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kaihuntrr · 4 months ago

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part twenty-four: burning red.

Martyn asks Pearl a question.

Rain slid down the window behind Martyn. He could only watch the shadows of the droplets slipping down as he remained in uneasy silence. He didn’t know how long he had been in there, or how long he was going to stay there for. The old, dusty air filled his lungs, making him feel like he himself had gone stale. There was no sound but the soft pitter-patter of rain that fell and danced on the rooftop. Martyn kept his head down. There was no point in looking around the room aimlessly.

All this time he’d been imagining his flawless escape plan. But his limbs were numb. His body ached. His throat was sore from screaming in desperation. His heart yearned for company, even if it was that stupid Scarlet Witch– it was despairingly lonely in here!

His eyes were weary, but he dared not to close them. What if he had another nightmare? What if he dreamt about Scott dying before his eyes again? It wasn’t worth it. Any rest he’d get would be negated by the exhaustion from the nightmare.

The world fell silent as the rain slowly subsided, leaving Martyn to watch the last few droplets of rain slide from the glass window and listen to the whispers of trees rustling in the night air. What he wouldn’t give to get himself out of these ropes, to reunite with his friends, and to get some answers from Pearl.

At this point, he felt like he deserved them.

His mind wandered, thinking of what to ask the witch once she returned. How did she meet the sea princes? What kind of treasure did she take? How did she survive staring at one and not feel the way he was feeling? Was it normal to think a sea prince was beautiful? Should he be–

Martyn shook his head. Maybe not those last questions.

Martyn swung his head up and down out of boredom, moving however he could to feel blood returning to his limbs. The motion. The movement. Something to do instead of just sitting there and waiting for help to arrive.

That was when he looked up at the wooden beams.

And saw a singular blue eye stare at him from above. It was glowing, just like Pearl’s.

But it wasn’t Pearl.

Martyn’s skin paled as he felt ice prickle over his skin. How long had that person been there? Were they just watching him? He could see the sole of a boot highlighted by the edge of the moonlight. Someone was definitely there.

“Hello?” Martyn squinted his eyes against the darkness as he looked up at the stranger. “Can you help me out? A crazy witch trapped me in here.” He jerked his body, proving that the ropes were tight and unmoving.

The stranger, in complete silence, stood up and walked along the wooden beams, away from Martyn.

They couldn’t just leave him there!

“Wait– please don’t go!” Martyn shouted desperately. The stranger stopped and stared at him. “I need to get back to my friends, back to the island where I belong. I promised someone important to me that I’d stay alive….”

He could feel the warmth of Scott’s memory over him. The ginger’s smile burned in his mind’s eye. He remembered the promise they made not too long ago. It felt like an eternity now, as Martyn recollected everything else that had happened in just the past few days. Now he had to grapple with his feelings about the sea prince, the terror that was Pearl, and his longing for Scott.

Scott was everything to Martyn. His anchor. His reason for hunting. The fire that kept him burning all this time. He needed to come home. He needed to come home to Scott.

“It’d kill him if I broke my promise,” Martyn’s voice quivered, trying to keep himself from picturing what-if scenarios and Scott’s heartbroken face as his own heart twisted and tightened around him. He chuckled weakly, “It’d kill me too…. I couldn’t stand myself if I made him cry....”

A round of silence passed. Martyn stared at the floor in defeat. He felt so stupid, so weak. He’d poured out his heart to a stranger who wasn’t going to help him. He’d be alone again, this time stewing in all these awful thoughts–

The stranger sat on the wooden beams again. They appeared to be shuffling around with what little sounds they made, until eventually, they pulled out a knife, the blade glinting in the pale moonlight, and sheathed it. Were they going to cut him out?

Instead, they spoke, their voice a mumbled whisper as a singular word escaped from their throat;

“Catch.”

The stranger dropped the sheathed knife behind Martyn, the blonde catching it before it could fall on the floor. The handle was cold. Martyn held the grip of the blade tightly. He could cut himself out of the ropes! It would save him from Pearl, but a part of him wanted to stay a little longer to find out what’s happening in that witch’s brain.

He was saved.

“Th-... thank you,” Martyn looked up at the stranger and beamed, relief rising in his chest. The stranger nodded and stood up, walking along the wooden beams again as Martyn called after them. “Wait-! May… may I see you?”

The only response Martyn got was the stranger’s light footsteps leaving the room and the distant sound of a window opening then closing behind them. The stranger was gone, and Martyn was left to his own devices once more.

At least now, he had hope.

