#the swaps finally see just how fuched up alt and bro are

[huffle-dork]

Long Live the King

Chapter 3 : When Lightning Strikes

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A couple hours after the Swaps' arrival in this new world, the boat is packed up again and everyone is underway. It's a bit crowded, but tolerable. The boat is being steered along by a woman wearing a fox mask who appears, to the Earth-born swaps, East Asian. Vsevna is talking to her at the helm, letting the others have the opportunity to talk with their other selves from another world.

The swaps are all dressed in a combination of their own clothes from home and borrowed pieces from the Phantoms. Henny is dressed in a long light blue striped tunic, with no sleeves and a slight collar. His own gray suit pant are underneath since he’s too tall to use any of the others pants. He’s wearing a white poofy poet style shirt under his tunic with light leather guards serving as long cuffs. He’s using his green tie as a sash. Dr. J has on his own dark brown khakis with a borrowed shirt from Jameson. It’s dark blue with slight puffs at the shoulder seams with dark brown straps down the front, cinched with a dark brown belt at his waist. Jackieboy got lucky that he fit into any of his other selves clothes- so he’s wearing a dark red tunic with a black cowl like hood attached. He has slightly bunched pants tucked into red and black boots and black fingerless gloves on his hands. He was a dark sight compared to the blues of his counterparts- but damn if he didn’t look cool!

"Are you sure you're alright, Juwel?" Henny asks in worry.

Dr. J smiles, "Yes, Henrik I'm just fine. This is a lot smoother than I thought it would be."

"If you're worried about seasickness, this river doesn't move as much," Marvin says. "I, um... get it too. But the river's usually fine for me, so... it... probably would be for you, too." Marvin is not good at small talk.

Dr. J smiles at Marvin and nods, "Thank you Marvin, that's very good to know."

"Can't imagine getting motion sick- that must suck." Jackieboy comments, shrugging. "I couldn't parkour if i got sick that easily!" He then eyes the parts of the ship and looks up at all the parts. "... do you think I could-"

"No, Jackie- now isn't the time to be jumping around you know." Dr. J sighs, adjusting his glasses.

Jackieboy pouts.

"Your friends mentioned this 'parkour' while they were here," Henrik says. "It is like--climbing things and running for fun, yes?" He chuckles. "In that case, you could have been a topman if you were born here, Jackieboy. They are the sailors who climb on the riggings."

"It might be different if it was for a job, though," Jackie says thoughtfully.

Jackieboy's eyes sparkle with excitement, "Dudeee that would be so fucking dope!! I wanna do that!!" He then laughs and shrugs to Jackie, "I dunno- I do parkour for a job right now and... I love it still, honestly. Even if I get hurt alll the time!"

"You say that way too happily, Jackie," Dr. J chuckles, shaking his head.

Now that JJ seems alright, Henny perks up and spins around in his new outfit, giggling quietly. "These clothes are so funny though! I want to get a role in a fantasy movie now so I wear these things more! Look how flowy!!" He then spins around, not unlike a dog chasing its tail.

Jackieboy breaks into giggles at the sight and Dr. J can't hide his smile. "Ah Henrik- please be careful!"

"Careful not to fall off the side," Chase adds when Henny starts spinning around. "It would be terrible to get your new clothes wet or lose your, uh... By the way, I've been meaning to ask this. You two. What are you wearing on your faces? Over your eyes?" He gestures at his own face.

Henny rights himself, getting dizzy for a second. He then blinks and adjusts his glasses with a grin. "Oh! They are glasses! They help you to see! And- our world has much better glasses than I did before!! Everything was so clear when Juwel got me a new pair!"

"I was wondering about that," Dr. J muses, looking at the group. "If you are all like us... some of you must need glasses. Do you have blurry vision?"

Instantly, the group all turns to look at Henrik. "...what?" he asks.

Marvin rolls his eyes. "Your man is holding parchment up to his face like this." He mimes holding something inches from his face.

"I do not!" Henrik protests. "Only when it is dark. And the writing is tiny. Or the ink is faded into the vellum a bit."

They all just stare at him.

"Alright, if we are being like that, what about Jackie?"

"Me?" Jackie says, surprised.

"Yes, you. You being like--" Henrik squints his eyes until they're nearly closed "--when trying to see something down a hill's length."

"I don't look like that!"

"Haha, not so fun to be the accused, is it?"

I have heard tales of cut glass being used in Saelas, Jameson says, quietly turning the subject. Like the magnifiers in libraries, but much smaller. That must be what your glass does, too.

Chase blinks. "The what in libraries?"

"Some fancier libraries have circles of glass about this big." Marvin makes a circle with his hands. "They help you read when the writing on the parchment or vellum is too small."

"So... we need to attach magnifiers to Henrik's face, then," Chase sums up.

"Hey!"

Dr. J laughs, "That is kind of what it is! Or what they were when they were first made!" He gestures at Jackieboy, "Jackie needs them too but he's stubborn and doesn't wear them nearly as much as he should."

"Hey!" Jackieboy glares at JJ, "Like I was gonna bring them here to get broken! They're expensive!"

"That'd be less likely if you'd actually wear them."

Henny looks between everyone and then takes off his glasses and offers them to Henrik, "Other me! Would you like to try? It is wonderful to see clear!!" He smiles kindly.

Henrik blinks. "Oh. Ah, really? Alright, if you are sure." He carefully takes the glasses, like he's afraid they'll break the moment he takes hold of them. They don't, of course. So he carefully slides them onto his face, glancing at JJ for reference on how they should fit. Then he looks around the boat. He blinks a couple times. His eyes go wide behind the glass. "W-wait. Wait."

Are they working? Jameson asks.

"I... think they are." Henrik stares at Jameson. "There is a pattern on your neck bow?"

"Wha--you couldn't see that this whole time?!" Marvin gasps. "I mean, I guess it's a smaller pattern, with similar colors, but-- but we can all see that from this distance, right?" He looks around at the others. Chase nods in agreement. Even Jackie nods in agreement.

Jameson grins. Yes, this is my fancy one.

"Oh!" Henrik blinks some more. He looks around some more. "That is... oh. Wow."

Henny beams and backs up carefully. He claps as he sees Henrik look around. “yay! They’re working!!”

“Oh! You must be far-sighted then if closer objects are harder to see.” Dr. J smiles. “That’s not as common. We all are near-sighted.”

“I’m not as bad as you both.” Jackieboy grumbles.

"Near sighted? No, I do not think that is what this is?" Henrik says slowly. "It is just... all..."

"Henrik, was everything blurry to you?" Chase asks, genuinely concerned.

"That would explain him holding the parchment like this." Marvin repeats his mime from earlier.

"Shut up. All of you." Henrik carefully takes the glasses off and hands them back to Henny. "Thank you. That was... that was an experience." He laughs a bit.

Henny giggles, "It's okay- most things are blurry for me too! But, I can see things near me a bit better. But things farther away are very blurry. Probably like.... ah- here?" He sticks his hand out and squints and then stops his hand about an a half of an arm's length from his face. "That's when things get blurry for me!" He takes the glasses and puts them back on. "I wish i could give you your own pair! I think Alt might know a spell for that though!!"

"Ah, yes, that is about how it is for me," Henrik agrees, nodding at Henny's demonstration.

Dr. J shakes his head with a chuckle then goes to take off his glasses to offer to Jackie. “It seems only fair to have you try too. Though- I hope mine don’t hurt your eyes. I have a pretty strong… set of glass.” He says carefully- trying not to use the word ‘prescription’.

"Uh, sure, I'll try." Jackie takes JJ's glasses just as carefully as Henrik did. He puts them on and blinks. "Hmm... yes, this does feel a bit strange in my eyes. But... I can see those trees' leaves." He points at a tree in the distance.

"Jackie, are you joking?" Chase says, still concerned.

"No, I'm not! I didn't realize they weren't supposed to lose detail. Elders." Jackie takes the glasses off. "Thank you. I think they were a little strong, but they worked."

Dr, J chuckles, "I remember a similar experience when I first got my glasses as a lad. It was so strange to see everything so clear! Especially the trees." He takes them back and adjusts them on his face, "I bet it would have felt better if we had something you know... closer to what your eyes needed."

Jackieboy throws up his arms, "Jesus Jays! Fine, next time we go to a fantastical world, I'll make extra sure to bring my fragile glasses! You're such a nag sometimes!!"

