Thread: Neverland

Ana arrived to Cannibal Cove in as little as an hour. She was a fast walker, after all. When she got there, she nearly gasped in horror at what she saw. The place was an absolute mess. There were bottles all over the dock, and she saw cards, poker chips, and all kinds of wooden shard from a variety of different gambling games. Ana was still in shock as she walked over to a glass shard next to a letter. She picked up the glass and held it to her nose and sniffed it, anger slowly rising in her throat.

"Aha! I knew it, I just knew it! It's rum! I knew I should have used more than one lock for the liquor cabinet, but I never thought it'd come to this!" Ana whispered, staring in disbelief at the glass shard. In a fit of anger, she threw it at the ship, and watched it break into a million pieces with a loud "CRACK!". She picked up the letter next to it, getting even angrier than before. In sloppy handwriting, it said:

Dear Captain Ana:
DON'T KILL US! WE'RE SORRY! One of the new cabin boys broke open the cabinet with one of 'em fancy axes! We're sorry! We didn't mean to drink any of the rum!
Here, Ana noticed there was a dark stain next to the word rum, suspiciously-rum colored. She went back to reading.
Some of us crew members tried to clean up, but then the cabin boys started drinking more and more! They started gambling, and then we gave in to the temptations! We're sorry! Don't kill us! As of right now, we decided the best thing was to throw everything off the boat until we could figure out how to clean up this mess. If you're reading this, we haven't finished. WE'RE SORRY! SO SORRY! If you're gonna kill us, the cabin boys volunteered!
Again, Ana noticed there seemed to be an ink stain, written hurriedly. It was right next to the word volunteered, and it said "NU UH." She also noticed it's smeared.
"Stupid cabin boys." She hissed. She finished the letter, and started to see red.
Don't kill us! Please!
Signed,
The Crew Members
Angrily, Ana ran to the ship, already plotting a certain cabin boys demise.

"What in the world—"

Queen Zerra brushed the side of the shark and it immediately stopped in it's tracks. A stern look crossed the queen's usually calm facials as she watched the barrel—or what remains of it—sink slowly before her. She glanced up and only then realized where she was.

"I should have known," she muttered, venom in her voice. Leaving her pet, she swam up to the surface of the waters where the floor of the pirate ship was visible in the light. Upon reaching the surface, she brushed her damp hair from her face. The queen glanced around to find more remnants of broken wood floating on the water and a heavy sour stench of liquor flooding her nostrils.

"Anabella Mata Casas," she summoned angrily. "I, Zerra, Queen of the Sea wish to have a word with you."

When Ana was told by the First Mate that the Queen of the Mermaids wished to speak with her, she ordered the crew to continue preparing the ship for its departure, but not to sail yet. Ana quickly walked down the gangplank onto the dock, still disgusted by the mess all around her.
"All hands down on the dock! You all have a mess to clean up! And don't throw it into the sea, that's where we sail! I take pride in the condition of these waters! Start cleaning!" She yelled, watching as immediately all the sailors were on the dock, using plastic bags to clean everything up, but they were staying away from the water. As she walked over to see why, she saw the face of Zerra, a female who she wasn't exactly 'best friends' with.
"Yes, your majesty?" Ana replied, watching the shark further down with caution. She called back to the crew members.
"Crew, finish cleaning up the dock, while I talk to Zerra down here. Don't come by the waters or I'll whip you myself!"
She then turned her attention back to Zerra and noticed the anger and disgust in her face.
Ho ho, this is not good. She thought to herself.

Rozalin had just finished her hilarious prank with the mermaids. Oh, those mermaids! So foolish! She cackled, delighted by her success. Rozalin spun in large circles as she flew.

Now, where else, where else? She pondered as she made a loop around a rock. Ooooh, pirates! Yes, yes! I haven't even been to bully—I mean, 'visit' that Elora girl. She thought cynically, an evil plan structuring in her tiny head. Rozalin flew gaily across the lands, her next journey to Cannibal Cove.

Reaching her destination, the little pixie was surprised to catch sight of the Queen floating on the surface beside the pirate ship. By habit, she quickly hid herself behind a boulder even though she knew her actions were pointless. Rozalin was often caught in her tricks by the Queen. The blue haired mermaid owed her raids to that sneaky seer power she possess. Oh, how Rozalin despised that power! However, it became a fun obstacle for her to overcome.

