“No,” replied Matilda. “I want to come with you.”
“Very well,” said Cassius, “but stay behind me.”
With that he steered his sea scooter towards the surface. The other Mermen surrounded Matilda and followed him.
It soon became clear what the problem was. Just below the surface of the ocean they could see a mother whale with its calf being attacked by four Killer Whales. They were trying to separate the mother from her calf. Matilda saw that the mother and calf were becoming tired from the constant attacks and the Killer Whales were gradually separating them.
“Once they have the calf away from its mother they will kill it,” explained Cassius. “It’s cruel but it’s the law of the sea.”
“Can’t we help them?” asked Matilda, with tears in her eyes.
“Possibly,” stated Cassius, “but it would only be interfering with what is natural throughout the ocean. Nature can be cruel at times.”
“We have to help,” insisted Matilda. “Give me a trident.”
“Brave but ill-advised,” said Cassius sternly. “However, if you really wish to save the whales I am at your command.”
“Can you do it without endangering yourself?” asked Matilda.
“I believe so,” said Cassius. “I have fought Killer Whales before.”
“Then, please, try to save them,” implored Matilda.
Cassius signalled to four of his Mermen who guided their sea scooter over to him. After a brief discussion, the four guards moved in twos to each side of the Killer Whales as they dodged in and out, pestering the mother whale. Cassius steered his scooter straight up towards the surface.
The Killer Whales suddenly sensed his presence and turned to attack him. Although they were fast, they were no match for the skill and speed with which Cassius operated his sea scooter. As they dived at him, mouths agape to show their terrible teeth, he twisted and turned out of their way. The killers had been drawn away from the mother whale and its calf, and it was their turn to become tired as they were frustrated by Cassius. When they had slowed down in their attack, the other four Mermen shot in from each side, their tridents pointed out in front. Each of them selected a Killer Whale to charge, prodding them with their tridents and forcing them backwards. At last, sore and exhausted, the Killer Whales retreated into the distance, leaving the mother whale and its calf to continue their long journey to the distant feeding grounds.
“Cassius, you were absolutely wonderful!” shouted Matilda as the Merman pulled his sea scooter up beside her. She leaned over and gave him a big hug. Cassius blushed.
“Now can we continue on our journey home?” he asked.
“At your command!” said Matilda with a smile.
Chapter 14
Disaster
When the convoy finally reached Neptune’s Cave they met by a terrible scene. The Mermaids rushed out to meet them, sobbing hysterically and waving their arms in the air.
“Neptune!” they shouted. “They’ve taken him.”
Cassius grabbed one of them, telling her to calm down. “Who has taken him?” he asked.
“The pirate spirits,” she explained. “They came here as soon as you had left. They must have waited until we were unprotected. They broke into the cave and took Neptune away. There was nothing we could do. We tried, we really did, but it was no use.”
Matilda had a flashback of her dream and felt a sense of helplessness. She had failed before she had even started. Here they were now, without any magic to back them up, and the person they had sworn to protect captured by the enemy.
Cassius was white in the face from shock. “We have to get our master back,” he declared.
“But how?” asked Matilda. “We don’t know where they’ve taken him. And now we don’t even have Peri’s magic to help us. The pirates have covered everything. It’s almost as if they know everything about us.”
As she said this a feeling ticked over in Matilda’s mind. She needed to remember something that Neptune had said but, at the moment, her mind was too busy to concentrate.
“I can’t sit here doing nothing,” stated Cassius. “We must think of something.”
“Let me give it some thought,” said Matilda. “I’ll meet with you in an hour so we can decide what to do.”
Followed by Husan, she walked through the protective wall and headed for her room. She needed some time to sort out her thoughts. Peri was still in a state of shock and cuddled up to Matilda’s neck as they went into her room. Husan was quiet until they were inside.
“I think you should take the squid’s warning seriously and go back home. It’s far too dangerous for you here,” he ventured.
“What?” both Peri and Matilda responded together.
“Yes, leave. I think you were both lucky to get away with your lives this time and I don’t think they’ll let you go next time,” he stated with certainty. “I think it’s common sense. You heard the squid say this was your first and last warning.”
“How could you?” shouted Matilda. “How could you even think we would leave Neptune to the devices of the pirate spirits. It’s unbelievable!”
“And what about you?” asked Peri. “Would you go back with us? You haven’t told us what you plan to do.”
Husan grinned. “Why, of course I’ll stay here and see if I can help. I haven’t been threatened yet.” And he turned to Matilda. “You hurt my feelings when you called me a coward. It was unfair and I want to prove to you that I can be as brave as you are. But I would never forgive myself if something bad happened to you.”
Matilda seemed to be impressed by his sincerity. “That’s very worthy of you,” she .said, “but going home is out of the question. Besides, how would you get back without the Story Mat? We have to stick together and help get Neptune back.”
Husan was obviously disappointed. “I was only thinking of your safety,” he mumbled.
“Thank you for that but it’s impossible,” said Matilda, patting his head. “Now let’s have a rest and try to think about what we can do. We have to meet with Cassius in an hour.”
“I think I’ll go to my own room,” said Husan, leaping across to the door.