"Do not be hard on him Juwel- he got his glasses later than us! It is a hard adjustment!" Henny tries to say gently.

Jackie grins. "It's alright, Jackieboy. I can still see enough. Seeing things from far away doesn't really matter as much in a sword fight. Though it does explain my difficulty with range weapons."

"Oh, wait, if JJ needs these glasses, does our Jameson?" Marvin asks. He turns to him as he says this. "Jair, is your vision ever blurry?"

Jameson doesn't answer. He doesn't even turn to look at Marvin. He's tensed up, facing towards the wooden wall of the boat but staring at nothing.

"Jameson?" Chase gasps. "Oh, no, that's not a good place for that!" He pulls Jameson back away from the edge of the boat. Or tries to, at least. His feet are rooted in place and Chase stops, afraid that he'll pull Jameson over.

Jameson's mouth is moving, like he's trying to say something but no words come out. His hands move jerkily. The translation spell that gives it subtitles is struggling, showing random letters for the Swaps.

“Woah woah! What’s happening?!” Jackieboy asks in concern.

Dr. J rushes over, worried creased on his brow. He hovers his hands close by. “is this… a seizure…?” He wonders quietly.

"I-it does look like a seizure, doesn't it?" Jackie says shakily. "B-but it's not!"

"Believe it or not this is actually... very normal," Marvin says.

"A bit of an over exaggeration," Henrik mutters. "Given how rare it is."

“W-What should we do?!” Henny cries.

"Don't worry, we just need to wait it out!" Chase says. "And, uh, be ready to catch him." He's hovering nearby for that exact thing.

"Jameson is an oracle," Marvin explains. "And this is a vision. They don't normally last long, i-it's fine."

Dr. J’s eyes widen, “An oracle?”

Henny frowns, sounding out oracle himself, after seeing JJ say it, “…what does this word mean?”

“It means he can see the future…!” Jackieboy says in awe.

"I-I know, it's worrying to see," Jackie says. "But he's really okay."

Dr. J frowns, still looking worried but nods. “If you’re sure…”

Henny and Jackie watch with worry while Dr. J tries to stay close by, just in case he needs to try to catch him too. This looks… painful though. But if it’s… common then, there’s not much he can do.

After not too long, Jameson suddenly slumps. Chase and JJ catch him before he falls to the ground--or worse, off the side of the boat.

Marvin rushes over as well. "Jair? Jair!" He shakes Jameson a little.

Jameson shakes his head, looking around a bit disoriented. He realizes that Chase and JJ are holding him and quickly stands up straight. Then he notices the concerned looks on the Swaps' faces. His eyes widen in alarm and he hurries to say, I'm alright! Really, I am.

“T-That was… kinda terrifying to see-“ Jackieboy admits quietly. “that happens every time you a vision…?”

“Are you dizzy? Or feeling sick?” Henny asks.

Jameson smiles at the other's concern. I know, it's scary. Sometimes I frightened my siblings when we were younger. But I feel fine. No dizzy, no nausea. Just a bit weak.

"Which does make sense, your muscles all tense up at once," Henrik says.

"We've all been where you guys are, we understand," Chase adds.

"...well. Now it's time for the question," Jackie says.

"Right now?" Marvin raises an eyebrow. "Give the new people some time to process what just happened before you ask what it was."

Jackieboy raises his hand a bit, looking timid. “…I was asking gonna ask but I was worried that was insensitive…”

I'm used to it, don't worry. Jameson's smile falls. Shadows briefly cover his eyes before he hides it with a neutral expression. You want to know what I saw, right?

Jackieboy nods.

"Is it... relevant?" Henrik asks carefully.

Again, those shadows flicker. Jameson shakes his head.

Marvin frowns. "Really?" he says doubtfully.

Henny looks hopeful for a second but then his face falls, “Oh… then it is not about Alt or Bro…?”

Dr. J nods, crossing his arms. “I guess that’s to be expected… that doesn’t seem like something you can just control. You don’t have to share if you don’t want to, Jameson.”

Jameson's shoulders slump slightly with relief. You're right, it's not something that can be controlled, he says. Not for lack of trying, on my part or... others'. But I really don't think this one in particular would be helpful. He gives them all a small smile. Sorry. But thank you.

Dr. J gives Jameson a small smile too. “Of course, we wouldn’t want you being uncomfortable.”

"Do you need to sit down, Jair?" Marvin asks. He looks around. "I know there are benches in here--damn, they're all taken."

I'm fine, Marvin, really.

Jackieboy tries to shake off his disappointment and leans on the wall of the ship to look out at the scenery. He really hopes Chase and Alt are okay…

Henny still looks a bit worried. “We still have a while to go, ja? Maybe sitting down would be good- we could always sit on the floor! Or… is that not good on a boat?” He thinks out loud, screwing up his face in a comical thinking pose.

"Let's find out," Marvin says, and sits down on the deck. Draco immediate jumps into his lap. "Oh. Well, I suppose I'm staying here."

Henrik laughs. "I-I think it will be fine. There is nothing up here that will roll around. The most we have to worry about is other people falling if we hit a--" Suddenly, he flinches. His head turns to the side, staring at nothing. Then he faces the others again. "What was I saying? Ah, yes, if we hit a rock. But this is a deep river, it will be fine."

Henny goes to sit next to Marvin, offering his hand to Draco to see if he wants pets. “He is quite the affectionate kitty! He must love you a lot.”

"He's not usually this affectionate, to be honest. He must be trying to make up for [imíonoshtil] me to the Wildwood." Marvin gives Draco a half-serious glare. For some reason, the translation spell doesn't work on that word, but the boys vaguely hear 'teleporting' underneath the sounds.

Henny blinks in surprise, “Your cat can send you places?? He is magic too?? Oh- if my dog had magics- that would not be good. She’d only use it for treats!” He laughs.

"Well, Draco isn't exactly a normal cat," Marvin says, scratching Draco's chin. "He's a wizard familiar. An animal made of magic. And there's magic all over the world that he can use to move quickly. He only took me twice, and that's a whole story."

"He did make me think you'd been captured for about a week," Chase says, sitting down on the deck as well. Jameson also sits, but Jackie does not, preferring to lean onto the wall and watch the land passing by.

“Oh!!! What a special kitty!!” Henrik gasps in delight. “Well- except for- you know, worrying your friends.” He laughs lightly.

Meanwhile, while the others talk, Dr. J looks concerned again at Henrik’s behavior. “Henrik… are you feeling alright?”

"I-I am perfectly alright!" Henrik says hurriedly and in a way that definitely doesn't convince anyone. "I am simply--simply--"

"You know you don't have to tell them," Jackie says gently.

Henrik rubs his eyes. "Perhaps once we get closer to the city. I-it is a bit personal, but I am... curious about what it would be like in your world."

Dr. J knits his eyebrows together, the wheels turning in his head. He’s noticed some things but… “I don’t mean to pry. I just… I’m a… mental doctor. Back home. Or… I… I was. And I’m… trained to recognize these types of things. But, if you don’t want to share, that’s perfectly fine. And… I wouldn't know without asking you a lot of questions. I’m not your doctor, so it’s really not my business… as long as you’re not getting yourself hurt… or others.” He does look genuinely concerned but- he also doesn’t want to make assumptions.

Henrik blinks in surprise. Then he lets out a breath of relief. "Thank the Sisters. I-I was afraid--well, not afraid, but... worried about your reactions. My home nation was not as kind about, ah, 'mind sickness,' as they called it there. In Glasúil they are called curses, but it is not magical, just... natural. M-my medicine was lost when we had to leave our main base. I have been making do with a different one, but it cannot handle all the symptoms the way my usual tonic can. So... m-my behavior has been off for a while."

Dr. J gives Henrik a sympathetic look, “That sounds very hard, Henrik, being without the right medicine… I’m sorry. But, you don’t need to worry about any judgement from us, believe me. We…all have our issues.” He tries to laugh, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes.

Henrik doesn't laugh when JJ does. He nods slowly. "I think the same can be said for us, too," he says slowly. "Is not my place to air other's issues, but... if you ever need to talk, I think you will find a lack of judgement from us as well."

Dr. J freezes slightly but then quickly puts on a brighter smile. “…that’s very generous, Henrik. I’ll make sure to keep that in mind.”

Henrik nods. "Just... remember that." He smiles back, then turns and looks out at the landscape. "Nice out here."

Dr. J smiles, looking out with Henrik, feeling the nice breeze. “Yeah… it is.”