Queen Zerra had an angry expression on her face. Rozalin wondered what it was about. She grinned. Maybe she would witness the start of a war. That would be much more fun than a water balloon prank.

Seeing the pirate's captain, Queen Zerra managed a composed expression, trying to hide her boiling anger.

"Captain Ana," she greeted solemnly. "It seems that your crew have been messing with the seas. I recall an agreement we had regarding the conditions of the waters which you had swore an oath to retain." Glancing to the oils dripping from the sides of the deck, the Queen muttered through gritted teeth. "Which apparently you're not doing such a splendid job of."

She snapped her attention back to the captain. "I request an instant removal of the wastes you have condemned upon my waters." Her jaws hardened and a threatening look crossed her eyes. "Else I would acquire the assistance of the Kraken to rid of your mess. But I can't promise that the beast would have enough sense to spare your ship."

Ana listened as Zerra explained her predicament, and noticed her glancing at the dock. Ana nodded solemnly and said "Yes, of course we did Queen Zerra. I know explaining will do no good, but I must point out that while I was....finishing some business, the youngest of my crew broke into my liquor cabinet, and in a fit of stupidity, decided to throw everything into the dock to avoid my wrath. I know this does not explain, and I understand your anger. Rest assured they will be punished. I take pride in the waters my ship sails in, and I will clean up, don't ya worry."

Ana turned to her crew and screamed "Get a move on crew! I want this dock and the waters around it clean as your blades or there will be serious consequences!" The crew preceded to hurry up, mopping up spills, cleaning the dock, putting glass and barrel shards into bags to dispose of later.

Ana then turned to Zerra. "These aren't your waters, they're Neverland's waters. You don't own them, so stop talking like you do. If they were really yours, I wouldn't sail on them. I don't appreciate you and your mermaids constantly getting in the way of our ships. The only reason your mermaids are unscathed is because of the treaty. I suggest you keep your mermaids under closer watch, Zerra." Ana said to her, quietly so the crew couldn't hear. She knew what she just said could spark a war, but honestly she was sick and tired of Zerra's prancing around like she owned the place. Besides, it wasn't even Ana's fault! But, no matter. Better finish cleaning, the faster they finish the faster Zerra can leave, the faster Ana can get into her quarters and finish what she was doing.

The crew was done with the shards, and the spills were pretty much done. As the boatswain turned to go to the water and start cleaning up there, he saw Ana and Zerra talking. He gulped, and turned back around, mopping up a spill he missed.

Queen Zerra calmed after she had listened to the pirate's explanation. True, Ana had been keeping her word thus far in taking care of the sea and matters concerning her oath could be put into trust.

"Very well, then I'll leave it to you, Captain." She nodded.

Hearing Ana's disrespectful threat, the mermaid winced. But the Queen was not one to lash out from pride and unless it was concerning the well being of the sea, she was known to keep a cool head during negotiations. "Then I assure you, Anabella, to not stress yourself regarding my mermaids. They for one have enough sense to keep away from your path." She stole an accusing glance to the crews working on the ship and added distastefully. "I just wish I could say the same for your men."

Seeing as the crew were starting to clear the mess, Queen Zerra felt that her presence were no longer required. "Then, I'll be off now." She announced and dove into the sea, disappearing as sudden as she had appeared.

Ana scoffed. True, her men weren't the sharpest knives in the drawer, but they were loyal, hard-working, and stubborn, and she had hand-picked them from all the lost children she'd found and other refugees. She trusted them to do what she told them to do, and she didn't appreciate the insult to her hands.

Honestly. At least my men can do something useful! The only thing her mermaids ever do is laze around on those rocks sunning themselves like the good-for-nothing reptiles they are. My men can fix a ship, sail a ship, plunder, and fight. She doesn't know what she's saying. Ana thought to herself, watching Zerra disappear with a disdainful look.

She turned to her men, who were cleaning and scrubbing the dock. She grabbed a forgotten bag and bent down over the water, leaning forward and grabbing wooden and glass shards, stuffing them into the plastic bag. As she cleaned with her crew, she looked into the dark waters, watching her reflection shift and wave as the seas rolled. She leaned farther down and poked the center of it, watching the water ripple out, distorting her reflection. Ana snapped out of it quickly and finished cleaning up.

A few hours later, when she was done cleaning, Ana walked back to the ship. She needed to speak with a very special young lady.