“That’s a good idea,” replied Matilda. “And think hard.”
As soon as Husan had gone, Peri looked at Matilda. “Now what was all that really about?” she said with a frown.
“Yes,” agreed Matilda. “His concern for us was not exactly genuine. I had the feeling he wanted to get rid of us. But why?”
“Until we find out I think it would be a good idea to keep as much as possible to ourselves . . . and keep a close eye on Husan” said Peri. “I’ve never trusted that pompous little twerp.”
“He did help us by calling out the Mermen when we were in trouble,” commented Matilda.
“Yes, but look what happened before. Who did we follow on our sea scooter?,” said Peri, thoughtfully.
“You don’t think he did it on purpose, do you?” asked Matilda.
“I don’t know, but I do know it would be best if we kept him out of the picture as much as we can,” said Peri.
“I agree,” said Matilda. “Now what can we do to get Neptune back?”
Peri began to sob again. “Now that I’ve lost my magic wand, I feel helpless. We can’t face up to the pirate spirits without it.”
“Magic!” shouted Matilda. “That’s it! How could I be so stupid!”
“What are you talking about?” asked Peri, snapping out of her misery.
“The magic map Maximilian gave me,” explained Matilda. “I’d completely forgotten about it.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out the map. Unfolding it on the bed they both began to think about how it could help them.
Chapter 15
Reporting In
While Matilda and Peri were considering how they could use the map, Husan was lying back on his bed making contact with Odon again.
“Everything went as planned,” he transmitted. “The squid did his task well and now ha
s possession of the magic wand. That leaves them defenceless. I sent a message to the pirate spirits after I had called Neptune to send his Mermen to help us even though it was all over with the squid by then. The pirates now have Neptune and I 'll contact them after they have found out where he has hidden the chest.”
“Did the squid finish off that pest of a girl and the fairy?” asked Odon.
“Er . . . no. I thought that was going too far. It was unnecessary once the squid had the magic wand. I sent it a message to give them a final warning.”
“You what . . . ?” replied Odon. “I told you that the squid was to finish them off. Now they are still around to cause trouble. Why did you disobey me? After all, you were the one that wanted the fairy to suffer.”
“I know, but it was a different thing when I saw that squid. I just couldn’t let it destroy them. It was too horrible to even think about. Anyway there’s no need to worry, they were given a scare and I think I’ve already convinced them to go home,” Husan lied.
“We’ll see – but, if anything goes wrong, you’ll pay for it,” threatened Odon.
Husan began to tremble. He knew how fierce Odon could be if he was upset. “It will all work out, you’ll see,” he said without any confidence.
“Let me know when you contact the pirates,” growled Odon, “and we can arrange to pick up the treasure.”
“Right,” said Husan, and contact was broken.
He hadn’t told Odon about the fight with the other Killer Whales. He thought that enough damage had been done for one day.
Chapter 16
A Map Full Of Information
Matilda was trying to recall what Maximilian had told them about the map.
“He said it would answer all of our questions if I waved my hands over it. It should be able to tell us something about the pirates,” she recalled.
“Could it tell us how to get my magic wand back?” asked Peri hopefully.
“Hopefully,” said Matilda, patting the little fairy on the head. “We’ll have to see. But our first job has to be rescuing Neptune. Let’s give it a try.”
She waved her hands over the map and it began to glow. A deep voice said, “Ask your question.”
Matilda was caught off guard and stumbled over her question. “Er . . .who . . . who are the pirate spirits?”
The map answered, “They are the ghosts of pirates past, the fiercest and cruellest of their kind.”
“But who are they?” insisted Matilda.
“They are all women,” replied the voice.
“Women?” said Matilda, shocked. She hadn’t recognised women pirates in her dream.
“Yes, some of the fiercest fighters of olden day pirates were women. They are led by Anne Bonny, the worst of them all, with hundreds of sunken galleons to her name.”
“How many of them are there altogether?” asked Matilda.
“There are ten, banded together to find Neptune’s chest,” came the voice from the map.
“Where have they taken Neptune?” continued Matilda.
“For that you will have to go to the golden dots,” said the voice.
“Thank you,” said Matilda and waved her hands across the map again to close it down. Next she rubbed one of the golden dots near Neptune’s cave. A picture of a Moray Eel appeared, its head poking out of a crevice in a coral reef.
“How can I help you?” said the eel with a yawn.
“The pirate spirits have taken Neptune. Did you see which way they went?” asked Matilda.
“I certainly did,” answered the eel. “They made quite a racket as they passed by and woke me up. They seemed to be very excited.”
“Which way did they go?” said Matilda, feeling excited.
“They headed west towards the coast,” the eel informed her.
“That’s wonderful news,” said Matilda as she rubbed the picture to make the eel disappear.
Grinning at Peri, she located the nearest golden dot to the coastline on the map. When she rubbed it she saw a large Grouper lazily nudging a piece of coral with its fat lips.
“I’m sorry to interrupt you,” Matilda apologised, “but this is rather important.”
“Go ahead,” replied the Grouper. “I’m just mucking about. I have plenty of time.”
“Have you seen a group of pirate spirits pass by with an old man?”
