Silver Spirits

Ben blinked as Scarlett and the rest of her crew disappeared right before his eyes. He spun around and found her behind him, along with Emily, Ben's mother, and Simon. They were laid out on the deck, gagged and tied up. A faceless figure stood before them, a knife in his hand. Ben tried to reach them but found that though he wasn't tied up, his legs and arms wouldn't move.

"You can't save them, Ben," said a disembodied voice.

Ben didn't answer, even his mouth refused to open. The knife glittered as it slashed through the air, slicing his mother's cheek. A muffled scream escaped around her gag as blood oozed from the cut. The faceless tormentor continued down the line, carving into them one by one. And through it all Ben was helpless to do anything but stand and watch.

A realization began to form in his mind, cutting through the wild panic. He forced himself to stop trying to move and relax. His resolve nearly came undone as the wielder of the knife drew it across Scarlett's stomach. But he held perfectly still and took a breath, finding his ability to speak again. He had read about this on the map.

"This isn't real," he said quietly. "This is a trick. This is my worst fear. And yes, I am quite afraid."

The air seemed to shimmer for a moment, and then the deck of the Silver Spirit returned to normal. Ben let out a breath, his limbs functioning again. He could see the rest of the crew, all seemingly trapped in their own personal hells. Ben circled around the deck, doing his best to get people's attention so that he could snap them out of it. He shouted and waved his arms, feeling completely foolish. He couldn't see what any of them were enduring, but it seemed as unpleasant as his own fear. He went to Emily, who was looking pale and miserable.

"Em," he said. "It's me, Ben. It's not real, Emily. You need to realize it's all an illusion. Admit your fear, Em. Then it will all stop. Emily!"

It took a few more minutes of yelling and coaxing but he finally got her to snap out of it. His voice carried to her easier than the others.

"Ben!" she gasped. She fell against him and hugged him tightly. She pulled him to where Percy was crouched on the deck, his body so rigid Ben thought he might shatter if touched. Emily knelt before him and touched his face gently.

"Percy," she said. "Percy, you just need to say that you're afraid."

Ben watched his little sister tenderly try to call out to the huge man, who could easily snap her like a twig if he so desired. It reminded Ben of a rabbit trying to calm a lion. Still, Emily showed no trace of fear as she murmured to him. She gestured at Ben to help her and so he knelt next to her and started shouting at Percy to pull himself out of whatever vision he was seeing. It took slightly longer than with Emily, but he finally blinked. He looked confused as Emily's face took the place of his fear, but she beamed and flung her arms around his neck.

"You did it!" she said. Percy rose from his crouch, Emily hanging off his neck like a bizarre piece of human jewelry. Her weight barely seemed to faze him. He hugged her back, awkwardly, with Ben standing less then three feet away with a dirty look on his face.

"What the hell was that?" Percy asked as Emily finally released him.

"It's another obstacle on our quest," Ben said. "We all have to face our deepest fears. Now come on, help us wake the others. They need to admit they're afraid and then it'll be over."

The three of them wandered the ship, shouting at the rest of the crew. It was painstaking and took nearly the entire day. Scarlett was one of the last. Ben planted himself in front of her.

"Scarlett," he said quietly, "you can do this. You're stronger than anything you might be seeing. It's not real." He gripped her arms. "Scarlett stop being so damn stubborn, do you hear me? You are entirely too proud for your own good. Just admit you're afraid. Do you want Nosebleed taking over this ship? I swear I'll put him in charge if you don't pull yourself together. Admit you're afraid this instant, or I'll drop you into a barrel of fish."

Scarlett jerked, losing her panicked and dazed look. She stared at him.

"Ben?" she said. "I really must be losing my mind if I'm hearing you in my head. What are you doing threatening me in such a manner?"

"I'm not in your head. Unless you find yourself daydreaming about me, that is." He smirked and Scarlett rolled her eyes. "Idiot," she said.

"It was an illusion," Ben said. "It was one of the obstacles we had to pass through to reach this treasure of yours."

"Would have been nice to have some warning."

"The map wasn't clear on what order they appeared in."

"Bloody wonderful." Scarlett took a shaky breath, running her hands through her hair. "I suppose I should thank you, Commander."

"Yes I suppose you should." He wondered what Scarlett's fear had been. He wondered if she had any idea that she was part of his. The sun had by now almost completely set, shadows lengthening across the water.

"So, Mr. Alleged Genius. Do you think you can still set our course in this strange backwards world?" Scarlett asked.

"Alleged genius? What a hurtful thing to say. Of course I can still set our course."

"You seem awfully confident about that."

"Because I am." Ben turned away and headed for her state room.

"Did I give you permission to just waltz in there?" Scarlett demanded, following him.

"I did not waltz. I walked."

"I didn't give you permission to walk in either. What are you doing?"

Ben seated himself at her desk and seized a sheet of paper and a quill. "I'm attempting to redraw the map."

"If you hadn't destroyed it all in the first place we wouldn't be having this problem."

"If I hadn't destroyed it in the first place we wouldn't have shared in this adventure together and would have missed out on each other's company."

"Someday I'm going to make a point that you don't have a clever retort for."

"I wish you luck with that."

"You cocky bastard."

He smiled as he continued to sketch the map. Scarlett leaned over his shoulder to watch him work.

"You're being quite distracting," Ben informed her. She smirked but moved back, instead hopping up onto the end of the desk and continuing to watch him.

"You don't like being distracted?" she asked.

"I would very much enjoy being distracted by you, but first I'd like to be sure I can prevent us from getting stranded out here. Then you can carry on thanking me and distracting me however you see fit."

"That will all depend on if you're really as smart as you claim to be."

They sat in silence for a while as Ben focused on trying to redraw the map, in reverse. It was even more painstaking than trying to rouse the crew. He stared critically at what he had drawn, muttering directions and coordinates to himself under his breath to make sure he'd gotten it right. He sprang from the chair and banged the desk triumphantly, startling Scarlett, who had started nodding off.

"What's gotten into you?" she asked. Ben waved the parchment in front of her.

"You now owe me thanks and an apology, Captain Rose. Alleged genius, indeed."

"You've figured it out? Are you positive?" Scarlett stood up and took the map from him. She studied it and looked impressed. "It is nice work," she admitted. "You're a good artist. And cartographer, I suppose."

Feeling a bit euphoric due to his memorization of the map, and also because it was early in the morning and he was fairly sleep deprived, Ben swept Scarlett into a hug, lifting her clean off her feet. She yelped in surprise. Ben set her back on her feet and kissed her. Then be hurried out onto the deck to steer the ship. Scarlett joined him.

"Don't worry, Captain," he said. "I promised you I'd get you to your treasure, and get you there I shall."

"I guess I do owe you an apology." Scarlett shook her head with a disbelieving expression. "You really are as smart as you claim, Ben Griffith."