(This chapter is twice the normal length as it concludes a small mini section of the story. I didn't want to separate it into two parts because it ruins the flow of the scenes to come. This should be about 3000 words long and next chapter will be a drastic POV shift. To start the next part of this arc.)
Will would occasionally steal glances at Apathy. She noticed but waited for him to gain the courage to speak up.
"Why are you helping me?" She looked at him and chuckled then yawned.
"It's because I like you, I don't know why. I feel like something amazing will happen if I follow you. You may not believe me but you popped up at the right time anyway . I was looking to get off this dump after I completed my advancement"
She then turned to face the road her eyelids slightly drooping.
Will thought about what he said and slightly believed her. He believed that weird bath she did might have been the ritual required to complete her 'advancement'.
"Can you explain this witchcraft thing to me?"
he asked trying to understand the things he has experienced these past few days.
She lazily said
"I don't know" before he could reply she continued.
"I only know of 4 realms of witchcraft. The realm of the Sun, Night, Luck and Sleep"
Will made a mental note of this.
"I don't even know what happens past realm 8. I'm a realm 8 Dreamer of the Sleep Realm. I know that sounds confusing but that's just how it's said"
Will gazed at her intensely waiting for her to continue.
" I have no idea what my next realm is or how to advance to it. My family only left me the corresponding items and notes regarding realm 9 and 8 before I was left to fend for myself. It was a coming of age gift"
Will thought about how confusing the naming system was. You could be in the same Realm but be of a different realm? This made his head hurt and it would take some time for his mind to wrap around it.
Seeing Will's silence, she looked forward and said something shocking.
" In the world of witchcraft pretending to know as much or more than your opponent can keep you alive. Everyone is out for someone else's head. Literally"
Will looked a bit confused but he still nodded his head. Will noticed her point at something.
"You see that branch over there with the fruit on "
He slowly nodded and looked at the branch
"Since you apart of the luck realm you should know about your abilities. They feel as if their melded to you since birth; like an extra arm. Now you've been using them unconsciously because you don't understand them. Now that you do try and affect the fruit on that branch"
Will thought about all his experiences until now.
And a string of information flooded into his mind.
His first superpower wouldn't really be anything amazing he just becomes lucky at things he does. Almost like having constant beginners luck. The second ability was that he could influence the outcomes of small events that would eventually come to pass. For eg: If he bet on head's while flipping a coin then he could influence the results as the coin must land on head's eventually.,
Lastly he could cause small coincidences to occur. He thought back to the lady getting her hands stuck and thought it was a good example
He then thought about increasing the odds of the fruit inevitably falling of the tree.
He was extremely hungry. He hadn't eaten for another two days and was almost out of adrenaline.
He held his hands out towards the branch. His eyes glowed accentuating their golden highlights. The fruit on the tree 'coincidentally' fell into his palms as they drove below it. He sighed in relief and looked at Apathy looking for praise only to be met with a shocked stare.
Apathy watched this happen with eager eyes but she never expected him to get it first try. She was expecting to slow down and repeat this action a few times at least.
She could tell that he was talented. Talented enough to be one of the stingy archbishops of a church just by the interaction in the store. Stopped the priest's hands from moving was the best thing to do in that situation.
Apathy quickly regained her composure before letting out a yawn and continued to look ahead.
After an unknown amount of time. She arrived at a fork in the path but as Will was going to ask which way to go she did a sharp turn into the forest and the small carriage loudly cackled on the rocky forest floor. The horses didn't seem to mind. It was as if they'd done this before.
Looking around , Will noticed a crudely made path that seemed to be frequently replenished with dirty and small rocks.
Before he knew it he had arrived at a small scale wooden dock.
The docking area was large enough to fit a few medium sized ships and a dozen smaller ones. The people here seemed a bit different. They looked like pirates.
Some wore bandanas, eyepatches the whole shebang. They all dressed in random assortments of clothing they deemed seaworthy and comfortable.
Will looked at his clothes which hadn't been washed in a few days and smelt himself. He was immediately met with a scent so foul it could make alley rat shrivel up.
He then looked at Apathy who paid him no mind her eyes looked incessantly for something.
The carriage stopped at the very edge of the dock and paused in front of a vessel. The sides of the vessel were painted blue and had white stripes on the sides.
The ship was about 40 feet long and could carry at least 10 people. The deck was clean and there was an indoor bridge which seemed to be decorated with different sea related items.
They both hopped off the carriage. Apathy patted Will's shoulder.
" Get unpacking"
He didn't voice any complaints and just started unpacking the bags onto the deck of the boat.
Meanwhile Apathy was knocking incessantly at the door to the bridge. A quiet whimper was heard followed by the sounds of things crashing. The sound of the crash startled Will. He looked over and his eyebrows were immediately raised.
A thin man…Well thin was an understatement. He looked as if he had eaten less than Will for his entire life but that was clearly untrue as the mess in the bridge depicted otherwise.
