Bounty Hunter Bash Sea Lock Part Eight

 Treasure

"Hold on, you decoded the map? Just the two of you?" Captain Herlock exclaimed.

"Yes, though it was Borevers did most of the work."

"Which, even though I despise myself for having to admit it, Cerpheres did point me in the right direction." He said with gritted teeth.

Cerpheres put his hand behind his head and pretended to be humble and shy.

"It was nothing. Though it was fun watching you figure it out!" He sang.

He then put his hand down and looked Captain Herlock in the eye.

"Well, do you want to go?" He purred as he leaned against the frame of the door. "I know you want to!"

The Captain looked disapprovingly at him. Then his eyes looked aside for a moment then to the map. There was a deep hunger in his haunting eyes. He then looked away and back to the map like the pendulum of a clock. This was when Gerald looked at Cerpheres and gave him a sly smile. He nodded and smiled widely as he turned to Captain Herlock. He then pushed himself off the frame and walked up to him.

"Just think, if we had the treasure of Captain Prince Lockheartsmith, you could pay all those passengers that would be problematic once they arrived at their destination. Plus-" her said as he leaned in close and placed his hand on his shoulder. He whispered something in his ear making his eyes widen with shock. Only for that to be replaced with him having not only hunder in his eyes but also thirst. His eyes slid back to the map, the decision had been made.

"We're going!" He said with the tone of a hungry wolf.

With that we set sail and they soon spotted that the island was far closer than they thought. The island came closer and closer, yet now came the hard part. They gathered all the crew on the top of the deck.

"Alright, we're all going for a treasure hunt. Now, time to pick a group." The Captain said as he clasped. "As the decoders and best fighters that we have seen thus far aside from Gerald and Cerpheres, Borevers and Cari will be going no questions asked. I will be going and Gerald will by proxy."

"Well, ? I think that I'll be going too. And no I will not take no for an answer!" Purred Cerpheres.

"Fine, Gurter, Kia will come too. They're Gerald's best cooks. The rest of you are to entertain the passengers."

"Well said Captain!" Cerpheres declared as he clapped. Yet then the rest started to clap along with him. Yet Bash s spotted Gurter take a glance at Chashathrophogh her cheeks were the colour of coral with a shy smile on her face.

"Thank you! How about we all celebrate once we all have the treasure. So get a move on and pack a bag!" He laughed.

With that they started to pack and as soon as they did they were back on board. They all coined on the large canoe they started rowing and Cerpheres took out his violin and started playing a strange melody. It was chearry yet there was an unnerving undertone to it. Yet both Chashathrophogh and Bounty Hunter Bash suddenly recognised the tune and better, they knew all the words!

"See a cion and toss it in the sea,

Sow a seed and let it grow a tree,

Pick the fruit but save the seed,

And repeat the very same deed!

"See the great garden grow,

See forest scatter show,

See the beauty and know!

"See a cion and toss it in the sea,

Sow a seed and let it grow a tree,

Pick the fruit but save the seed,

And repeat the very same deed!

"Accept every coin small,

Gathered will be very tall,

Sending in on thine call!

"See a cion and toss it in the sea,

Sow a seed and let it grow a tree,

Pick the fruit but save the seed,

And repeat the very same deed!"

"Didn't know you were good singers!" Purred Cerpheres.

"Y-you have a good voice!" Gurter added.

They both narrowed their eyes.

"Don't worry,  I won't tell!"

"Good!" They both said. They then looked at each other with a frown.

They would have commented if they had not reached the shore. They both climbed out of the canoe. Captain Herlock whipped out his map and then looked at it. He took a moment to think about which route they were to take. He then looked up and then scanned the horizon. As soon as he had decided he walked on. As the only other girl in the group, Bounty Hunter Bash gravitated to Gurter and tried not to think too much about Cerpheres or the strange way he was looking at her and her uncle.

"Urm, hello." She said.

"Hi!"

"Are you excited?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Not too much. Though I do think that it is fun."

"Why are you here?"

"Because my mother thinks my uncle killed my father and little brother."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"It's alright."

They soon came to a set of doors. Captain Herlock put his hand out.

"Wait, before we enter, we need to check for traps."

Gerald nodded.

"Cerpheres and the Scars you check for them. I will check the time." He said as he pulled out a sextant and looked to the horizon. "Half past ten. Good, we're on good timing."

"Alright! Then come on you two!" He sang.

They all took out a pair of thick branches. They trapped the ground beneath them and then the walls before coming to the set of noble doors. They were made of wood with an ivy passion carved into the doors that had fading and flaking gold paint on them. Yet there were towheads that had silver fading and falling painting in them. Bounty Hunter Bast put some pressure on the doors and the same with the frame. As she looked around the door she noticed that there was no doorknob.

How do we get in? She then felt a hand slip on her shoulder. She looked back to see that it was Cerpheres.

"Come on, you can figure it out!" He whispered like a lover.

This crept her out so she punched him before rerunning her attention to the door.

This is a puzzle door. Of course it would. Now how to solve it.

