Bulma," the voice seated once more on the opposite corner. " Do you know why we fall?"
Fallen. Bulma hadn't really thought of herself in such a way, but the more she thought about it, the more true it seemed. She was fallen, at the very bottom from where she used to be. She had everything, money, men, power, and beauty. And now here she was, wrapped in a burlap blanket in the bilges of a ship, dirty, sick, and bawling her eyes out. Everything was taken from her. It was like fate pointed a finger at her when she was at her peak and said, "Ah, there you are. The happy one."
"So you can learn to pick yourself up again."
"I…don't know how. I've never been this miserable before."
"You have the courage in you to do so. I've seen it for myself. You weren't the girl you used to be when you started this journey. You're almost at the end, there is no need to give up now."
"Caspian has the jewels! Vejita is dead! What are you talking about? There is nothing I can do now! It's all over!"
"True courage is finishing something, even when you know that there is no chance of winning. Even if the odds are stacked against you, you try anyway. You may lose, but sometimes, those who try succeed."
Bulma was about to retort, but closed her mouth. He was right. She had to try. No one would want her to give up, especially not Vejita. She'd try for him. She'd go on and try for him, even if it killed her.
"You're right. I have to try."
"There's the Bulma I know."
"How do you know me?"
"You befriended me on a pirate ship a long time ago."
Thinking for awhile, it hit her.
"Quillian?"
"You got it, queenie."
She focused on the masked figure. But, when did he get so tall and grown up?
"You…can't be! You were just a kid when I met you!"
"And I wish you could remember me that way forever, but my master sent me here to bring you comfort."
"Master?"
"Yes. James."
"He's still alive?"
"Yes."
"… What's going on here?"
"Let's just say that I am your guardian angel. You need to sleep now and regain your strength for the coming battle. Please take care of yourself, Bulma. You, and your child."
"Child? What?"
"That is the reason you are so nauseated." He put his hand on her abdomen. "You are carrying Vejita's child."
"I'm WHAT?"
"You will understand in due time. Goodbye, Bulma. I'll always be looking out for you."
Darkness overtook the heiress once more, and she had a peaceful sleep.
Caspian chuckled softly as his ship approached London harbor. The stormy skies had given way to dark and cloudy day. It was a perfect ending to the world. London noticed that pirates were approaching their harbor, so they were sending out the Navy to intercept them.
How cute.
"Halt there! You may proceed no further! Surrender now, or be prepared to drown!"
"Heh. Fools."
Caspian opened his hands, and the Sapphirine Orbs glowed brightly in his hands. They floated in a circle above his hands, and the water around the navy ships began to whirlpool. It got stronger and stronger, until it completely consumed the Navy's ships. Nothing, not even a scrap of wood floated, on the to the surface.
"Ha. They do indeed live up to their name! All of London shall tremble at the might of Caspian, Lord of the Sea."
Cerberus popped up beside him, and growled lowly in response to his master.
"How is our lady guest, Cerberus?"
Cerberus looked up to his master, tail flicking behind him.
"Hn. I don't think that there's a need to kill her now. Vejita is free, I can feel it. He'll be arriving here within no time. And once he is, we'll use his wench as his weakness to kill him. Everything is going a lot easier than I had planned."
Cerberus just purred in response.
Vejita couldn't head back toward London fast enough. Why hadn't he thought of it sooner? That's exactly where the devil would to go lay siege. Britain was the superpower of the world, it would be perfect for him to take out the crown there.
The only thing he knew would ruin Caspian's plans would be the fact that he wasn't dead.
Suddenly, powerful waves and heavy blasts of wind attacked his ship.
"What the hell?"
His crew was attempting to regain control of the Stealthwing, but they were slowly losing it.
"Captain! Orders sir!" Nappa inquired.
"Abandon ship and head for shore!"
"Sir?"
"You heard me! Get to it or lose your lives!"
"Aye aye, sir!" His first mate yelled at sailors the captain's orders. At first in disbelief, they stood and stared at Nappa. But he became intimidating enough for them to listen. They quickly loaded in the longboats, with one left for him to use.
"Come lively, sir! There be no time to waste!" Nappa shouted, lowering the last longboat to shore.
Vejita gazed at the next ship he would lose then followed his first mate.
"Sir, where will we be headed in this storm?"
"Land. We're close to it and so is Caspian. This torrent is his doing, and we have to find him."
"We're going on a heroic mission, sir? To save the world?" Nappa asked as the boat was lowered into the sea. Vejita shot his first mate a glare.
"Just row the boat, you idiot."
"Aye, sir."
And as hard as it was, Nappa rowed. Eventually the gigantic waves overtook their small boat and crushed it to pieces. Vejita was sucked down into the ocean. He had lost sight of Nappa, but right now he didn't care. He needed to save himself first. He regained his composure and threw off a few clothing items that were weighing him down, save his sword. Swimming to the top to take a few short breaths, he dove underwater once again to head as quickly as he could for London.
You guys rock so hard. Don't worry, I'm gonna update sooner than you think. Summer school is over as of this Thursday, so there will be new stories and updates!
I LOVE ALL OF YOU!