Jackieboy yawns, looking around and now slips down to rest against the wall of the boat, rubbing at his eyes. The rocking motion is actually kinda soothing… mmm did he sleep enough last night? …probably not knowing him. But this doesn’t seem like a good place for a nap. But soon enough, he curls up his legs to his chest and rests his head on top of his knees, blearily watching the landscape go by as he struggles to stay awake.

Jackie notices his other self nodding off. He crouches down next to him. "Tired? You know, people sleep on boats all the time. There are some spaces below deck. Assuming they haven't been claimed already."

Jackieboy blinks and looks to his other self and then tries to shake his head. “Me? Nah- ….well I mean I am but I’m always tired so… s’why I like to move around so much.” He stifles a yawn and presses the heel of his hand against his eye, quickly grinning back at Jackie. “‘Sides- what if I doze off and miss something by being below deck? Who knows! ..maybe bro and Alt already took down that cat bastard and are halfway to finding us!”

"Heh." Jackie smiles. "Yea, maybe." He sits down next to him. "If you doze off, I'll wake you up when something happens. Promise."

Though it will be a while before something does.

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They'd been riding for hours--though not nearly as long as expected--and were just taking a break for food when the King finally picks something up. "Wait a moment." He narrows his eyes. "There are people up ahead. A lot of them. And they're... getting closer." He grins. "Surely they're not foolish enough to go back."

Magnificent gets up from where he’s lounging almost cat-like and perks up, slowly grinning. “Oh? Do you sense the rebels?”

At this Alt and Bro’s eyes flash green and they stagger up and put their hands on their weapons, Alt a seax, Bro a sword.

“Indeed I do.” The King peers down the river. “They must be just out of sight. If we wait here we can ambush them.” He looks around. This area has trees. They’re not close enough to be considered a proper forest, but they’ll do. “You.” He points at a cluster of warriors. “Get the horses out of sight. Magnificent, do you know any magic to help hide people?”

Magnificent teleports to his feet and then cracks his knuckles with a grin. “I do indeed! I can cast an illusion to keep us out of sight.”

“Are they on land, mu Ríth?” Alt asks, electricity building up around him.

“No, last I saw the rebels they were on a boat, and I doubt they would leave that behind now.” The King gestures at Alt and Bro. “You will lead the charge. Let Magnificent hide you. Then, once the boat is close enough, attack.” He looks at the other helmeted warriors. “The rest of you hide among the trees until these two make their move.”

“Yes, mu Ríth,” Bro and Alt say near at the same time, standing at attention.

Magnificent grins and laughs, magic dancing excitedly around his hands. In a wave of magic he casts a glamor over Alt and Bro. The two knights' bodies blend seamlessly into the background around them as if they’re truly invisible. “Alright! This will be quite the show~!”

Aneirin grins. "It will, won't it? Now we must hide as well. They'll be coming at any moment." He backs into the trees, letting the brothers and his warriors take the lead. He'll step in if things get truly desperate... or if he feels like he's missing out. Magnificent nods and teleports to hide in the trees.

The Phantoms' boat continues down the river without any trouble. They're coming up into a slightly wooded section now. Something about this is making Jackie uneasy. He paces across the deck, then looks up at the sky and frowns. It was a nice sunny day earlier. Those clouds appeared rather quickly.

Dr. J is also frowning up at the sky, his brows furrowed. “…those clouds sure came out of nowhere.”

Jackieboy is lightly dozing, Henny resting his head on top of his and trying to stay awake. He notices Jackie’s pacing and perks up. “Is everything okay, Jackie?”

"It's as JJ said, these clouds came out of nowhere," Jackie says.

Chase, leaning against the railing nearby, suddenly looks towards them. "They did, didn't they? I've often spent long times staring at the sky or the ground, and I don't think clouds usually form this fast..." He shakes his head. "But it's hard to be sure. And even if it's strange, what could it mean?"

“Maybe… magics?” Henny suggests quietly.

Jackieboy blinks awake and shakes his head, “Was’happenin’?”

Dr. J frowns, “Should we… maybe see about stopping for a rest? Is sailing during a storm on a river dangerous?”

Chase blinks. He turns to the side. “Hey Marvin!”

Marvin, some ways away, calls back, “Yes?”

“Is there magic that can influence the weather?”

Marvin is quiet for a moment. “I think… maybe if you get a circle of sorcerers together you might be able to?”

Chase turns back to the group. “Well there’s that.”

“I still don’t like it,” Jackie mutters. “It can’t be too dangerous to sail on a river during a storm. Not nearly as dangerous as sailing on the ocean during storms. But I’ll ask some of the sailors.” He walks away, heading towards the helm.

Chase frowns. He stares out at the passing landscape. “Let’s keep an eye out, okay?”

Dr. J still looks worried, but he nods, watching the landscape too.

Jackieboy groans and leans back against Henny. “Mannn if it rains then we have to moveeee!”

“You said you did want to fall asleep, mein friend.” Henny giggles.

“You’re so comfy and warm thoughhhh,” Jackieboy mumbles into his shoulder.

Henny laughs and pats his shoulder.“Well- I will not be for long if it rains!”

Unknown to them, the boat is quickly approaching the spot where Alt and Bro wait, hidden by an illusion.

As the boat appears, the Brody brothers get into ready stances. Without a word, Alt grabs Bro’s arm and together they glitch onto the boat. As lightning and thunder begins to roar in the sky, the swap boys notice a familiar sensation. The air suddenly feels electric and sharp and smells of metal.

Henny smiles and gets to his feet, already crying out for his friend. “Alt!! It is Alt!” But, then, the boys freeze as the illusion breaks, revealing Alt and Bro, staring at their friends with no recognition in their green glowing eyes. To this world’s boys, they instantly recognize the symbol on the tunics they wear, the Royal crest.

For a split second, everyone is frozen, shocked that people just appeared out of nowhere. And then weapons are drawn. A couple arrows are fired at Bro and Alt.

“Wait! Hold!” Henrik gasps.

“It’s too late!” Jackie draws his swords. “Defend yourselves!”

“No!!” Jackieboy yells, springing to his feet.

Henny is almost ready to try to use his watch when Alt’s eyes flash and he holds out a hand to make an electric shield around him and Bro.

Bro draws his sword and as soon as the arrows stop and the shield is dropped he yells and then charges at Jackie.

Dr. J stares in disbelief, “No no- what are you two doing?!”

Alt glances at Dr. J then bares his teeth, drawing his seax. “We’ve been ordered by the king to eliminate the rebels… and anyone who aligns with them.” He prowls closer, “So… if you wish to spare yourselves of their fate, step aside.”

Henny trembles, “A-Alt… w-why are you speaking as if you do not know us?!”

Alt’s eyebrows knit together. “…because I don’t. All I know is loyalty to aan Ríth.” He builds up magic and then tries to send out a wave of electricity to throw people off their feet.

Jackie parries Bro's attack easily. "You sure you're with the King? I know the royal family trains their warriors better." Bro’s eyes flash green as he bares his teeth in anger. Jackie grins, and goes for a disarming strike against Bro--but then Alt's wave of electricity hits and he gets knocked off his feet.

He's not the only one. Almost all of the Phantoms on deck get knocked over, including Jameson and Chase.

Marvin, managing to stay upright by grabbing the mast, looks at Alt. "Think you're a wizard? Alright. Let's duel." And he shoots a beam of light at Alt.

Back on the riverbank, several warriors step out of the trees. One throws a rope with a hook on the end, latching onto the side of the boat.

Henrik, also on his feet, notices the grapple rope on the side. "Vsevna! They're boarding!" he shouts.

Vsevna climbs to his feet. "Not on my fucking boat!" He pulls something off his back--an axe with a long spike on the back of its head--and rushes over, slicing through the rope.

Meanwhile, Henrik bends over and pushes aside a grate on the floor. He reaches in and grabs something, then quickly straightens and throws it. It's a small, circular bottle. It shatters against the riverbank ground and a wave of orange light crashes outward, pushing things over. The warriors, as well as the King and Magnificent, are in its range.

Bro’s about to strike at Jackie again when Alt’s wave of magic hits. He staggers a bit but stays upright and raises his sword, ready to bring it down on Jackie.

The electric wave sends Jackieboy crashing hard into the boat’s wall and he cries out.

Henny just manages to stay on his feet- and manages to see as the force of magic sends Dr. J flying off the edge of the ship.