Martyn could leave whenever he felt like it, but he wanted to get some answers from Pearl. Actual answers. If he pretended to be stuck and hopeless, she might be more inclined to answer anything he asked. If she thought he was unable to escape, she might just tell him more than she intended to. He could even catch Pearl by surprise if she turned her back on him.

Plus, if his friends were on the way to get him, he could stall Pearl and distract her long enough for the Canaries to set up an ambush. Martyn nodded to himself. It sounded like the perfect plan.

Hopefully his friends would come and find him soon. He wanted to see their dumb, smiling faces again. It’d only been a day, but he missed them so much. He wanted to hear them laughing, talking about stupid things, doing stupid things together.

Martyn flinched as he heard the sound of something splashing into some deep, large body of water behind him. What was that?! It didn’t matter. Martyn shook his head. He needed to focus.

Martyn unsheathed and maneuvered the knife between the ropes that tied his hands together. He tried to position it carefully so it wouldn’t cut any part of him but also so he wouldn’t drop it. He took a breath, gritted his teeth, then jerked his torso forwards as he pushed the knife backwards. The knife must have been wickedly sharp because it sliced straight through the ropes with barely any resistance. Martyn caught his breath, moving his arms around to the front. He went to slice the ropes off his torso, but hesitated. Instead he wiggled it over his head, relieved that he could actually feel his arms again. Then he bent forwards to cut the ropes off his legs, swinging them a few times before he stood up.

He looked at the scraps of rope on the ground. Pearl would definitely notice those if she saw them. So Martyn carefully picked up all the scraps of rope, then quickly stowed them in the shadows behind the couch before returning to the chair. Martyn strapped the knife’s sheath to the back of his belt, so it sat over the small of his back.

He kept the knife in his hand though, sitting back down and pulling the remaining loop of rope back over his head and settled it in the same position over his torso, crossing his hands behind him, and pressing his legs against the legs of the chair. He slipped the knife under the loop of rope around his torso, so he could cut it off him when he was ready.

Martyn let out a long breath, back in the same position as if he’d never moved.

Perfect. Now he just had to wait.

So he waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

…Playing a damsel in distress was really boring, wasn’t it?

Martyn wanted to move around some more, but he’d be risking Pearl catching him if she came back without warning. All he had to do was sit around and pretend to be the same moping, sad self as earlier. He stared at the floorboards, looking at the light from the window. What time was it? How long would it be until morning? Maybe when they all got out of here, off this stupid island, the sun would rise like those fairytale endings. He chuckled at the thought.

But how were they supposed to outrun a sea prince? There had to be some way to escape. There was no way the Canaries were going to die on this island. The Kites too. They were all going to make it out whether Pearl liked it or not–

Martyn jolted up as he heard the sound of a door slamming open.

Seemed like he didn’t need to wait anymore.

“I’m back!” Pearl announced in a cheery, light tone. She entered the room with a bright smile on her face and a little giggle. “Did you miss me?”

Just act. Act like you’re still stuck here.

Playing pretend a little more wouldn’t hurt. If he asked the right questions, he could learn something from Pearl. Martyn expected it to be a bit difficult, though. He suspected that a lot of people had spent a lot of time hounding her for some type of answer over the years.

Martyn rolled his eyes. “I was making friends with all the little bugs around,” he glared at Pearl with his eyebrows raised. “So no. I didn’t.”

“Bugs making friends with other bugs, how cute,” Pearl crossed her arms and strode into the room. “Speaking of friends, I don’t think they’re coming to save you anymore.”

Martyn blinked. “Why’s that?”

Pearl motioned behind her, towards the outside. “On my way back home, I noticed a couple of footsteps,” she sat on top of the dusty couch and shrugged. “It looked like they were leaving.”

She… she didn’t think Martyn would actually believe that, right?

Martyn laughed. “You seriously think I’ll believe you?” he shook his head. Pearl could have chosen to lie about anything, but that? There was no way the Canaries would just leave him there. He’d be fine. “I know my friends. They’ll save me.”

His friends were probably plotting something while Martyn was stuck here. Maybe it was some elaborate distraction, something to lure Pearl away from him. The Canaries would risk anything to get one of their own back, so Martyn was certain they were going to do so here, too.

Martyn felt the urge to lurch forward and sever the rope already, just because of that lie.

“If you still want to believe that, sure,” Pearl shrugged, shaking her head. “I’m not stopping you.”

“I will, thanks.”

A brief silence washed over the two until Martyn shook his head, glaring up at Pearl. “What are you going to do with me?”