The man slowly peaked upwards as he stares at the figure of Apathy above him. His cheeks blushed a little before he was curb stomped by her black heels. The door slowly creaked open displaying the bridge.
The area in the bridge was covered in empty containers of food and plastered with different trinkets. Will chucked at the sight of the kraken figurine sitting on the dashboard.
This was besides the point.
Seeing who the person knocking was he slowly walked out and Will immediately felt deceived because the hunched figure was a giant. His build was at least 6'5. When he smiled he had razor like teeth that resembled a shark and his deep blue hair flowed down to his shoulders like waves.
His outfit was however really classy for a seaman. His clothes weren't ripped in any spots and he lacked the natural ornaments of a normal pirate instead they were replaced with black trousers and a loosely buttoned white shirt. His ears were pierced with an array of gemstones and his above his eyebrow was a small tattoo of a jolly roger, He lacked any facial hair so Will assumed he was around 19 years old.
However, when he spoke it caused Will to internally cringe. His voice was extremely soft and Apathy seemed more manly than him.
"Wha….wha…what do you guy want from me?"
He looked down at Apathy with hopes in his eyes that she'd let him return to the place he'd truly belong. The floor.
Apathy smiled like this was his usual behavior around her. She yawned deeply before saying.
"Davie, we are wanted by the church so now we need a sick new ride to escape. You owe me. Remember?"
He looked at her for a moment and seemed to regain his masculinity before shrinking again and replying.
"How far up the tree did you b…b..bark"
"Bishop."
She said without wasting any breath to explain why or how. At the single word she uttered. He quickly began to prepare the ship for departure as he knew this was something completely out of their league.
10 minutes later…Will who had gotten off the ship and walked back to the carriage sighed and as his hands touched the last bags it was greeted with a hand wearing a glove with the emblem of the first quarter moon.
Will looked up and saw a beautiful looking woman with striking black hair and starry black eyes. Her voice sounded like the wind on a moonlit night it was even slightly effeminate. Her clothes resembled the night with a black Victorian suit and tie with a slightly lighter colored waistcoat.
"Hey don't leave so soon…let me help you with that."
Her smile seemed enchanting and it make one involuntarily relax. Will accepted the woman's help and walked ditzy towards the boat with a twinkle in his eyes. The lady walked closely behind him with a permeating smile.
20 minutes previously at Loana Dock...
Rochelle periodically glanced at the time piece she had just removed from her breast pocket. It was just after noon. It had been just over 10 minutes since they had made the local law enforcement lead them towards the dock and there was still no sign of them. This made her worry.
All of a sudden a quiet knock was heard from the inside of the carriage. Rochelle immediately pulled open the curtains and looked at the beautiful woman seated inside.
She looked towards her with starry eyes.
" Why haven't they arrived yet?"
She could not respond and upon seeing this the woman stopped her from finding an excuse. She raised her hand and muttered some unintelligible words and said
"If you have something that they own or have recently touched place it in my hand"
All three of them looked at each other but were at a loss for words they didn't have any objects but suddenly Stell placed her hand into the woman's palm.
She glanced at Stell not needing an explanation as if she had read her mind. Her eyes suddenly rolled back into her skull and she started chanting in an unintelligible tone.
Her eyes began to leak grey fluid almost as if her brain was bleeding. When she came too she slowly wiped away the fluid. The fluid left a streak of glitter like substance on her nose bridge making the disturbing scene quite comical.
She then took a piece of paper out of her pocket and unfolded it. It was a small map of the island. She held her index finger above the map and the grey fluid that he wiped away coagulated on the tip of her finger and then mysteriously the instead of falling straight downwards the fluid swerved in the air and landed in an unmarked part of the forest.
She slowly handed the map to the trio and said
"Tell the clergy to return to the church and assume normal operations. You three follow me"
She walked out of the carriage and without warning began to sprint, supposedly in the direction of the marked area. Her steps were extremely light as if she wasn't even touching the ground his body looked like a fast moving blur to most people who were even quick enough to react to it.
They immediately dismissed what they saw as some unknown creature chasing some sort of prey. After all no human could run at speeds like that.
Upon reaching the forest tree line she jumped in the air.
His body shot forward like a bullet, only occasionally falling back down to the earth to jump again. Her clothes fluttered in the wind. Trailing fairly far behind her was Rochelle and her squad. They were drifting from tree to tree.
Back at the hidden dock. Apathy felt something odd and she looked out for Will who should have come back by now. The bridge of the ship was relatively organized now and one of the rooms in the below deck cabin was filled to the brim with Apathy's things. Will's room was relatively empty as he didn't own anything other than the compass and the stolen wallet.
Apathy looked for while on the docking area and saw that he was now headed towards her but she saw a figure next to him walking slightly behind him. Will seemed at ease with the woman behind him and she was even carrying a small suitcase full of things.
She immediately knocked on the bridge door three times. This was an emergency signal that she had come up with if something went wrong. The inside of the bridge lit up and the boat sails were released and the slow clanking of the anchor was heard.