JJ screams and desperately tries to reach out to grab something but misses- splashing into the water below.

Henny rushes to the edge and screams out after him. “JAMESON!!”

Alt and Bro turn towards the sound of distress before Alt gets hit by Marvin’s beam and is thrown off his feet, skidding across the ground.

The glow in Bro’s eyes flickers wildly with blue before he pushes forward then in a zip of power is flying off the boat and diving into the water.

Mag sees this and growls, building up magic- and doesn’t see the orange light of Henrik’s attack until he’s thrown off his feet and hits one of the trees. Bright light blooms in his vision as he hits the back of his head and slumps down, momentarily distracted.

"Cover!" The King shouts when he sees Henrik throw the bottle. Most of the warriors are able to flee quickly enough, and he is as well. He sees Magnificent get thrown back.

Under the water, JJ is struggling to find the surface, his clothes weighing him down as he tries to swim upwards. Then, strong arms are wrapping around him and pulling him up. Bro flies back up into the air before landing back on the ship with Dr. J.

JJ coughs and sputters before looking at Bro with wide eyes. “C-Chase…!”

Bro is looking down at JJ with equally wide eyes, confused.

Jackie, Chase, and Jameson climb to their feet. "Stay behind me," Jackie says, helping Jackieboy to his feet.

Jackieboy trembles a bit but tries to hide it as he stays behind Jackie. This is… so much more intense than he was expecting.

Meanwhile, Chase nocks an arrow and aims towards the riverbank. Jameson crouches down and starts rummaging through the same grate that Henrik got that bottle from, looking for weapons.

The warriors on the riverbank run back to the shore. A few more throw grapple ropes onto the boat and start pulling. Vsevna growls and tries to cut through them but there are too many. "Someone get the helm! Hard to starboard!"

Henny sees the other warriors trying to get on the ship and wishes he had something to help. As if in response, a teal knife of magic pops into existence in his hand. He startles slightly and then grins, going to help slash through the ropes too.

The King sees Bro jump off the side of the ship and rescue the fallen JJ. He narrows his eyes and shouts Commands at Bro. "Stop that! Remember your purpose!"

Bro suddenly stiffens as his eyes glow green again. He cries out and grips at his head, magic flickering wildly. “M-My… purpose…!” He whispers, the green quickly winning.

Dr. J quickly tries to grab Bro’s shoulder, “Chase…! Chase please! You need to wake up!”

Magnificent recovers quickly and growls, gripping his hand and sending out a pulse of magic, along with another message for Bro. {Remember Chase- disobey and you hurt your brother }

At this, the green ring around Alt’s wrist scars lights up and he screams as painful energy sends him back to his knees after he started to recover.

Bro hears this and he screams before the magic fills his eyes completely again. then all his fight is gone. He shoves Dr. J off him and growls at him coldly. “Consider yourself lucky I saved you, rebel scum. Stay out of the way.”

Jackie looks towards JJ and Bro--and notices the flickering green in his eyes. "They're enchanted!" He gasps. Quickly he steps forward, drawing Bro's attention. He thinks he can take him, and right now, they need to keep these two busy. "What are the ways to break the spell?"

Bro’s eyes lock onto Jackie again and he bares his teeth, taking out his sword again and rushing at him.

Marvin runs to Alt, conjuring a bubble of white light around him, hoping to trap him.

Alt looks up from the sudden assault of magic to see he’s trapped in white light. He growls and coats his seax in lightning and tries to see if he can slash himself free.

Taking a chance to breathe, Marvin looks towards Jackie and starts to say something, but then Alt tries breaking through the bubble and he snaps his attention back to him, quickly sealing up the slash that he made. "We can do that later! For now get them out of the picture!"

Dr. J’s eyes widen as he hears Jackie and Marvin. Of course… this must be Magnificent’s doing! But… why? And why are they so deep that they don’t recognize them? If only he could get one of them alone…!

As Henny starts cutting through the ropes, Vsevna looks at him in surprise, then grins. "Ah, resourceful in every world, I see!" Henny grins at Vsevna.

"Um?" Henrik looks at him, narrowing eyes slightly.

"Oh come now, sova, don't be so insecure--"

"Look out!" Chase shouts.

The warriors have bows, and now they loose the arrows.

Henrik, Chase, and Vsevna all quickly duck, avoiding the attack.

Henny startles as he sees the arrows coming. He fumbles for his watch and then holds out a hand, his eyes glowing teal. “Stop!” The arrows all stop in their momentum as they’re caught in teal magic. Then with a quick flick of his wrist, the magics gone and the arrows drop. Then Henny rushes to get back to slashing the ropes.

Henrik gets back to his feet again. "Ha! Impressive, other-me." He looks at Vsevna. "You are right, I understand now." Vsevna just grins.

Jameson stands up again, now holding a bow and a quiver of arrows. He awkwardly nocks one and fires at the warriors, flinching as the bow string hits his arm. Chase, following his lead, starts firing as well. So do some of the other Phantoms who are recovering.

Jackie parries Bro's wild attack. He grits his teeth as his mind whirls. They have to disarm these two! He swings his other sword while blocking Bro's with the other, aiming to smack the blade out of Bro's hand.

Bro’s grip is strong. As Jackie tries to disarm him, Bro holds firm and uses his strength to push Jackie’s blades down back towards him.

Jackie narrows his eyes and pushes back against Bro. Their blades are locked together for a moment, and then Jackie quickly snaps his two swords towards each other like a pair of scissors, trapping Bro's blade between them. He tries to wrench it to the side.

Bro manages to keep his grip and slides his sword back. He then tries to swipe out at one of Jackie’s legs.

Bro's leg hits Jackie's but doesn't do anything. Jackie glances down at the impact. Thank the Elders that Bro seems to have forgotten his super strength. But he'll remember eventually. Wtih a sudden yell, Jackie puts all his force into a forward push, planning to knock him down.

Bro isn't expecting the yell- but he manages to grab Jackie by the wrist and pulls him down with him. Hitting the deck by the back of the head majorly disorients him though, magic flickering wildly in his eyes.

Alt yells in anger as he’s sealed in and cracks his seax into the magic again. But he feels the familiar buzz on his arms and remembers he can get out of this easier. How did he forget? He glitches out of the magic and appears behind Marvin before trying to tackle him to the ground.

Marvin's eyes widen as Alt disappears. Shit! He forgot he could do that! He whirls around to look for him and cries out as Alt attacks him.

Jameson and Henrik turn around at the sound. Instinctively, Jameson fires the arrow he's just nocked.

Alt is raising his seax to try to stab Marvin in the throat. Then, the arrow Jameson fires hits him in the shoulder. He cries out and drops his seax, gripping at his wound and glitching a bit in place. The others can see his eyes flickering a tiny bit.

Marvin pushes Alt away, breathing heavily. He grabs Alt's head and holds it in place. Marvin's eyes start lighting up various colors, hoping that the extra stimulation will help loosen this enchantment.

Alt, for a second, catches the colors in Marvin’s eyes and seems to relax ever so slightly. But that sickly green light pulses brighter and he shakes it off, growling and then pushing to blast magic right in Marvin’s face.

Jackieboy looks around, wanting to help. He goes to look for a weapon like he saw Jameson do. Soon, he finds a decently sized knife and some throwing knives like he saw Jackie using. His eyes flicker up to the rigging above them, and he grins as he gets an idea. He quickly starts to climb the ropes, sticking the knifes into his belt. Henny ducks and weaves and tries to keep any other ropes from getting on the boat.

Chase sees Jackieboy climbing up the rigging. "What are you doing?!" he gasps. "Be careful!"

Jackieboy staggers a bit while climbing, but manages to get onto a more solid place rather quickly. He eyes the battle below- then looks out and freezes as he sees Magnificent and the King on the shore. “uhhh guys! Bastards spotted on the shore!”

Henny gasps at seeing Mag and the King on the shore, “I-Is that the king?!” Dr. J peeks over to see, narrowing his eyes.

Meanwhile, Marvin also yells in surprise. He barely manages to throw up a shield to Alt’s assault on his face. Even so, the force of the magical blast pushes both of them backwards across the floor. And then he hears Jackieboy's yell. His head snaps to the edge of the boat and he runs over. "Trade you!" he shouts to Henrik, and aims a burst of fiery magic at Magnificent.

Henrik nods and spins around. He thinks he's found a good potion to use. And he throws it towards Alt.

