The City of the Dead

Chapter 8

I stumbled as the ship suddenly lurched in the crashing waves. It was an odd time for it to do so, as only yesterday the sea had been so calm, hardly making the ship rock. Hopefully no storms would cross our path. My mind raced with the possibilities. I knew that the City of the Dead had to be the location Blackbeard was seeking, but what was it? Why was it in such a remote location? There was one thing I knew, it would be a long and dangerous journey.

Adonis would know. I had to find him. The previous day Blackbeard had given me permission to hear the details of the voyage, but I had barely seen Adonis and my mind had been too focused on Sapphire. Now the time was right and I was ready for some answers.

I quietly pulled open the door, trying to be as discreet as possible. No one could know about the map that held such valuable information, proof of Blackbeard's plans. I also doubted anyone who stumbled across me would be too impressed to see me sneaking around the ship, especially considering most of them probably had never seen me before and could mistake me for a stowaway. 

Slowly, the door creaked open and I poked my head out, turning it back and forth to scan the hallway. The area appeared to be empty so I bolted away from the room and let the door click shut behind me. I then casually walked up the stairs and emerged on the deck. As my feet planted themselves, the ship lurched again and I struggled to keep my balance. 

The deck was a flurry of activity, unlike the previous day. There were pirates everywhere; some cleaning the deck, some talking to the man who was at the helm, some were pulling ropes, and a few appeared to be unloading some crates.

I glanced around for Adonis, but didn't see him anywhere. I crossed the ship and descended the flight of stairs that led straight to the crew's quarters, praying Adonis would be there resting from his concussion.

When the room came into view, every hammock was abandoned but one. Sure enough it was Adonis. His eyes were closed, but I wasn't sure if he was sleeping or not. 

I approached his hammock. "Adonis," I whispered. He didn't move and I figured he was sleeping.

I looked at his face and he looked so peaceful. He looked so much younger without the worry lines etched on his face or the scowl that often found its way there. The plain white t-shirt and sweat pants he wore made him look like a regular teenage boy from Illinois. The thought brought a smile to my face, taking a small portion of the ache for home that I had been feeling. 

There was no way I could wake him up without feeling guilty for interrupting his peace and quiet. Besides, I was the one who had given him the concussion he was trying to heal from. My eyes darted to the hammock beside his and I plopped down on it resting my aching muscles, swinging back and forth. Back and forth. 

Slowly my eyes began to close from exhaustion of my fitful night of sleep and before I knew it I was asleep.

"Emerald?" A voice quietly asked and I jumped. I looked groggily at whoever had decided to wake me up and saw it was Adonis. He was sitting up in his hammock and looked as if he had just woken up too. He had a smile on his face and he burst out laughing when I jumped.

"Shut up! I didn't wake you up okay? Have you ever woken up to someone staring at you and saying your name?"

"You're cute when you sleep," Was all he said. I rolled my eyes and then slowly got to my feet.

"Adonis, I know you just woke up and all, but I have a few questions for you. Yesterday Blackbeard said you could tell me where we were going and all the details about it," I said jumping right to business. I had details to discover.