She looked at the gold and the roses as her gut told her that there was where she was supposed to look. She stroked the pattern and spotted how all the roses were parallel to each other. She reached out her hand and noticed that the roses could turn. She was about to twist it clockwise yet she suddenly remembered that Captain Prince Lockheartsmith wrote his maps backwards. So, why would the roses be any different? So she twisted it anticlockwise and she heard something drop. She then went onto repeating this action to the other roses and heard more things drop until the final rose. The moment that she twisted the final rose she jumped away from the door.

She then used her magic to open the doors. They waited until they all knew that it was safe before they entered the doors. They continued to tap the ground and the walls. When the rest followed them the doors closed behind them. For a moment, they were in total darkness. Yet then a low turquoise glow coming from a group of mushrooms that were parallel to each other. Then the ceiling was covered in crystals that were lighting up with a silvery white colour. 

They took a moment to marvel at the sheer beauty of it, yet they did not spend too much time as they walked on the three tapped the floor and walls as they walked on. They felt like they were getting lower and lower. They walked for about an hour before the walls of the cave became smoother and the ground became level. Yet they could tell that it was too smooth and too level for it to be natural. They soon felt like the tunnel was getting steeper. 

They soon felt their foot step on something and then they felt the ground shaking beneath them yet they soon spotted a giant rock racing towards them! They all quickly spotted the edges and the gap of the rock and then they all dived to the corners of the tunnel. They pressed their bodies against the corner trying to make them as flat as they all could. They all had to wait as the rock passed them before they climbed to their feet and walked on, ensuring to keep their weight on their heels. Yet despite this, Captain Herlock put his foot on the ground and it sank. They soon felt the shaking again and Chashathrophogh looked up and spotted the rock coming down and jumped over to him. He then dragged him back as the rock rolled away from them.

"Thank you!"

They all had to wait until the shaking stopped. They moved on until they arrived at a flat room where it was all too clear that it was safe.

"I think we need to get something in our gut. Gurter, Kai you two were on food, what do we have?"

"Enough to eat well." They said as they got out two slices of Ham each with rolls of dread with carrots and an apple and a banana. They ate all these things as fast as they could. Yet Chashathrophogh, Bounty Hunter Bash and Cerpheres ate quietly and ensured to keep their mouths shut as they ate. Only opening it to take another bite and ensuring that they minded their manners.

After they had finished their food they walked on. They soon came to two doors with a plaque in between them. It was made of silver and had gold writing that looked as if the writing was melted in place.

"There will be one door,

Leads to a deadly floor,

The other leads to your heart's desire,

Live on and enjoy it when you retire!

"Thrace the rose spin,

Then will you win,

Remember where it began,

I know that you can!"

"It's the right door." Said Captain Herlock.

"How do you know that Captain?" Cerpheres purred.

"I saw Cari turn those roses anticlockwise, which meant she went from right to left so she began right."

Cerpheres smiled a wide and excited smile.

"Oh, that was clever Captain!" Half and Cerpheres declared.

"Well that is why I am the captain!" He remarked, folding his arms.

"Yes you are!" They both said again.

Cerpheres opened the door and bowed.

"After you, Captain!" He purred as he held the door to them all to enter.

They entered a large and almost empty room with only a giant wheel in the center that had deferments sticking out of the sides like a wheel of a ship. Once they were all in, Cerpheres walked in behind them. As soon as the door clicked and Gurter and Kai ran to the door and pulled at the doorknob only for it to be useless. It was all too clear that they were not leaving in that direction.

"Now what!" They said together.

"That's simple! We need to figure the way out!"

"He's right. I am certain that it has something to do with that wheel. Though I hardly think that it will be easy, after all some quests that I have been on would prove fun yet I do prefer the more challenging ones, none of them are that easy. Not unless the object hidden the one that hid it wanted it to be found."

Gurters' cheeks became the colour of coral again. Yet the two then groped the edges and marched anticlockwise. They then shot up and they fell. Chashathrophogh let out a growl as he ran to her and caught her and Bounty Hunter Bash used her magic to will his fall to slow and he was able to land gently on the ground. They looked ahead to see a spiral staircase. At the top it led nowhere so when they looked down. Chashathrophogh then put Gurter down as Kai raced to her.

Chashathrophogh then walked on and then walked down the staircase. The others followed. Their eyes met the sought of three treasure chests. Gerald then walked over to a small led case. He then opened it and he looked at a scroll he soon rolled it back up and put it back. He then slid it in his pocket. They then all looked at the chests and spotted that there was a pattern at the top then they spotted a door next to them. They spotted that there was no doorknob. They looked up and then looked at the chests.

"Well how do we get out of here?"

"Well…" Cerpheres purred.

"Please try and say it without making us all uncomfortable?" Gurter asked.

"No promises!" He sang as he then looked at the chests and the door. "Weeell, that pattern on the chests and the door are music notes."

"Then shut up and get playing!"

"Aye Sir!" He purred as he played the notes on the chests and the chests opened he then played the ones on the door and it opened. They soon spotted the sky.

"Now the hard part. Getting those chests back to the ship." Captain Herlock said under his breath.