The King watches all this from the riverbank. He glances over towards Magnificent, then hurries over and shakes him. "They're getting away," he whispers urgently. Indeed, with Henny and Vsevna constantly cutting off the grapple ropes, the boat is continuing down the river, sailing away slowly but steadily. "I can do something, but it will be drastic. Do you have anything less drastic?"

Magnificent growls and tries to think, “Other than setting the boat on fire… how drastic is your plan?!”

"It's just as drastic as that." The King bares his teeth in a smile. "Surely you remember my skill with lightning. Take out their sail and they're at the mercy of the current." Then he notices Marvin's attack. "Move!"

Magnificent’s eyes light up and he grins, “We’ll take down the sail then-“ He cuts himself off and dives into the sand, gasping as he just barely manages to dodge the fire. He growls and pushes himself up, eyes glowing brightly. He whips out green fire to blast at Marvin too.

Marvin ducks as Magnificent throws fire of his own. "Yes, that's the bastard," he mutters. He aims another blast of fire at the King instead--

"No!" Chase pushes Marvin and the blast goes wide, setting the trees on fire instead. "Remember what we know now!"

The King tenses up, preparing to dodge the fire, but then Chase knocks it wide. He chuckles. "Fools," he whispers. "Alright. Take it down, then."

Henny gasps as the magic goes wide and stares out at the king and Mag. They must be the reason his friends are being crazy right now… but how do they stop this??

Alt skids back against the deck and tries to shake off his disorientation. He then notices Henrik throwing something and gets to his feet in a crouched position before glitching and shoving him up against the side of the ship. “Fucking rebel bastards!” He hisses.

The potion Henrik threw shatters against the deck, conjuring up wildly writhing vines. With Alt glitching out of the way no one is around to get caught in their grasp. Henrik isn't expecting that. Nor is he expecting to be suddenly pushed against the side of the ship. He gasps and fumbles at his belt until he finds a small dagger. He holds it up to Alt's neck. "I-I do not want to hurt you," he says in a shaky voice. "Just back away."

Alt’s eyes flicker wildly as his murderous expression falls, tensing back slightly from the knife. It’s so close to his scar- he can’t remember how he got it but he knows that’s too close. A hazy memory flickers in his head- of a kind doctor sharing coffee beans with him, smiling warmly. “…h-hen…” He breathes out.

Henrik nods. "Yes, exactly. Y-you know that--"

Jackieboy sees Bro struggling and slips out one of the throwing knives and tries to see if he can pin Bro to the deck by catching his tunic.

The knife sinks easily into the deck and pins Bro- though he’s still trying to get his bearings.

Jackie quickly pins Bro to the floor, pressing the flat of his blade across his chest. The sword isn't harming him now, but it would be easy to slip up and get cut. "Don't move," Jackie says, and tries to hit Bro on the back of the head to knock him out.

Bro starts to fight slightly as he’s pinned, growling at Jackie with anger. But then, Jackie manages to hit him hard enough that he slumps completely to the deck, out cold.

Alt stiffens as Bro falls and then he forgets about Henrik entirely and glitches over to dive at Jackie, yelling in rage.

"Jackie, watch out!" Henrik shouts.

Jackie's eyes widen and he rolls to the side, dodging Alt's attack but leaving Bro's unconscious body undefended. He gets to his feet but hesitates, unsure how to proceed. He doesn't know how to prepare for Alt's 'glishing.'

Alt slides across the deck and lands like a cat, baring his teeth. His eyes flicker to Bro’s body. Then he stares at Jackie, magic building up around him as he makes a seax out of his sparking magic.

Magnificent feels his connection to Bro go cold and he growls. “That useless fucking hero!” He aims for the sail and sends out a bolt of Lightning.

As Mag sends out his lightning the King feels its electricity. It's going to go a bit wide so he reaches out and pulls it into place. The blast hits the top of the mast, spreading down to the canvas sail... and the rigging where Jackieboy is hanging.

Jackieboy jumps and screams, scrambling towards the main pole and trying to dodge the parts of the mast that are falling. “Shit shit shit!!!”

At the railing, Vsevna, Chase, and Jameson all spin around. "The mast!" Vsevna gasps.

"Other Jackie!" Chase rushes over to the base of the rigging. "H-hang on!"

“Jackie!!” Henny cries.

Alt uses this confusion to run at Jackie, trying to slash at his chest.

Jackie glances up at the confusion, distracted momentarily. Then he sees Alt running at him and just barely backs up in time. If it wasn't for his chain mail shirt he would've been cut. "Hey!" He shouts, and goes for an attack, trying to hit with the flat of his blade.

Alt dodges out of the way and then tries to slash at Jackie’s hand.

Jackie tries to move his hand but he's not fast enough. He cries out as the blade slices through his glove. One of his swords clatters to the ground. But he grits his teeth and lunges forward, hoping to smack Alt and knock him out like he did with Bro. "Elders!"

Alt grins, giggling slightly, his eyes glowing a bit brighter. But then, he doesn’t dodge fast enough and gets knocked out by Jackie, hitting the ground with a dull thud.

Meanwhile, Vsevna is shouting at the other Phantoms to get the water from the hold. The King looks at the starting fire and grins. "Well... look at that." Without the sail, without anyone at the help. The boat is drifting. He gestures at the warriors and they throw the last of their grapples and start to pull. The boat slowly floats towards the bank.

Dr. J can’t do much so he tries to drag Bro away from the fighting and the possible fire. He lurches a bit as the boat starts to get pulled to the shore. He looks out with panic. Then he grabs Bro’s hand and starts to tap a rhythm on it- sos in Morse code as he whispers down to Bro, “P-Please Chase…! Wake up! We need your help! I know you’re in there!”

"I-it's going to be okay, Jackie!" Chase shouts up at Jackieboy. Then he looks back at the Henriks. "Can either of you do anything to help?!"

"M-maybe?" Henrik says, looking through the potions he has. "Just buy some time for me!"

Henny’s eyes flash teal and he nods. “I got this!” He shouts and then pauses time. He hurries to climb up, slipping slightly but determined to get to Jackieboy. He gets to him alright and grabs Jackie but then he hesitates on how to get down. Then he starts to lose his balance for a second- and they both fall.

At the last second, Henny flips so he lands hard on the deck and curls up to protect Jackie. As he hits the deck, time restarts in a painful burst. At least for Henny. He gasps as he arches his back, his vision going white for a second.

To the others- it looks like he just- fell out of nowhere holding Jackieboy.

Jackieboy blinks in confusion and then freaks out at seeing Henny hurt, “H-Henny!!”

Chase gasps in surprise as Henny and Jackieboy fall. "Y-you--how?!"

"You did not need to--" Henrik shoves a bottle at Chase. "Throw that on the fire!" he shouts, and hurries over to check out Jackieboy and especially Henny. "What happened?! Are either of you hurt?!"

Chase looks down at the bottle in his hand and throws it at the fire. It doesn't quite land where he's aiming but breaks anyway. Frost spreads across the mast and sail. The flames shrink down, but they've still done a lot of damage. Canvas is quite flammable.

Then the boat reaches the shallows of the river. Its hull grinds against the ground. A shudder passes through the entire boat, causing people to stumble but not enough to knock anyone down. The more pressing concern is that, now that the boat has been pulled close to the bank, the warriors are trying to board. Most of the Phantoms rush over to the side to keep them off. Chase and Jameson join them.

Henny grits his teeth through the pain then shakes his head, trying to clear his vision as he looks up at Henrik. “I used my magic!”

“Why did you do that?!” Jackieboy shouts, “I-I could have gotten down better than you hen! You could have gotten super hurt!”

“I am okay! Just- bruising!” Henny says, pushing himself up shakily.

"We will have to make sure of that later," Henrik says, glancing around. It's chaos as the warriors continue to try to board. Though the Phantoms have the upper hand with the high ground, the warriors are persistent, and don't share the Phantoms' reluctance to cause permanent harm. "Can you two fight? Or should I tell you to go somewhere safe?"

Henny shakes his head and gets to his feet. “I-I can still fight-!”

Marvin, meanwhile, tries to throw more magic. He aims for the King at first but then remembers what Chase said and goes for Mag instead. This bolt of magic is tinged slightly blue as he takes inspiration from Henrik's frost potion.