“I want to wait a little longer,” Pearl glanced at the window then looked at Martyn with a small smile. “When your friends try to leave and die in the process, I’ll play a game with you.”

It made Martyn’s skin crawl to think Pearl sounded so downright gleeful when talking about death.

Keep acting.

“What kind of game?”

Pearl shrugged. “A game of tag, hide and seek, just anything simple and fun. I’m sure Hunter would love that,” she chuckled. Pearl’s gaze faltered, her voice slipping into a muttered sigh, “But I’m also sure Chromia wouldn’t really enjoy it….”

Chromia. That name was familiar.

That was the name Pearl uttered the night Martyn had left his room. She’d been talking to someone else and had briefly mentioned that name, among the other weird statements of hers.

“Who’s Chromia?”

Pearl blinked, seeming surprised that Martyn had heard her muttering. Her expression was unguarded as she looked at him, but eventually she began to talk.

“...He’s my best friend.” Pearl’s expression softened as she looked at the ground, a warm smile on her face that was unlike any expression Martyn had seen her make so far. She sighed, raising one of her wrists to stare at a bracelet, which was just a shell attached to a piece of string. Martyn squinted at it. The shell was small, about the size of his finger, but… it had a strange blend of colors that he’d never seen on a shell before. It was orange and blue, the particular hues reminding him of Scott’s eyes.

“I’d do anything to make him happy,” Pearl murmured. Her eyes rose to meet Martyn’s, her gaze sharp and dangerous, “even if I have to do some… unsavory things.”

“Like making deals with sea princes?” Martyn tilted his head. Now was the best time to start questioning her. “How did you even do that?”

Pearl’s expression twisted into a sneer, she looked at Martyn with an eyebrow raised. She crossed her arms, effectively hiding the shell from his view, her hands gripping her arms tightly. “Are you always this fanatical when it comes to them?”

“Well,” Martyn leaned further back into the chair, silently hoping the knife wouldn’t fall on the ground if he moved too much. “If all you’re gonna do is wait, and I don’t have anything to do, why not talk about it?”

Pearl glanced from the cased opening and back to Martyn, thinking to herself. She hummed and raised an eyebrow, likely skeptical of Martyn’s motives.

Come on, take the bait.

Pearl’s eyes narrowed. “You’re a strange one,” she muttered. She sighed and shrugged, placing her arms on the sides of the couch as she tilted her head. “But fine, I’ll bite. Ask away.”

I’ve got you now.

“How did you get a sea prince to guard the island?”

“Simple,” Pearl closed her eyes and shrugged. She opened them and wiggled her fingers in front of Martyn, “Magic.”

Figured.

Martyn bit his tongue. She wasn’t going to give him direct answers. It probably would’ve gone a lot better if he had her pinned the same way she’d had him before. Though, even then she’d probably still be purposefully vague just to mess with Martyn’s head.

“The treasures,” Martyn found his voice, tilting his head, “what are they?”

“You think I’d tell you that easily?” Pearl raised an eyebrow. She chuckled before continuing, “They’re priceless, that’s for sure. You can’t even touch them.”

“Then how were you able to see them?” Martyn raised an eyebrow. She had to be special or something…, right? “The residents said you’ve seen what the princes’ treasures looked like, and the sea princes made a deal with you, after.”

“I have my ways.”

Martyn tried to look annoyed as he could, glaring at Pearl with a disgruntled expression as she laughed.

“What? Did you think I’d give you actual answers?” Pearl pantomimed wiping a tear from her eye and sighed. She stood up from the couch and dusted herself off. “It’s funny how you think I’d do that. You hunters are unbelievably dumb.”

High on her ego.

An idea tugged on Martyn’s mind. If he could catch her off guard, maybe she’d let something slip.

Any other question would render the same response, and Pearl would likely go off and do something else. Martyn needed her to stay, at least for this last question. He was sure she would have some kind of reaction to this one.

Pearl began to walk away, a dramatic sigh escaped her as one of her hands held the wooden frame of the door. “You know, I might just step out for a little–”

“Why do sea princes look human?”

That caught her off guard.

Pearl turned slowly, her eyes wide and smile dropped. “...What?”

Pearl gripped the cased opening, Martyn tried not to flinch as the wood cracked as the witch’s hand tightened.

“I saw what one looks like. Nothing like any beast I’ve ever seen,” Martyn said seriously, leaning forward. “Why do they look like that?”

Pearl was silent. No response, no smile or laugh. Pure silence.

The moment dragged on.

