"Oh, hey!" Madison smiled, jumping back onto the ship with her bags of rice and steak, all while Pip and Haylee looked up to her with surprised expressions, leaving Rayo to look away uninterested.
"You're ok!" Haylee grinned, rushing over to embrace her in her arms.
"Of course I am, I'll never leave you guys alone." Madison replied, hugging her back for a moment before walking over to Pip and lifting the small boy up into her arms. "How's my little man?" She asked, ruffling his hair and kissing his forehead lightly.
"I'm good," he smiled. "Miss Haylee brought home a bird." He said, pointing up towards Rayo in his cherry tree nearby, allowing Elez and Zenith to board the ship once more in the background.
"A bird?" Madison hummed, walking over to the tree and smiling up at Rayo. "Hello!" She called out to him, placing Pip down on the deck so that she could scale the tree and reach up to pet him.
"Be careful with him, I'll set sail." Haylee giggled, watching as Elez carried Kaylo below deck, while Zenith began untying the ship from the harbour. While the others were busy working, Madison was left to climb up into the tree and gently pet Rayo's feathers, causing the bird to instinctively relax despite giving her a shallow glare of disapproval.
"You're such a strong bird, beautiful talons and a strong crushing jaw." She smiled, complimenting his strength over his beauty and causing Rayo to turn away with an annoyed but accepting pout. "You're a perfect new crew member," she said, accepting him instantly as part of the family. This alone caused the well trained owl to stop and settle in, finally realising that maybe this place wasn't so bad.
"Where should we sail towards, Captain?" Zenith asked, standing out near the front of the ship as they escaped the crowded harbour.
"Continue the course to the Red Circle!" She smiled, leaping down from her perch in the cherry tree before picking up Pip once again and placing him on her shoulders. "To adventure!" She yelled, causing Pip to laugh happily and repeat her joyful phrase.
"Adventure!" He cheered, causing Zenith to smile at them both with a loving stare, completely captivated by just the simple sight of them laughing together like a family.
"We shall arrive at the city in four hours," Haylee announced, noticing the vast and massive whirlpools that covered the entire horizon. "But the journey will be different. Prepare for the ship enchantment!" She called out, causing the others to pack up and rush inside the captain's quarters, leaving Haylee to pull out her notes and begin the ship's enchantment. After only a few moments, the ship began to sink below the water, becoming unnaturally heavy but surrounding itself with an air bubble that protected the crew and the ship itself. As they sank, Pip and Madison stared out of the windows nearby, before finally building up the courage to walk out onto the completely dry deck that was protected by the magic bubble all around them.
The Red Circle was famously known to be a large section of the ocean surrounded by a long connected border of whirlpools and sea monsters. The whirlpools themselves were large enough to rip apart the largest of ships, and each and every one was about the size of a small island. So, naturally, the only way inside was to enchant the ship with an underwater sinking spell, one which was safe enough to protect the ship on its entire journey.
"Wow." Pip mumbled, looking around at everything in amazement, and watching as the tropical and ocean fish swam directly over their heads in the water above them.
"This is awesome!" Madison yelled, bouncing over to the edge and reaching her hand out into the cold ocean water in which they were submerged.
"Yes, it is very cool." Haylee smiled, letting go of the steering wheel as she approached the other crew members.
"It's magnificent," Zenith nodded, reaching out to grab some berries from nearby, before passing them out to the others while they watched the ocean sky like a beautiful documentary.
"Shouldn't you be driving?" Pip asked, looking towards Haylee with a curious tilt of his head, causing his ears to flop slightly as he did.
"The ocean currents are the safest way to enter the city. They will make sure that we avoid the ship-crushing whirlpools above us." She replied, ruffling his hair with a smile before stepping over towards Rayo and enticing him to land on her shoulder with a raspberry.
"I suggest we get some sleep," Zenith announced, looking towards Madison and noticing the open gash on her cheek from Haven's near fatal gunshot attack. "And you should get some medicine on that." He said, reaching out to gently brush his thumb under the bottom of her wound, causing her cheek to gently rest in the palm of his hand.
"Yeah." She smiled softly, still holding Pip atop her shoulders while she looked at him. "Off to bed." She giggled, lifting Pip off and holding him instead in her arms, before gently smiling at Zenith with a soft and innocent grin.
"I'll help you with your injuries," Zenith said, not realising that Haylee and Rayo were both watching from afar and growing tired of his pining.
"Thank you," she replied, walking away with Pip dozing off in her arms, the young boy still being mesmerized by his surroundings. Immediately, Zenith followed after her, leading them both down into his room before patching Madison up while she sang to Pip in his shallow sleep.
"Guess it's just you and me." Haylee smiled at Rayo, watching as the stubborn but loving bird rolled his eyes and relaxed on her shoulder, nuzzling his head up under her chin and dozing off into his own sleep. Haylee hummed and smiled softly, gently petting his feathers as she too walked below deck and rested during their few hours of travel.