Magnificent sees the magic coming and swipes a fire covered hand to stop Marvin’s spell before it reaches him. Then he yells in frustration as he feels his connection to Alt go fuzzy. “Shit! We might need to think of a backup plan… those idiotic brothers are down!”

But, now that they’re closer, Mag’s eyes glow purple and he holds out a hand towards Alt. Even though the glitch hasn’t been out for long, he suddenly gasps as his back arches and his eyes fill completely with purple. Purple strings wrap around his limbs and pull him back up to his feet. He staggers and falls over himself some- like he isn’t quite awake. He looks back at Jackie, but doesn’t really seem to see him fully. But then, magic flares up on his skin and in a flash of purple and green glitches he turns into a wolf and launches himself at Jackie.

Jackie gapes as Alt gets pulled upright. "H-holy flame," he says, backing up, taking in everything that's happening. His skin crawls just looking at it. The purple magic--this is the work of that Magnificent, isn't it? He's so taken aback by this disturbing sight that he's almost tackled by this new wolf form. Luckily he manages to get a hold of himself in time to dodge. He scoops his other sword off the floor, wincing slightly since his hand is still injured, and spins around to face him again. "Marvin?! Backup?!"

Marvin is ready to throw more magic at Magnificent when Jackie calls. He turns around--"What the shit?!" Wolf?! Wolf?! Okay, time for some drastic measures. "Give me one moment, Jackie, I need to find Draco!" he shouts as he runs towards the nearest entrance to the hold.

"What?! Fine!" Jackie braces himself, swords held defensively in front of him. Alt snarls, but he prowls around Jackie clumsily.

Meanwhile, Dr. J’s tapping seems to have worked… but not completely in his favor. Bro’s eyes fly open, once again bright green. He zips up and then throws JJ against the wall of the boat by his throat, choking him. He growls at him. “Why would I help someone like you?”

Dr. J scrambles to get his hand off, his mind going into panic mode. “B-Because… you’re our f-friend…! You’re a hero!”

Bro’s eyebrows knit ever so slightly, a brief flick in his eyes.

Jackieboy sees Bro awake again and attacking Dr. J and yells out, “Hey! Let him go!!” He then rushes to see if he can tackle Bro off JJ.

On land, The King frowns, glancing at Mag. "If need be I can pull them out for a retreat. We'll burn the ship as we run." The air around him hums as he says that.

Magnificent’s hand shakes as he grits his fangs. “I-I think that might be wise… I can’t keep this spell up for long- and I feel the hero slipping-!” Blood is starting to drip from one of his eyes.

Jackieboy manages to throw Bro off Dr. J and the two of them skid across the deck.

Dr. J falls to his knees and coughs, holding his throat.

Bro pushes himself up and looks up at Jackieboy with widening flickering eyes. “j..Jackie?”

Jackieboy feels tears in his eyes as he pulls his hands into fists at his side. “Chase please! You gotta break out of this! You’re not some evil knight! You’re my fucking best friend! You’re Bro Fantastic! And he wouldn’t side with some tyrannical king!”

At hearing his hero name, Bro’s eyes glow silver blue and he whispers, “Bro… Fantastic…?” He then cries out and curls up against the deck as he grips at his head, purple trying to fight in his eyes.

Henny sees this and calls out, “Y-You must keep fighting Chase! We all need you! A-Alt needs you! You cannot save anyone being stuck like this!”

Bro yells out, curling up more as his shattered mind burns- his head pounding.

Alt then slightly glitches and he lashes out, trying to bite Jackie’s leg.

Jackie yelps, not expecting the wolf to go for the leg. He barely moves out of way in time, Alt's teeth snapping closed only an inch from his skin. "Marvin?!"

"Found him!" Marvin returns from the hold with Draco held awkwardly in his arms. "I haven't actually done this yet, only practiced on my own, but here we go!"

Draco's eyes glow blue. Marvin's eyes glow white. And then the two colors shift until they are the same pale blue-tined color. Strands of light wrap around Draco's body as Marvin runs over to Jackie and the wolf. Then, with a yell, Marvin throws Draco. The light covers him completely, growing bigger—and then he lands in front of Alt, suddenly just as big as the wolf is. Draco hasn't changed into a different type of cat, he still has his coloring and housecat proportions, but now he is big, with eyes that glow bright blue. He hisses at Alt, fur bristling and claws out, and lunges.

Alt isn't expecting any of this- and soon enough he’s getting pounced on hard enough to make his wolf form burst into pixels as he snaps back into his human form. Veins of purple magic are leaking out of his eyes as the magic flickers and he weakly tries to fight from being trapped by Draco’s claws.

"Elders and Sisters!" Jackie jumps back in surprise. "Since when can Draco do that?!"

"Since now," Marvin states. Draco keeps Alt's human form pinned but doesn't continue to attack.

Chase sees what Jackieboy and Henny are doing. He stops shooting and joins them. "They're right!" he gasps out to Bro. "I know you—not for very long, but if there's one thing I know, it's that you want to do the right thing. Try to remember! The King is not on the side of justice!"

Tears are falling down Bro’s cheeks as he gasps and shakes, trying to fight off the magic. He knew this was wrong- he didn’t want to do this! He glances at Chase, voice warbling. “O-Other me…!” Memories of their last adventures causes the magic to flicker more but- Bro is starting to win. The claws of Magnificent’s magic are being pushed back- his mental wall aiding him in fighting it off. But then his eyes flicker to Alt and he stills, purple trying to creep in. “Alt… I… I need to help Alt-!”

Jackieboy kneels down by Chase and holds onto his shoulder. “We’ll help him next Bro! But, you’re his best shot! Mag and the King are hurting him- hurting both of you! They’re using you! None of what they’re making you do is right!”

Bro shuts his eyes and yells one more time, but this time with more determination. The purple and green trying to leak into his eyes burst like glass and then Bro slumps completely to the floor, eyes half rolled up into his head.

Magnificent screams in rage.

The King's head snaps towards Magnificent as he screams. That's not a good sign. Time to act. He holds out his hand, tracing a circle in midair—

—and Alt and Draco fall through a green glowing hole that suddenly opened up in the deck below them. A similar hole opens up in midair next to the King and Magnificent.

"What in the damned world?!" The King gasps, staring at Draco. He recovers quickly, drawing his seax and slashing through the air. Crackling lightning shoots from the blade and hits Draco, sending him flying backwards.

Alt hardly reacts as the portal is opened and he falls but once Draco is off him he glitches to be back by the King and Magnificent. Then he falls to his hands and knees, shaking wildly.

From the ship deck, Marvin screams and falls to his knees, clutching his chest.

"Marvin?!" Jackie drops his swords and runs to him. Henrik's head shoots up at the sound and he sprints over.

"I-I'm fine," Marvin gasps. "It was just—just for a moment. H-he hurt Draco, and I gave him some of my magic, so—"

"That's some side effect!" Jackie gasps.

"Time to go," the King says. "What about the other one?"

Magnificent grabs Alt by his arm and holds him up as the glitch dangles dazedly. He shakes his head, “They managed to snap him out! But… we still have this one. He’s still useful enough to keep around… and to keep the others from interfering.”

Henny sees this and hurries to see if he can get through the portal still. “Magnificent!!”

Mag sees this and throws out green fire to stop anyone else from crossing through. He flashes glowing hate filled eyes at the rebels and snarls. “Congratulations kittens… you get to live a bit longer! But… not for too long. This isn’t over.”

Jackie turns towards the doorway as the flames shoot through and quickly pulls Henny back. He stumbles back as he’s pulled away.

As soon as Magnificent throws fire through the doorway and gives his little speech, Aneirin closes it. He does not need to say anything.

But, right before it closes- Alt’s eyes clear some and he just manages to catch the eyes of some of the others. …and he looks scared.

Henny yells out, tears falling down his face. “Alt!!”

Jackieboy is trying to shake Bro back awake, but the hero is limp and unresponsive.

The King looks back to the boat and catches sight of Chase, who stands and turns towards the railing. The two of them hold eye contact for a brief moment. And then Aneirin grins—and a bolt of lightning strikes the mast.

The wood of the mast splits, fire immediately catching. Luckily, most of the mast is still covered in frost, so the fire doesn't spread too far. Still, it's an effective distraction. The Phantoms turn back, yelling in surprise and confusion, and Aneirin commands the warriors to retreat.

"To the horses," he says, already running in that direction. "Put that one on yours, we can't have him holding us back."

