Archer grinned.
In all the commotion, Archer managed to free Matt, who quickly untied the others.
In no time, Archer had set the place ablaze, leaving the pirates running for their lives.
The others summoned their powers too, and then it was utter chaos on the ship… scorched bodies, distorted corpses, the clanking of blades and ear-piercing cries of pain. The Scavenger fought with the pirate leader, their swords clashing thunderously.
The pirates started jumping overboard to save themselves. It was not difficult for the Scavenger to knock off the pirate leader.
The Sails of Time was now full of unconscious bodies and fuming smoke, with parts of the ship aflame. The Scavenger ordered the children to throw the bodies into the sea, only leaving behind their leader, whom they held captive.
“Why don’t we throw the leader in the sea as well?” Daniel asked the Scavenger.
“We can extract valuable information from him,” the Scavenger explained. “Watch and learn.”
James sprayed cold water on the pirate’s face, which jerked him awake.
“You again!” the pirate leader snarled.
The Scavenger grinned. “Yes. I am sure you are happy to see me. Now, straight to business. We need news.”
“What news?”
“Everything about the armies of the Death Lord.”
The pirate shook his head, refusing to speak.
“All right. We will just torture you then. Need to pass the time,” the Scavenger jibed.
He cast a meaningful look at James. James understood and summoned freezing water, pitching a splash at the pirate. The pirate yelled and shivered but remained tight-lipped as ever.
James splattered more chilled water, which hurt like thousands of needles pricking the pirate’s skin. A few tormenting splashes broke him down.
“Please… please… no more!” the pirate leader begged. “I will tell you!”
“Good. Now tell me, what all kingdoms have surrendered to the Death Lord?”
“The Orange Unicorns and the Black Sorcerers.”
“And?”
“The Cracken Haurs.”
“I want all the names!”
“The Ace Warriors.”
“Oh God… not them! And?”
“That’s all.”
The Scavenger raised his eyebrows.
“I swear, that’s all.”
“What are his next targets?”
“The City of Roads.”
“And why?”
“To control the routes used in the transportation of goods.”
“You sure you have not forgotten any names?”
“The Hooves, the Moles, the Lions and the Snakes. That’s all.”
“Where does he get the supplies for his large army?”
“He has the farmers of the north, south, west and east under his control. They provide the supplies.”
“And his centres? I need locations.”
“What centres?”
“Don’t play the fool with me! You know very well which centres I am talking about! Let me jog your memory by telling you the name of one... the Dark Factory. Now!”
The pirate spoke, “Three in the west. One at the Borneals and the Well of Tranquil and the third in the Land of the Serpents. Only one in the east – at the Meaneads. Four in the south – at the Moor of Pain, Moor of Sadness, Moor of Anger and the Desert of Greed. Six in the north – at the Lemon Forest, Troll Trail, Cave of Courage, Ogre Mountain, Serpent Cave and, as you mentioned, the biggest one – the Dark Factory.”
“Is he building more centres?”
“One in the north, to replace the Dark Factory. He is building it at the Lair of Lies.”
“Very good. And what about the people under his control? Are there any revolts?”
“Many. The Trolls and Ogres have escaped his army. The Wolves, the Green Hunters, the Ace Warriors, the Blue Wizards, the Ancient Ninjas, the Slayer Ninjas and, the most powerful of all, the Blade Panthers.”
The Scavenger breathed a sigh of relief. “Are there any revolts in the Death Lord’s side?”
“Twelve Clans have revolted against the Death Lord. I don’t remember their names.”
“Good. What about the seas? Which pirates support him?”
“Us. The Red Pirates. There are several others, like the Sharks, the Hyenas, the Great Whales and, of course, the Blue Whales.”
“Those who revolted?”
“Only two – the Silent Pirates and the Solitaire Pirates.”
“Alright. That will be all.”
“Now release me! I have told you everything!”
“Of course! Swim your way to freedom.” The Scavenger tossed him into the sea. The pirate leader screamed as he swam with all his might, trying to escape the sharks.
“So where to next?” Archer asked.
James said that they had solved the first two phrases – ‘Journey on the Sails of Time, try to find the Ship Divine.’ The next two were – ‘Get the piece from the maze, directions written in the haze.’
Daniel wondered what that meant. After some thinking, James figured that maybe they needed to find some piece from some sort of maze.
“That could be the Maze of Death. Not far. We must go there,” the Scavenger said.
“But what about ‘directions written in the haze’?” James asked.
“One thing at a time. Let’s move.” The Scavenger tried to steer the wheel, but it didn’t budge. After much effort, the wheel turned, and the ship moved forward.
Archer had expected the sea to be brimming with deadly creatures, waiting to pounce, but it looked composed and endless but calm. He was busy admiring the enormity of the sea when his sight fell on something. He jumped with excitement as he realized that the fog ahead must be the haze.
They all scrutinized the haze, looking for any signs, but there were none. Before they could gauge the fog, the vessel went right into it. It was a thick, dense mass of mist, engulfing the world around them. Soon, they could see nothing except for grey mist.
Archer summoned fire in his hand and threw it on the torches lining the railing of the ship, illuminating the path. Now he could see a formation of letters that read:
Travellers, are you ready,
To enter the maze,
Figure it out.
You are right.
And, as he finished reading, the ship magically emerged out of the haze, onto the other side.
“What was that?” James said, perplexed. “That wasn’t a riddle. Nothing rhymed. It was just a bunch of words thrown around.”
Archer opened his mouth to say something when he spotted a cave-like hole on his right. While pointing it out to the others,
