CAPE HOOLERTHUND; THE HANDS OF TIME

I am just a woman Mr. Bear

Mia and Mr. Bear sailed back to Cape Mackerel and when they arrived they went to one of the drinking places to come up with a plan on how to execute the grand task that had fallen before them. It was a bar called The Whistling Man and they were seated at one of the tables by the window; him sipping on a glass of whiskey and her a cup of coffee. The place was quiet as they were the only ones in there, with a man standing behind the bar wiping down on the glasses.

"Gosh . . . I feel like I'm dreaming and I can't wake myself up," she said; looking down into the blackness of her coffee but obviously wandering her mind as to just what the heck was going on. Again she should have been freaking out about what was happening to her but she wasn't; for someone that had just travelled to a whole new time and had to play a massive part to preventing the world from being destroyed by a massive beast that feasted on planets and had consumed many worlds before, she was pretty calm. And she didn't like it. And she couldn't even be mad about it because the boldness that Capt. Jules carried with him was the one that was now in her and it was what was keeping her together, other wise she would have fallen apart. Shivers would run down her spine and her heart would keep skipping beats but when the clear and at the same time unclear memories of all that Capt. Jules had accomplished in his life would flood her mind, she would become calm once again.

"You can do this captain, this task would not have been given to you if you couldn't," Mr. Bear said; more than confident in his words. This was something Capt. Jules would have easily done and so since she was now Capt. Jules, she had exactly what it took to do it.

"And we have to get it done or else the world could potentially be destroyed, wow, no pressure."

"It will not be easy, only a fool can say that; but it is not impossible. There will probably be no greater task to our lives than this but we will get this done. I know it."

Mia lifted her head and looked at him; her eyes reaching out like a lost child desperate to go home. "How do you know that?"

"Because I know of the blood that runs through your veins, it is Dalhamavaughn blood, powerful blood. And as long as you have it with you and fully embrace what you are, there is nothing you cannot do."

"I am just a woman Mr. Bear," she said; her reaching eyes beginning to glisten.

"No you're not . . . You are Capt. Mia Dalhamavaughn and don't you ever forget it."

Tears streamed out of her eyes and she quickly wiped them away, as she looked out the window to gather herself for a moment; breathing softly but deeply to slow down her heart that had began to race.

"I'm going to go and use the bathroom, are you going to be alright by yourself?" Mia nodded still looking out the window and Mr. Bear got up and went to the bathroom. She then grabbed her coffee and took a sip of it as just then two soldiers of the navy entered the bar; talking and laughing as they walked up to the bar counter. They were dressed in uniform, white and blue, and were equipped with muskets that were hanging on their shoulders via their straps.

They ordered some ice cold water as they were still on duty and as one of them looked back at Mia; obviously taken by her beauty, he noticed something on her that immediately alerted him. He then whispered something to the other soldier and when he looked back at her the very same alertness came over him as well. The two soldiers then looked at each other and approached her.

"Miss," one of them said and she looked up at them.

"Yes?" she responded; wondering why they were there and why they were looking at her like that, she hadn't done anything wrong.

"Wearing pirate jewellery or anything that symbolizes piracy is prohibited and anyone found wearing them is to be arrested on site."

Mia looked down at the necklace around her neck and immediately made a face beating herself up inside; Mr. Bear had told her to keep it hidden but somehow it had popped out. "Oh no," she whispered to herself.

"You are under arrest."

"No wait."

The soldier closest to her grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her off of her chair as the other grabbed his musket and pointed it at her. Mia was then turned around and firmly holding her hands behind her back, the soldier then pushed her down onto the table and began to cuff her.

"Oh my gosh wait, seriously!"

"You will stand before the admiral and he will decide what will become of you," the soldier said and stood her back up straight and began to push her towards the front door.

"Mr. Bear! Mr. Bear!!" Mia shouted out to Mr. Bear who was still in the bathroom; she had just gotten arrested and was being taken away.