Suddenly Pearl’s eyes were looking everywhere but at Martyn as she forced a grin onto her face. “What- what are you talking about?” she muttered, waving her hand dismissively. “You can’t have seen–! The sea princes don’t look like that! You’re- you’re lying! You’re lying! They–!”

“You’re the one who’s lying, Pearl,” Martyn snapped. He had her now. “The one I saw fits every single description from the old legends; adorned in a crown more elegant and dangerous than any king, and bearing the heartbeat of the ocean itself, it is a mythical creature that looks different from any other beast, the largest thing in all the oceans, a god in flesh. That is the Prince I saw.”

It was a deafening silence.

“...I’m right, aren’t I?” Martyn muttered. Pearl’s expression remained the same. Wide eyed and shocked. Martyn pressed her, “So answer me. Why do they look human?”

Martyn’s final question lingered in the air as Pearl hissed, like she tasted something sour.

“...Who?”

Pearl was across the room in an instant, slamming Martyn to the floor with a hand on his throat. The knife severed the rope as he jerked while he fell, but ended up pinned in his hand, dangerously close to his back, his arms pinned beneath him by the wooden back of the chair.

“Who?! Who showed themselves to you?! Who let themselves be seen and let you walk away from it?!” she roared, her nails digging into Martyn’s neck. Her scream was a deafening roar like thunder and lightning crashing into a turbulent sea, her nails like claws prying into his skin. “I shouldn’t have entertained your little questions. I’ll crush you like the bug you are right here and now–”

Martyn and Pearl froze as the door in the adjoining room slammed open. A set of heavy footsteps charged into the room revealing–

“CLEO!”

Martyn’s heart did somersaults in his chest. They were here! Cleo had their gun out and was aiming it at Pearl, but they dipped their head in response to Martyn and smiled.

Pearl blinked. “How did you– tsk, never mind,” she sat up, though kept her hand cinched around Martyn’s throat. Somehow, in almost an instant, she slinked back into her eerily calm persona. “It’s a pleasure seeing you here, but I’m a bit busy with your little bird.”

“Don’t even try it,” Cleo was focused, her eyes narrowed. “I’ll shoot you.”

Pearl rolled her eyes and smirked. One of her eyes twitched. “And that worked out so well last time, didn’t it?”

Cleo shot at Pearl, hurriedly pulling out their second gun as Pearl moved past each bullet like a rhythmic dance. Bullets zipped over Martyn’s head and struck the wall on the far side of the room, causing the old wooden boards to splinter. Pearl glanced between them and the broken wood.

“Aw, my poor walls!” Pearl laughed, unbothered. She pulled out her sickles, walking closer to Cleo, and farther from Martyn. “I thought you’d remember those little toys of yours don’t–!”

Cleo fired another shot. Pearl smoothly dodged, a smirk crossing her lips.

“I don’t care what you said,” Cleo hissed, “give me Martyn now, and I won’t hurt you.”

“You… you can’t be serious, right?”

Martyn could see the grip on Cleo’s gun shake as Pearl walked closer. He wriggled his arms out from under the chair and pulled the loose rope off him, silently thanking the stranger who gave the knife to him as he sheathed it at the small of his back. Martyn carefully stood up, careful not to make a sound but making sure Cleo saw him moving into the line of fire. She tipped her head a bit, deliberately not making eye contact, but indicating that she could see him. Martyn grabbed the chair by the legs and lifted it, taking a few slow steps creeping up behind Pearl.

“You hunters are all the same,” Pearl swung one of her sickles around in some egotistical display, then pointed it at Cleo. “All so annoying, all so–!”

Martyn dug in and swung the wooden chair over his head. It hit the back of Pearl’s head with a heavy wooden sound.

Pearl crumpled to the ground.

Martyn stared at Pearl’s unconscious body for a couple of seconds, his hands hovering over the sheathed knife in case she’d sprang from the floor.

So he waited.

He could hear his breaths coming in and out, the calming sounds of his heartbeat, and the rushing of footsteps–

Martyn let out a small yelp as Cleo held him in a hug.

“It’s good to see you again,” Martyn murmured as he hugged her back. He wasn’t sure what to say, but he knew that it would only be a matter of time until Pearl stirred. “We should get going.”

Cleo nodded, “Definitely.” They broke the hug and moved swiftly towards the door, Martyn following close behind. Cleo got out first, looking back at Martyn as he glanced at Pearl’s body again.

His eyes narrowed as he saw an odd glittery stain on her hood. That was where he hit her, so that should be blood, but… blood wasn’t glittery.

