The bucket of water smashed into his face. It really was the entire bucket with the water still inside and as it fell to its side the liquid dosed his body and head. The four armed pirate captain shot awake. The first thing he tried to do was move but all he succeeded in doing was make the ropes binding him tighter as he struggled on the chair.
"Where am I?" he glared at me annoyed and I stared back at him in kind.
"If you play your cards wrong, your grave," I sat down opposite of him.
He laughed arrogantly, "Trying to play it tough? How are those girls of yours, by now I bet they're puking their inside out."
"They're alive despite your efforts."
"And what, come to me for the cure? Well I don't know it and even if I did I wouldn't tell you just to see you squirm."
I smirked maddeningly, "You know you're quite similar to your crew."
"What are you talking about?" he eyed me curiously.
"No it's just that half of them said the same thing," I stood up and spun his chair around.
Even he couldn't hold his shock as the bodies of his crew laid crumpled on the floor, some bloodied, some crushed, all still alive, though barely.
I moved my chair in front of him again and sat down, "Trust me when I say I didn't enjoy it."
"You're crazy," he spat cursing me.
"Well now that you've seen what I'm capable of, how about just telling me straight up." My voice lowered, "What poison did you use and what's the antidote?"
"Ha! You think this is enough to phase me? You're just a punk. I've faced worse and done worse!" he snarled at me viciously.
"Indeed interesting." I pointed to the large pirate lumped in the corner. He was covered in fur and had bestial eyes, though right now both were closed. "The big one, your second in command right? He said the same thing. The entire time I tortured him he kept going on and on that it was nothing, how it didn't hurt, how he had done things like that for play and that I was just a pup trying to act like a man." I smiled evilly. "Then I got creative, did a bit more. It's interesting seeing how someone can change their tune so quickly if you pull the right strings. He was begging me to stop by the end, telling me he knew nothing about the poison. The thing was at that point I was doing it because he deserved it. All those stories he spouted so proudly, I made him relive them and more."
A visible sweat clung on the captain's skin, "You don't scare me kid."
"You know they all said that you were smart. It's unfortunate that I'm feeling the opposite. All you need to do is tell me and we'll be done here." I flicked the knife towards him, "Don't make me get started."
"Okay fine," he backed down surprisingly quickly. "No need for me to join the others in pain. Its poison from the Argus flower combined with Jungle vein sap. Potent stuff, I swear I don't know about the cure though."
"Really now…. Ardent drop it." As I said those words the cell shifted and was replaced by a danker and dark room. Dead bodies of the pirates laid out on the floor, some hung from the ceiling despairingly, many of them lacked limbs.
"Holy shit! The fuck," the pirate captain widened his eyes and began to jitter. "What it is th-," Before he could finish I stabbed his thigh with my knife. He screamed as it plunged into his flesh and groaned miserably as I pulled it out.
"Liar," I said simply.
"What- why?" he stared around the room confused.
"What you saw before was an illusion, this is what really happened. Why? Because they lied to me."
"You're insane!"
"Maybe I'm just desperate," I laughed. "By the way, the one over there hanging against the wall, do you know what supposed poison he told me about? You guessed it, the one you just said and what do you know, it was a lie."
The captain was visibly stressed barely hanging on to his wits. His mind was being affected by more than just the visual around us. I just needed to push a little further.
"Let me ask you again. What's the poison and what's the antidote. Now your crew told me a few things that were all wrong. Say the same thing as them and you'll get a step closer to where they are now."
He grit his teeth, trying to remain strong, "I don't know okay. Please have mercy. I just used the poison. I bought it from a merchant."
"Liar!" I stabbed his other thigh but this time left the crooked knife inside. "One more try before I start ripping you piece by piece!"
His eyes locked on to mine as I reached for the knife once more.
"Rain I got it," Ardent's voice echoed into the room.
I sighed in relief, "Okay, drop it before I throw up." The room shimmered and returned to the ordinary cell it was. A concrete cell and steel bars isolated from the others. I had asked Ardent to make it realistic but man did he go overboard with the detail. If I hadn't been ready for it I might have really emptied my stomach.
"W-what?" the pirate captain stared at me blankly.
