(3) The Isle of the Lost

-Chapter 8: Night Falls-

We enter the castle and immediately notice the silence. "This is so weird." I say, recalling the many times I had come into a bustling castle with friendly staff and overly nice guests. We round a corner and Dude sniffs. "This way," He says. "Ben could be asleep anywhere."

"Or turned to stone..." Celia adds, making Evie cover her mouth. "Okay..." She mutters, giving Celia a look which shuts her up. "Ben!" Mal calls out as Dude continues sniffing. "I've got a scent. Very pungent cologne. Easy to track. Follow me, people." He says, leading the way. "That's great, Dude!" Carlos says. "FYI, I give great cuddles too." The dog adds. Gil grins, tilting his head. "Really? I never had a pet growing up. Well, except for the elk head in Dad's man cave, but that wasn't-"

"Hold up." Uma randomly says, looking at the wall which has a tilted, cut in half photo. "What's this?" She asks. "Any chance this was already there...?" Carlos asks, the little boy in him emerging. I look at Mal, who's staring wide eyed. "I don't think so..." I say.

"And follow me!" Dude says happily, leading the way again. We see a room with a slightly open door so I push through. I hear Evie tell Celia to stay behind as the rest of us enter. I stand in front with Mal and Uma following behind. "I bet you lost some sleep thinking about me on the loose." Uma says smugly. I can't see them, but I hear Mal scoff. "No. Dragons don't really lose sleep....I wonder what fried octopus tastes like." She says. I turn, sighing and seeing Evie do the same from the back. "Guys..." I warn.

"Why don't we not do this?" Evie says, looking between the two. "We're celebrating our differences." Mal mutters sarcastically, eyeing the sea witch. I hear Harry say something, but I'm too busy facepalming at the two girls. "Guys..." I say again as Uma speaks. "Let's split up and look for Audrey." She says. Mal furrows her eyebrows, raising her hands. "That makes absolutely no sense. Unless you give Y/N the ember, she's going to spell you." Mal says. As I'm about to speak again for the third time, Harry beat me to it.

"Girls!" He shouts, getting all our attention. "We have a situation here." He says, using his hook to point behind me. I turn to see a suit of armour which is now emitting pink smoke. "Do you like a prince, Mal? Or princess, Y/N?" Audrey's voice asks through the metal. "How about a knight in shining armour?....or knights?" She says again before I hear thudding as the suit of armour begins moving by itself. "Ah, fuck..." I mutter as I hear clunking from behind us as well.

"Watch your back, watch your back. Watch your back, watch your back. We can counter their attack, hit them till the armour cracks." We sing as we run for the exit, only for it to be blocked by knights.

"This could get a little sticky. How to win this battle could be tricky." Uma sings, gesturing for Gil to give her a sword from the decor of the room while the rest of us move back from the door, surrounding the platform she's on.  "But I know the best way, fall back, let me lead. You hold the line and we'll bring them to their knees." Uma sings, explaining her plan. Mal rolls her eyes from beside me and steps up, pushing Uma away slightly. "Swords in the air if you're with me. They got us outnumbered one-to-fifty..." Mal sings as I sigh, facepalming before walking towards the centre. "The victory is ours, because I've got a strategy." She sings before looking at Uma. "You take the left, and the rest of you can follow me." She sings as Uma shakes her head, refusing her plan.

"This is my crew," Mal sings. Uh, excuse me? "This is my squad." Uma replies. "This is my turf!" Mal continues before Evie steps in. "Oh my gosh..." She sings as I chuckle. "Look guys, we've got bigger fish to fry. Put your differences aside, cause right now we're on the same side." The princess sings, making the two sigh and turn away with their swords. "Until the night falls, Everyone..." Evie sings, lifting her sword in the air as Mal and Uma jump off the platform, facing the knights with the rest of us. "We'll stay together till the battle is done." We sing before we jump into action, swords clanging together as metal hits metal. "Watch your back, watch your back. Watch your back, watch your back. We can counter their attack, hit them till the armour cracks." We sing as I step on the platform, joining my girlfriend as we stand back to back to face the circle of knights.