Martyn shook his head. He couldn’t focus on that.

“Scar, Bek,” Cleo called out, “Martyn’s here!”

Martyn jogged out of the house as he could smell smoke. A fire? He turned to see Scar and Bek coming from other sides of the cabin. Scar grinned widely as he approached, and Bek let out a relieved sigh.

“Martyn! You’re alright!” Scar cheered happily. Cleo motioned for the others to follow them as they made their way back into the woods. Scar looked at Martyn’s wrists and tilted his head, “Were you tied up?”

Martyn looked at his own wrists. Though it hadn’t really been visible in the shadows of the house, there were some noticeable marks of rope. “Yeah,” he muttered, rubbing his wrists, then he shook his head at the whiff of smoke. Something’s burning. “But there’s no time to be talking about it now, we have to go!”

Cleo ran forward, with Martyn, Scar, and Bek following behind. As they entered the woods, they were greeted by Grian, Krow, Puffy, and Katherine.

“Martyn…,” Grian breathed, smiling wider as he looked at Martyn. Martyn could see the tired look in his eyes. Grian must’ve been restless in searching for him. Something in his chest warmed. Just like he knew they would. “Let’s get going.”

Martyn nodded. They had to leave, to get out of this island– now.

“This way!” Katherine ran forward, motioning to the others as they hurried inside the forest.

Martyn stayed behind for a moment to stare outward at the burning cabin. Bright flames blinding the serene darkness of the night, the winds stoking the embers. He squinted against the bright light, expecting Pearl to burst through the flames, expecting an outburst as fiery as the burning cabin–

But nothing came.

Only the breeze of the evening brushed against his skin, the hairs on his arm standing on end as a chill settled over him.

Did he just-....

Martyn’s skin paled.

Was Pearl dead?

Martyn took a shaky step back.

Was Pearl dead because of him?

Martyn knocked her unconscious. She didn’t stir even as he and Cleo left. And now the building was engulfed in a blaze. Martyn thought he could feel the heat of it from where he stood.

She-.... She’s…!

“Martyn!” Grian called out. Martyn’s body went rigid. “We have to go!”

Martyn turned and ran straight into the forest.

The clouds parted, revealing more of the moonlight for the hunters to see by. The hunters dashed through the forest, pushing branches and bushes out of the way, jumping over fallen logs as they made their mad dash out. How far was the exit? Just how long did they need to run?

All Martyn knew was that his friends knew where to go, and they’d make it out.

Katherine led the group in panicked breaths, shaking her head to try and remain calm.

Martyn tried to think. There was no way Pearl died then and there, she was powerful enough to possess magic and make deals with the sea princes. She was quick. Martyn wasn’t sure what the plan was, but it wasn’t a plan to kill her… right?

The earth shook.

“DID YOU REALLY THING THAT WOULD KILL ME!?”

Pearl’s voice boomed unnaturally, shaking the trees and the ground around them.

She survived. Of course she survived. Martyn only ran faster, hoping the numbness of his legs wouldn’t kill him as he struggled to keep up with his friends.

Martyn felt his heart drum against his chest.

Grian turned back and motioned to Martyn. “Faster, Martyn, come on!”

I know! Martyn wanted to snap back, but he only nodded and tried to force himself to go faster. There was no time to argue. His chest heaved as he frantically tried to keep up with the others, determination burning through his chest as he tried to motivate himself to get out.

Keep your promise, Martyn echoed in his head. Stay alive for Scott.

Martyn finally began to run faster.

Martyn heard a distant sound of something being uprooted and… smoke.

Smoke!

Fire!

It was spreading to the forest!

Martyn glanced behind him, seeing glimpses of dark smoke rising into the air, blotting out the stars as distant orange lights danced in the distance. As if Pearl wasn’t a threat enough.

Multiple footsteps rattled the earth as the hunters made their escape. Left, right, up and over, down under. Martyn was getting lightheaded from all this running. Did the forest need to stretch so long?

“YOU CAN RUN, BUT YOU CAN’T RUN FOREVER.”

Pearl’s voice was distant, but it was bellowing in anger and… some other emotion Martyn couldn’t describe. It was jarringly loud despite the distance. All he could do was focus on the path and allies ahead of him.

One word kept repeating in Martyn’s head as his heart pounded out of his chest and his nose filled with the smell of smoke. Fire enveloped the trees, blazing and blinding as it chased the hunters through the collapsing forest. One word rang in his ears long after all the others.

Run.