Magnificent nods and quickly grabs Alt’s wrist, slicing off the tracking bracelet. They can always have him cast another one to find the others later… but he can’t have them following them. He teleports onto one of the horses, throwing Alt onto the back and making him pass back out with a wave of static.

Dr. J and Jackieboy hurry to the edge to yell out for their friend.

Aneirin mounts his horse startlingly easy, up in seconds. He grabs the lead of Magnificent's horse, attaching it to the bridle of his, and shouts, "YAH!" Both horses immediately start off in a gallop. The warriors are left behind to catch up, something that not all of them will be able to do without horses of their own.

Chase quickly nocks an arrow and shoots, prompting Jameson to do the same.

But they both miss.

"No!" Chase screams. "No!" He grips the edge of the railing, looking like he's about to throw himself over it and run after the retreating horses. He barely restrains himself from doing just that.

“Alt! ALT!!” Jackieboy screams after them, blinking back angry tears.

Dr. J feels his shoulders sink in despair as he looks away and closes his eyes. “…we can’t catch them…”

Jackie helps Marvin to his feet. He stares after the horses... but they don't have any on board. They'll never catch up without them. "H-hey." He turns to the rest of the Phantoms. "The mast is still on fire." And he starts giving orders on how to fix it.

Henny watches the fire burning on the deck and on the mast and then chokes on a sob, falling to his knees. They got Bro but… Alt is still lost! And now… they know his fate is much worse than they thought.

The sky rolls with thunder, everything is gloomy and gray. Despair hangs heavy in the air.

And then the rain starts to fall.

Jackie pauses in his orders to look up at it. He sighs. "Alright!" He does his best to look unruffled as he continues to address the Phantoms. "We can't go anywhere with the mast like this, so get the tents out. Doctors, check for injuries. We'll wait out the storm, then decide what to do next."

The Phantoms immediately start to move, but Jackie stays where he is. He looks at his other self.

“That fucking furry bitch! Next time I see him I’m gonna fucking kill him!!” Jackieboy growls weakly.

"Yea," Jackie whispers.

"We'll kill him alright," Marvin mutters. He shivers a bit, remembering that the—the magician is supposed to be him. "I-I need to get Draco," he says, hurrying over to the railing and pushing the gate part open. He disappears from sight before anyone can say anything else.

Dr. J looks up at the sky as it starts to rain. He was already soaked from his dip in the river so it actually feels almost nice. He stands there for a second before going over to Henny and sitting beside him. It doesn’t take long for Henny to fall against him and sob into his shoulder as the good doctor holds him tight.

Meanwhile, Chase slumps to the deck, sitting down. Jameson hovers around awkwardly, looking unsure, before deciding to go help people with the tents.

Henrik crouches down by Bro, giving him a quick check-over.

Jackieboy tries to scrub at his face but- kinda dumb when it’s raining now. At least it’s putting the fire out. He goes to check on Bro too, sitting down on his other side as Henrik checks him over. “…is he okay, Doc?”

The cost of fighting off all the magic seems to have manifested into a slight fever as Bro pants slightly, eyes twitching underneath his fluttering eyelids. He whines a bit in his passed out state, hands trembling.

"He's passed out," Henrik reports. "And has a slight fever. It is not too different from side effects I have seen from overusing magic. But, ah, his magic does not work like that, I know. Even so, if this is similar, he will be fine. We should get him into the rain as soon as possible. I-I mean out of the rain." He leans back and lets out a sigh. "I'm... sorry. I cannot..." He trails off, eyes glazing over.

Jackie walks over, hearing what he said. "We can get the tents up really fast. Don't worry. A-and it's not coming down too hard, either. It will be... fine." He looks at Henrik. "Right, Schneep?"

Henrik doesn't answer.

Jackieboy nods and pushes some of Bro’s hair away from his face, looking at him with worry. He then blinks up and tries to shake his head at Henrik, “I-It’s okay man- a lot just happened…” But then Jackieboy blinks and gets to his feet, very worried about the glazed look in Henrik’s eyes. He tries to wave a hand in front of his face. “Ummm Henrik? Are you okay?”

Jackie shakes Henrik's shoulder gently. Still no reaction. He sighs. "He's [katehránhe]. Don't worry... too much. It's a symptom of that curse he mentioned earlier. Did you hear when he talked with JJ about that? A 'mind sickness.'"

Like earlier when Marvin talked about Draco teleporting him, the translation spell struggles with 'katehránhe.' The Swaps hear the word 'dissociating' underneath the word that Jackie actually says, clearly the closest approximation.

Chase blinks, coming back to reality. "I-I've never actually seen him do that. Is it... really okay?"

Jackie shakes Henrik again, now a bit rough. "Henrik? Schneep? Henrik?"

Still nothing.

"If he's not coming out of it now he'll come out of it on his own later. We can keep trying but it could be just a matter of time while his mind goes through what just happened."

Jackieboy winces, “Ah yeah… I vaguely heard. That… really sucks.” He shakes his head, “Um until the tents are set up should we see if we can get them below deck…? Bro and Henrik… I doubt this is fun to experience when you’re also getting soaked…”

Jackie nods. "Good idea. It won't take that long, but we can't let them get cold. You guys get Bro." He grabs Henrik by the arms and pulls.

Henrik follows the motion, standing up.

Jackieboy nods as well, leaning down and grabbing Bro’s arm and throwing it over his shoulder and hoisting him up. He isn’t as strong as the hero but he’s done this enough times now to be semi-decent at lugging him around.

"Alright, let's go." Jackie nods, and guides Henrik over towards the hold. As the two of them--and Jackieboy and Bro--go towards the hold, Jameson leaves it. He steps aside for them to go past and looks around, taking in the state of the rest of the ship.

Marvin is just climbing back on board with Draco, now a normal-sized cat again. Chase is standing up and also looking around, trying to find something to do. And JJ and Henny... where are they?

Dr. J and Henny are still on the deck, JJ trying his best to calm down Henny while the latter cries. Eventually though he mumbles, almost too quiet to hear. “Henrik… we can’t stay out here in the cold…”

Henny sniffles and shakily nods against him. Finally he pushes himself up and looks at the others with red puffy eyes. He takes in the state of the ship and feels that sadness try to swallow him whole again. “…Vsevna’s ship… t-they… they ruined his…” His lip warbles.

Dr. J sighs and gets up, slowly helping Henny up to his feet.

Jameson sees the two of them, overhearing Henny's last comment. He approaches them. If it makes you feel better, it's not actually his ship, Jameson says. We borrowed it. I'm sure we can return it once it's repaired.

"Jameson, is this really the time?" Chase says, sounding tired.

...I suppose that's a small part of everything terrible that happened, Jameson admits.

Henny does seem to perk up a bit, knowing it can be repaired. He tries his best to smile at Jameson and nods his thanks.

But I do really have something that may help. Jameson continues, Once we've got all set up, come find me, alright?

Marvin catches the tail end of that handspeak. "Jair, do you mean...?"

Later, Jameson says firmly. Once we're safe and dry.

Henny and Dr. J both blink and share a glance. “Of course, Jameson. A-Anything you have to help is.. appreciated.” Dr. j says quietly, rubbing at his neck.

Jameson gives them a small smile. If you guys want to help, you can. Or you can wait down in the hold where it's dry.

“I can help,” Dr. J says quickly. He turns to Henny and smiles, “Henrik why don’t you go wait in the hold? You had quite the fall.”

“But-“ Henny tries to say before JJ nudges him slightly, “Doctor’s orders. Please go rest.”

Henny looks conflicted before he nods and heads down to the hold.

Dr. J turns back and smiles, “So… what can I help with?”

Jameson smiles. Do you know how to set up a tent? If not, you can help us move things from the hold.

“I don’t so yeah I’ll help move stuff.” Dr. J replies with a light smile.

“I’ll help too,” Chase says. “The more people, the faster we’ll be dry.”

That’s true. Jameson nods. Alright. Let’s move, then.

The rain is not stopping.

◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈

But the rain doesn’t cover everything. The horses ride hard until they’re out of its range. Then Aneirin abruptly pulls them to a halt. He turns back and glares at the direction they came from. “They were more skilled than we thought,” he mutters angrily.

Magnificent grips at his face as blood drips heavily down through his fingers. The air around him buzzes angrily as he snarls. “The fuck… I thought we had them! Annoying fucking…!” He curses, looking back at the still passed out Alt.