"Silence!"

They exited the bar and a moment later Mr. Bear walked out. He made his way to the table but when he looked there and saw that Mia was gone he came to an abrupt stop. He looked around the bar and she was nowhere in there.

"The young woman I was with, where is she?" Mr. Bear asked the bar man.

"She was taken away by the soldiers," he answered.

"What soldiers?"

"Two soldiers walked in just when you went to the bathroom and they took her away."

"What!" He raced to the bar counter. "Why did they take her away?"

"She was arrested."

"Why? She was just sitting there," Mr. Bear said; he couldn't bring himself to understand why soldiers would just walk in and arrest an innocent woman.

"It wasn't what she did, it was what she had on," the bar man said and immediately Mr. Bear's face drained; the moment he said that he knew exactly why she had been arrested and taken away.

"Oh goodness gracious." He became so weak in the knees he had to sit down. "This is not good."

Outside Mia was taken further away. The two soldiers commandeered one of the carriages that were riding down the road and threw her inside it and together they rode to the navy base, Fort Western, Western which was the capital of Cape Mackerel.

It was only a ten minute ride from where the Whistling Man was and so they arrived soon and when they reached the fort; guarded by a high wooden gate and bound by an even higher stone wall, they took Mia inside.

Behind the walls was a parade ground; an open space in the middle where the soldiers would assemble, offices; where the higher ranking officers would spend their days, barracks; where the soldiers would sleep, stables for the horses, an armoury; where the weapons were stored, cleaned and fixed, a hospital, holding cells; where apprehended criminals were locked up and up top on each corner was a guardhouse were soldiers were positioned to have a birds eye view over what was happening within and outside the fort walls.

The two soldiers led Mia across the parade ground, were there were a few soldiers walking about, and took her to the admiral's office; Admiral Krenan. He was a man of sixty years who had been in the military for twenty years but had been commanding the fort for only just five and had been given authority to be the governing body over Cape Mackerel by the queen herself; an award for a job well done for seizing Cape Hoolerthund from the hands of pirates.

His office was simple. There was a wooden desk in front of a wall that had a large painting of the queen, two large windows; one with the view of the parade ground and the other with a view of the ocean, a wooden bookcase where a few books sat and on one of the walls was a wooden board where a large map of the region sat; a map that had pins of different colours on it as well as thin strings connecting certain locations.

Admiral Krenan was sitting by his desk ready a book, with a cup of tea steaming next to him. Since five years ago when piracy had officially been eradicated there hadn't really been much for the navy to do; their days were mostly filled with patrolling the streets and locking people up that had been charged with breaking either one of the laws that had been put in place to ensure the peaceful and proper running of Cape Mackerel.

He took a sip of his tea and read on when suddenly a knock came to the door.

"Come in," he responded and in walked the two soldiers with Mia. They approached his desk and looking at them wondering what was going on, he closed his book and put it to the side.

"Admiral Krenan, good afternoon," one of the soldiers greeted.

"Officers." He looked at both of them and then at Mia who was sandwiched in-between them. "What is this?"

"We arrested this woman from one of the bars."

"Started a bar brawl did she," Admiral Krenan said; it was only the beginning of the week and already a few women had been arrested for starting bar brawls, something to do with their husbands and other women.

"No, she had this in her possession," the soldier said and walked up to his desk to hand what he had in his hand to him, and looking down at what just sat in his palm his eyes widened; it was like he had just seen a ghost. "She was wearing it around her neck," he then said and returned to his position.

Out of nowhere the admiral shot to his feet; an action that indicated that the crime she had committed was a very serious one. And if that was still not enough to get the point across, the look he had on his face showed it as well. His eyebrows furrowed and his forehead wrinkled.

"A pirate . . . On my island . . . Little girl," he said and looked up at her; his gaze as sharp as daggers. "You must have no idea who I am."