Seeing this the man frowned and she walked ahead of Will. Will then regained some clarity for a brief second due to the man's haste. Will's internal monologue got extremely loud.
'Why did she pass me? She seems to be in a rush to get to our ship. Why? Why did I let her help me? I don't even know this lady'
Will's eyes twinkled for second and the 'stars' in his eyes broke and he realized that something was very wrong.
Will then shouted. "She's dangerous"
Apathy had already begun to react her eyes grew deep and her voice immediately became more soothing making one feel the need to sleep.
"Stranger aren't you tired?"
Her words were met with a slight drop in alertness but she quickly recovered and continued to walk towards them at a brisk pace.
Will immediately sprinted past her unimpeded by the lady who even let the bag be ripped out of his grasp.
Will then hopped on the boat and at the same time the anchor was up and the boat began to depart when all of a sudden the hull of the boat began to creak.
They looked towards the woman who was holding out her palm in a motion as if she wanted to crush something.
Seeing this Apathy immediately told Davie to floor it. Another set of smaller sails unfurled. The wind catching these made the ship try to sail even more leading to the strain on hull to get even stronger as it was being pulled unevenly.
The expression on the woman's face became even more solemn as a crescent moon appeared in her eyes and as if she was the epicenter a for a 50 m radius the entire area went dark almost as if the sun had been eclipsed by the moon. A starry night sky with a Crescent moon hung high above them from their perspective.
Everyone suddenly began to feel extremely uneasy and uncomfortable. Some even felt scared and alone even with their closest comrades right beside them.
In random location in the area of influence something strange began to happen.
A person began to scream and their bodies seeming decayed into a water like substance leaving only the brain behind.
Some recognized the man an infamous pirate who had recently made a name for himself on the seas.
The individuals near the man immediately began to lose whatever sanity they had left and began to fling themselves into the sea.
Others remained on land but then most ended up drowning in a pool of their own vomit or just killing themselves altogether.
On Davie's ship two people were just barely holding on.
Gold flakes began to form on Wills body and he ached and screamed in pain.
Apathy screamed as well. Her eyes bloodshot as if she was struck with insomnia for weeks on end. Her skin slowly turned illusory as if she never existed and she was only a creation of a dream.
Davie who was already rather paranoid and relatively felt comfortable with being alone was able to hold onto his sanity better than most. He was still barely able to maintain consciousness.
Will suddenly screamed at the top of his lungs. "Please someone save us" His eyes glowed extremely bright before dimming. He passed out.
Suddenly the night sky broke and was replaced with a dark forest which seemed a bit too real. Anyone who was awake immediately felt chills run down their spines and soon after regular human's faces began to melt. However, everyone aboard Davie's ship stopped 'decaying '.
Apathy who was the first to regain her senses looked around. The forest was dark. On the trees there seemed to hand many faces the trees themselves looked odd upon closer inspection instead of bark was human skin and flesh. A rustle of different howls clucks and other animal noises were heard but they each sounded twisted and in pain. The forest was dimly lit by lanterns made from human skulls and from out of a random shrubbery Apathy saw a familiar face.
A black trench coat wearing man casually walked out. His loosely buttoned shirt and torn grey trousers made him look like he had just had a rough night at a local brothel.
As he walked his bare feet did not leave a trace in the moist forest floor.
His face drooped and his green eyes were brighter than ever. He looked around the area. He then glanced at Will and just as Apathy was about to react he glanced at her and she froze due to sheer fear.
He turned his attention back to will and muttered under his breath.
" How the fuck did this kid make me end up here? I'm supposed to be on the other side of the island"
He looked at will and made a judgment that seemed extremely easy to him.
"Realm 9 of the luck realm – Blessed"
Apathy remained silent letting him continue but he didn't instead he picked the boy up and placed him into Apathy's arms and smiled.
He then fiddled with something in his pocket.
He took out a charm that seemed to be ring with a small ocean pearl and rested it between Apathy's bust as her hands were full.
She did not resist or well she couldn't resist.
" You'll need a capable shanty sailor to sail the vast seas here. Take this charm as an apology of what is about to happen to you in the coming days."
The Bishop stood quietly rooted in her place and was internally contemplating her next move.
She knew what the man in front of her was and she was completely out of his league. Her eyes dimmed significantly and she slowly backwards. Seeing this the green eyed man looked at her and shouted.
"Don't leave so soon Bishop Montego…I still owe you for killing members of my Cult. How's that promotion going? I see you've advanced to a Realm 6 Scarlet Countess! Growing more womanly by the day I see. I wonder if your little friend still works. "
The green eyed man then leaped off the boat and with a simple kick sent it adrift over 100 meters into the small bay.
Bishop Montego's eyebrows twitched and moved towards the departing ship but her vision was immediately engulfed by green eyes.
Bishop Montego regained her composure and looked past him towards the horizon and sighed.
She unhurriedly spoke as he knew an archbishop would soon be here now that this monster had released his aura and brought his domain here.
"What is a being of folklore doing here?"
END of Act 1 Part 1 Blessed