"Just needed you to lower your guard, cheers," I winked at him and yanked the knife from his leg as he groaned again. There was no way I had enough time to interrogate them one by one and the only one who actually knew something was the Captain. I just needed to give him a little scare.
I left the cell and went straight to Ardent waiting outside, "What did you find?"
He replied seriously, "The poison is from the horn of a thing he called a Kelpi. Green beast with six legs, like a horse but covered in seaweed. He mixed it with the Kraken's blood. From his memories the antidote can be derived from the same base poison. It needs to be fresh."
"Thanks, without you we would probably never get the right thing."
"It's because you disturbed his mind so well I was able to gather it. Poking at a person's conscious and memory is much harder than some realise."
"Message Earnest and Taylor to begin hunting. They shouldn't be far right?"
"I already have and no, there should be a nest nearby. I suggest you begin the preparations. I'll go back to do what I can."
I nodded. I couldn't just die and go back this time. Now more than ever I could feel the tension in my chest gripping my heart.
*
The horn was larger than I expected, measuring beyond a metre. Taylor bought it back after Earnest killed the beast, being faster she arrived first. As soon as I had it I began to extract the poison and analysing it as best I could. It was a scary poison indeed that reacted to mana usage. Mixed with the Kraken's blood which acted as a kind of amplifier it was easy to see why Marley was affected so. Just in case I had Earnest and Taylor strip off their clothes and wash themselves, even the outside of the horn held traces of the poison. The last thing anyone needed was more victims.
As for the antidote it was a quick process. Once I had the venom extracted it was a relatively simple task to work backwards and uncover the mana reactions working inside. Then it was just a matter of applying the correct method to neutralise it. As careful as I was, I worked as fast as I could taking shortcuts that were safe. Marley was just in the other room and her body was failing by the second. Ardent's mana fluctuated through the open door creating visible light as he held her body's state to a standstill. The others could only wait and watch.
With the antidote finally in my hand I injected it slowly into Marley's body and fed her another dose mouth to mouth. Taylor flinched as I did so, it wasn't like I was doing it to her though so it should be fine. Within minutes colour started to return to her body and with a cough she began to breath normally again. The black stitches that had crossed her body faded away to nothing. Relief poured into me instantly. As much as I had faith in myself there was always that chance of failure. If a slight impurity had been mixed in, if I had boiled the mixture to long, if I had been wrong entirely… to see her recovering settled my heart more than anyone could know.
Next was Lara. She was doing better than Marley and the poison's progression had halted but she was still suffering. I took out a new needle and injected the antidote into her.
"Rain let me do it," Taylor reached her hand towards me.
"Do what?" I asked confused.
"Someone needs to give it to her orally as well right? Let me do it," she was being surprisingly firm about it. I had forgotten because it had been awhile but Taylor did swing both ways and she had been interested in Lara….
"No," I narrowed my eyes at her.
Her expression stiffened, "It's better me than you okay."
"No one needs to do it," I replied. "Lara's condition isn't as bad. Sorry but if you want to kiss her do it some other way."
To my surprise her face reddened, "Th-that's not what- that wasn't the point!"
"Sure…," I looked at her dubiously. "Anyway everyone out. They need their rest and we're cramping this place way too much." Seriously as magical as this carriage was, so many people weren't meant to be in one room. Especially Ronalt who hulked in the corner.
"Rain, I'll stay to make sure their condition holds," Ardent said.
"No I'll-," I began but he cut me off as he clapped my shoulder.
"You need rest as well Rain. Sleep. Use my bed if you want to."
I only realised I was so tired then. It was the late afternoon now and I had only gotten a few hours sleep the night before. My muscles loosened and I wobbled, "You're right…. If anything happens call me."
As I left the room and crossed to the other Ronalt followed me. He sat down on his own bed as I flopped onto Ardent's.
"If you have something to say, do it before I pass out please," I mumbled tiredly. I'd rather he yell at me for my failure now rather than after I woke up. At least that way I wouldn't have to deal with it later.
"Thank you Rain…," his words surprised me. "You did well."
I huffed and turned away facing the wall, "Liar…." Though from the tone of his voice he really did mean it.