"Haylee!" Zenith called out towards the ship, hoping that the girl had returned and was waiting for them atop the deck. "We need to leave! Now!" He yelled, holding Kaylo close as the boy slowly slipped away into a blood loss sleep.
"I just finished the enchantment, what's wrong?" She asked, peeking her head over the side of the ship, only to gasp in horror at the sight of Kaylo.
"A Colonel beat up Kaylo real bad, we need a doctor." Madison replied, jumping up onto the deck of the ship but refusing to place Pip down. Zenith nodded in agreement as he too stepped up onto the deck and ran below deck to start Kaylo's treatment.
"Let's get this ship moving." Elez said, noticing the army of Navy soldiers that came rushing towards the dock.
"I second that," Haylee panicked, rushing to steer the ship away from the harbour. This time, instead of sinking lower towards the ground, the enchantment lifted their ship up towards the surface of the water, allowing them to float effortlessly away from the underwater city. Just like before though, the crew was able to awe at the beauty of the ocean all around them, despite the sinking dread achieved by Kaylo's current state.
"I'll never let you go again," Madison mumbled to Pip, sitting down by the fox boy's cherry trees while she held him close and gently pet his hair.
"It's not your fault; I'm not hurt. I'm ok." Pip smiled up at her weakly, still shaken by the battle which had commenced.
"....Yes but, Kaylo is." She muttered, leaning back against the bark of the tree behind her and sighing loudly while she looked up at the moonlit sea above them. "It should have been me to take that hit," she said.
"Don't say that Captain," Haylee replied, stepping over towards Madison's side as soon as the ship was guided solely by the ocean currents. "We can't predict the future and we can never change the past, the only thing we can do is prepare during the present." She explained, sitting down and smiling softly at Pip. "We shall move forwards, find a doctor, and get Kaylo healed. Then, we learn from our mistakes and become the greatest pirates on the seas." She smiled, earning a soft and happy smile from Madison as well.
"Yeah, thank you Haylee." She said, standing up from her place on the ground and walking off in search of Zenith, leaving Haylee to pilot the ship alone in the dark moonlight above. The crew had been in the underwater city just long enough to allow night to fall, so navigating the dark ocean ahead was more difficult than most would assume.
Below deck, Kaylo was barely hanging on to consciousness, slipping in and out of speech as his body slowly shut down from all of the wounds he had acquired. Zenith had tried his best to bandage all of the gashes and cuts, as well as applying cream to his burns. But he wasn't a doctor. He knew nothing about true healing magic, and without someone who did, Kaylo would surely perish.
"How is he?" Elez asked, stepping inside the room while Zenith looked up with a surprised glance. Slowly, he turned away before replying.
"I don't think he'll survive more than a few weeks. He had broken bones that I can't fix, and too many wounds that will leave him useless if he was to survive." Zenith sighed.
"So we have a week to find a doctor, I'll make sure it happens." Elez replied, sitting down beside Kaylo's bed before turning towards Zenith. "We should stop competing for Madison," he began. "We both know this could have been avoided is one of us left immediately to follow her…"
"Yeah," Zenith muttered, looking down upon their beaten friend. "I went with her this time, you go with her next time. Then we keep switching like that. Or whenever it's appropriate we can both go." He replied.
"Sounds good to me," Elez nodded, dipping a cloth into a bowl of warm water before he gently placed it atop Kaylo's forehead. "You should go and find Madison though, she's looking for you, and Pip probably needs your comfort as well." He said, leaning over Kaylo as he fixed up some of Zenith's shabby bandages.
"Keep an eye on him," Zenith nodded, standing up slowly from his chair and walking off to comfort and embrace Madison and Pip, leaving Elez alone with Kaylo in his room.
"...Is that you… Elez?" Kaylo muttered, his eyes fluttering open as he looked up at the Angel who was leaning over him.
"Yes, it's me. Save your energy, you don't need to speak." Elez smiled gently, removing the cloth from Kaylo's forehead and replacing it with fresh warm water.
"I never got to tell you…" Kaylo began, his voice soft and weak. "The reason why I was so nervous around you and Zenith… Was because I'm gay." He explained, referring to his missed chance at an explanation beforehand.
"Oh," Elez replied, backing away slightly to try and reduce his chances of feeling awkward.
"It's ok though," Kaylo stuttered, his eyes filling with tears. "I'm going to hide it, and not tell anyone. I just wanted you to know so you didn't feel weird around me… But you probably hate me now…" He cried, his body shaking from sorrow and pain.
"I could never hate you," Elez replied, reaching out and gently petting his hair. "You are special and amazing just the way you are. There's no need for you to hide it from others, because we will accept you and love you no matter what." He explained, leaning down to hug him with as little contact as possible to reduce his pain. "Don't you dare change who you are just because others are different. Being unique is the greatest thing you could ever be." He smiled, rubbing Kaylo's hair before he sat up straight and continued to change the water inside the warm cloth atop his head.
"Thank you…" the boy muttered, gripping the sheets as he forced himself to stay awake, attempting to push past the pain that coursed through his body.
"No problem, now get some rest. I'm going to take care of you, no matter what." Elez hummed, singing a song softly under his breath as his gentle lullaby slowly relaxed Kaylo's mind and allowed him to drift off into a comfortable and well-deserved sleep.
Over the next few hours, others followed into the land of dreams. Including Pip and Madison who had drifted off in the arms of Zenith, before being carefully placed into the Captain's bedroom by the swordsman himself.
It had been a long day, and everyone was tired and upset by their current situation, but as Haylee sailed up into the moonlight and revealed their ship to the fresh open air, she was dumbfounded to find that their luck was continuously running thin.
The underwater city in which they had just escaped from, was the only official entrance into the Red Circle. On top of this, a lighthouse had once been professionally built directly on the opposite side of the border, guiding ships around the dangerous island on which it sat. But unfortunately for the Nightshade Pirates, this lighthouse was nowhere to be seen, meaning that Haylee was sailing blindly through the dark nighttime oceans.
Naturally, it didn't take long for the entire crew to be awoken by the distinct sound of metal and wood crashing into land.