“I certainly have,” said the Grouper. “They scared the living daylights out of me. Nasty lot. They were heading for the stone fort on the headland.”
“That’s wonderful. I can’t thank you enough,” said Matilda excitedly.
“No need,” mumbled the Grouper. “Just doing my job.”
Matilda rubbed her finger over the picture and it disappeared. “Now to find this fort,” she said. “Mm-m-m, maybe the map has the answer.” And she waved her hands over the map again.
“As the map began to glow, Matilda posed her question. “The pirates have taken Neptune to their fort on the west coast. How can we get there without them knowing?”
“Here is a plan of the pirate’s fort,” said the voice as a picture appeared on the map. “There is a secret entrance from the sea. Copy this plan and take it with you. It will show you the way into the pirate’s hideaway. Good luck.”
Matilda rushed around the room looking for a pencil and paper. Throwing drawers all over the place, she had almost given up hope when she saw Peri holding a notebook and pencil.
“Where did you find those?” asked Matilda.
“I had to move them out of my bedside drawer when I was making up a place to sleep. I put them under your bed,” Peri told her.
Matilda grabbed the pencil, tore a page from the notebook and quickly copied the plan of the fort. When she had finished, she thanked the voice and closed down the map. Folding the map and plan, she put them back in her pocket and turned to Peri. “We have to keep this a secret from Husan,” she said. “Let’s hope he’s forgotten all about Maximilian giving us the magic map. Now let’s go and meet Cassius with the good news.”
Before they left Matilda went to the small fridge in their room and took out a handful of chocolate kelp bars to keep them going on their journey She hurriedly shoved them in her pockets.
Chapter 17
Meetings With Cassius
Matilda ran out to the foyer to meet Cassius. She didn’t knock on Husan’s door as she needed to talk to Cassius alone. The Merman was patiently waiting for her with the other guards. She quickly filled him in on what she had found out from the map and what she thought they should do. She also explained why Husan was to be kept in the dark as much as possible. Then she returned to their rooms and collected the elf.
Everybody gathered around Matilda in the foyer.
“We need to find out where the pirate spirits have taken Neptune,” she told them. “It is a large area to cover so I want to divide us into four groups. Each group will go in a different direction and keep in touch using these walkie-talkies Cassius has given us. If a group finds anything, they are to report to the other groups and we will meet to plan what to do.” Matilda thought how wishy-washy this sounded but she had to keep Husan away from the main action.
“Cassius will lead one group of guards covering the north, Husan will take his group east, Peri and I will go west and another senior guard will lead his group south. Any questions before we divide you up into groups?”
Husan could not help himself. “Couldn’t I stay here and coordinate the groups through telepathy? I could be like a control centre for operations.”
“You’d love being left alone,” thought Matilda but she said, “No, you’re too valuable as a leader, Husan. We’ll do it my way.”
The elf folded his arms and scowled. Matilda was more convinced than ever that he was not on her side.
They quickly divided into four groups and set off on their sea scooters. However, before they left, Cassius had a word with the senior guard in Husan’s group, telling him to make sure that he kept a watchful eye on the el
f.
Cassius had chosen his best fighters for his and Matilda’s groups. He only travelled a short distance north before he veered to his left and led his group to Matilda, who had stopped her guards and was waiting for him.
“So far so good,” he said to her. “Now let’s look at that map and plan.”
Matilda pulled both from her pocket and unfolded them over the handlebars of her sea scooter. Cassius studied the map first as Matilda pointed out what she had been told.
“Yes, I know exactly where this fort is,” said Cassius. “It should only take us half an hour to get there. Now show me the plan of the fort.”
When Matilda unfolded the plan Cassius commented, “It isn’t very large but it’s sturdy so it will be easy to defend. There’s a battlement right around the outer wall with cannons mounted to face the sea.” He ran his finger around the different rooms. There was a huge open room in the centre where the pirates obviously relaxed, sleeping rooms and kitchen off to the side and dungeons down below. “An attack from the front seems impossible.”
“I wasn’t thinking of an attack from outside,” said Matilda. “Apparently there is a way inside the fort from the sea.”
“That’s handy,” smiled Cassius. “Remember, we Mermen are useless to you on land. We have to get the pirate spirits down into the sea if we are to have any chance.”
“I think Peri and I can manage that,” said Matilda, with confidence she really didn’t have.
“Thanks for volunteering me,” said Peri chirpily, then added, “but I know that Maximilian would never forgive me if I let you go in alone, wand or no wand.”
“That’s settled then,” said Matilda.
“Where is this secret entrance from the sea?” asked Cassius.
“That we still have to find out,” replied Matilda. Cassius groaned.
With a signal from their leader, the Mermen pulled their sea scooters in behind Matilda and Cassius, and the warriors set off for the pirate’s fort, grouping themselves around Matilda and Peri. As they proceeded along, Matilda was fascinated by the number of whales they passed. The huge animals were migrating from the warmer waters to the north where their babies had been born and were heading south to the colder feeding grounds. She could hear them talking to each other in their strange, musical language. Many of them were mothers with their calves and Matilda had a warm feeling when she remembered how they had saved one calf from the Killer Whales.