Aneirin grits his teeth in anger and nods. He glances at Magnificent. “Is that blood normal?” Then he looks at Alt as well. “And is he still under control?”

“That last spell used more power than I thought… I’ve reached a limit.” Magnificent growls as he wipes at the blood. “I should gain it back quickly… just an annoyance.” He narrows his eyes at Alt then goes to grip at his head.

Alt’s eyelids flutter and he moans quietly in pain. But under his eyelids flickers with purple and green static.

Magnificent hums, “…yes. Our claws are still in deep.”

Aneirin nods. “Good. We have that, at least.” He rubs his eyes. “I’ve also used a lot, though I’m not yet drained. Lightning always takes a lot. And that damn familiar—I thought those spells were lost.” He shakes his head. “We may need reinforcements if we want to continue to attack. Or we could regroup and try again some other time. I would prefer to eliminate that particular group as soon as possible, though.”

“Agreed…” Magnificent spits.

His mind wanders to think of a solution. If only he had his vestiges… he might be able to make some panthers here but that would require hunting down stray cats… not exactly something he’s looking forward to. And.. gods he doesn’t know if the TRVLR can even work after what it did to Alt. If only there was another way…

Then, his eyes widen slightly. Oh… that could be useful. From what he remembers… that gateway looks like something straight from this world.

Mag looks to the King, “…Aneirin… do you have any idea if such a thing as this gateway exists here?” He opens up his mind to the Royal, picturing the arch he’s used before, with the obsidian covered stones and runes along the sides.

Aneirin narrows his eyes—and then opens them wide. “That doorway. There’s one in your world as well?” He gasps. Then he nods. “Yes. Yes, of course, that would explain why most of the symbols are so strange. I’ve seen exactly what you’re looking for, Magnificent. But… you won’t be happy as to where.” He pauses. “I don’t think you have the Wyldlands in your world. Since the amount of magic here was unfamiliar to you the first time. But that’s what they are. Places of pure magic. And they are very, very dangerous. That doorway exists in the Wyldwoods on the west half of this island. Where, I do not exactly remember. It has been a long, long, long time.”

Magnificent eyes gleam with something akin to excitement and hunger. “ohh… is that so?” He giggles. “If we can get to the doorway… we might be able to open it long enough for me to grab my vestiges and panthers… they could help us greatly and give us an advantage… and give us a sure-fire way to reach beyond the borders of this world!” He laughs. “…surely a magical forest won’t be too much trouble for us, right?”

The King doesn’t smile. “This isn’t just a magical forest, it is the primeval magic of the world welling up. Many of the more fantastical creatures of this world retreated to the Wyldlands when humans began to spread. And beyond that, the magic is so powerful that the place itself—the trees, the flowers, the dirt itself—has a mind.” He tilts his head. “But you and your ‘cub’ have different magic, perhaps that will be an advantage. And the place does not like me very much. It may avoid us. In any case, a smaller group is better.” He looks back at the warriors and mentally dismisses them. They turn their horses around and head straight back to Suilthair. “We don’t want to attract too much attention.”

Magnificent frowns and makes a face. He looks back down at Alt and then snorts, sitting up confidently. “What can a bit of ancient magic do against us, anyways? I’ve learned to make magic my bitch. I’m not scared of some spooky alive forest.”

Aneirin lets out a burst of laughter. “I admire your confidence.” It was the same confidence that he himself had so long ago, and it had scared the Wyldwood. “We’ll head west, then.” He glances down at the still unconscious Alt. “Is he injured? It will slow us down if he is.”

Magnificent grins and then glances at Alt. He looks him over. …there’s an arrow in his shoulder. And he could have a concussion from getting knocked out. Minor signs of corruption are under his eyes but… other than that he seems fine. “The arrow might be an issue… but he’s mostly unharmed.”

Alt starts to stir and groggily turns his head, looking out at the king and Mag. He struggles to sit up- how do you push yourself up from lying on a horse anyways? He dazedly looks around.

“…c…chase? Where’s-“ He croaks out before Magnificent growls and grabs his cheeks, forcing him to look into his eyes as they spiral.

“Your brother betrayed us, Alt. It’s best you forget all about him. All about him and your friends… they don’t matter. None of it matters. All you know is serving us. So forget.”

Alt’s eyes bloom with purple and green as the magic combs through his mind again. “…forget… forget…”

Magnificent lets him drop, watching the new suggestions take hold as he slumps down against the horse. “There… now hopefully there won’t be any rebellion from him…”

“Hopefully.” Aneirin nods. “If the arrow will be an issue, then I’ll take care of it.” He dismounts his horse and walks closer to Mag’s. He presses one hand against Alt right next to the arrow, then grabs the arrow shaft with the other—and swiftly pulls it out.

Alt yelps on instinct, snapping out of his trance. But, it seems to have taken hold. He feels pain for a split second before it’s replaced with a warm tingling feeling. A few electric sparks flicker around Aneirin’s fingers as the wound closes over. “There. Can’t remember the last time I did that. But I’d rather not waste time waiting for it to heal naturally.”

Alt blinks out and looks at his shoulder as it heals. He slumps and nods his thanks, “T-Thank you mu Ríth…”

Mag nods, “Good. Less likely to slow us down now. We should get going.”

"We should."

The King doesn't acknowledge Alt's thanks. He just walks back to his horse and gets into the saddle again. "I need some time for my power to recharge, but once it does, I can make a doorway to cut down on travel. Until then, we ride." He snaps the reins and the horses move again.

Alt tries to stay quiet and get as comfortable as he can on the horse, carefilly pulling himself up. He doesn’t like them but… he feels too weak to try to keep up with Mag and the king on foot.

There's a bird overhead in the sky. The King glances up at it. Another swift. Unusual. He wasn't aware of any in this area.

Alt’s too tired to notice the swift, trying to focus on staying awake. Mag glances up at it and frowns. Strange bird…

The swift flaps its wings once and then turns away. It's going so fast that it almost looks like there are lines coming from the tips of its wings.

Aneirin shakes his head. No time to worry about little things like birds-- And then suddenly the bird turns back and swoops down in front of the horses, startling them. Aneirin pulls on the reins, trying to calm them, swearing under his breath. "Shoot the bird! Hit it! Something!"

Alt’s eyes flash brighter green at the command and he finds his bow and makes an arrow of lightning. He aims and shoots but misses pretty quickly. Mag clings to the horse for dear life, not wanting to be thrown off.

After Alt tries to shoot the bird it circles back around and flies past again, right past him. And-- It all happens in an instant. Images flash through his mind, accompanied by feelings and sensations that seem real and yet not real at the same time.

Alt’s eyes flash blue as the images appear before his eyes. They… don’t make a lot of sense…but he… he feels a connection to it, like… it’s trying to tell him something. Something important. He grips at his injured arm, digging fingers in as if he’s trying to gauge the pain. Why… did he feel like he was the bird for a second…?

And then the swift is gone, flying to the west and quickly disappearing.

"What in the damn world was that?!" the King shouts, confused but instinctively knowing this is not good.

Magnificent snorts and shakes his head, “A fucking crazy ass bird is what it was! The fuck!”

The King shakes his head. "I've never seen something like that happen before. And I've been around for a long time." The horses are still skittish, so he reaches out and soothes their emotions. They calm quickly. Good.

"It's possible the bird was diseased and acting strange because of that. In any case, it is simply one bird, and a small one at that." He makes a gesture like he's holding something in one hand, demonstrating how small the bird is. "And it's gone now. Flew away. Something that we cannot do, which is unfortunate since we have a lot of ground to cover. We have to return to the task at hand."

Alt nods shakily but doesn’t seem fully there- trying to decipher what those visions meant. Some part of him deep deep down hopes the bird will come back. …but he can’t think such traitorous thoughts… the King is right. They have to focus.

Mag nods with a groan, “Yeah… wish we kept a tighter hold on that stupid do-gooder… but alas. We must keep moving.”

"There's always a chance we'll see him again," Aneirin mutters as he spurs the horses on. "In fact, we definitely will, since he's with the rebels. Perhaps when we do we can... show him the error of his ways." His eyes flick to Alt. "Isn't that right, á klaíoh?"

He doesn't really listen to whatever Alt says next. He's too busy thinking about what will happen when they find the rebels again. Planning on how to get rid of them once and for all.

Alt’s eyes burn green anyways, drifting thoughts stilling. “Of course, mu Ríth.”

And slowly the thoughts of his traitorous brother slip away.