Chloe strolled through the Thunderbawks' village with her crew. The strange chicken like creatures seemed a lot happier, even if they still performed strange actions like talking to pineapples and eating straw. Curiosity and intrigue drove her because King Featherbutt had asked them to come to the edge of the island to a place called Featherbay.
When she arrived, she was overjoyed. The Whaleboat waited there, and though it had clearly seen better days, it has been boarded and patched up. "Behold," King Featherbutt exclaimed "Your Stallion awaits in the cove!"
"More like the Whallion!" Laura grinned giddily as she saw John Lion waiting on the deck.
"We also fed your lion!" Featherbutt said with a beaky smile. "Even if he demanded caviar and escargot!"
"Well well," Chloe said. "I guess you aren't a bunch of bad birds after all. I'll definitely remember the time you fixed our boat rather than the time you tried to sacrifice us to a blood thirsty lightning god."
"Yeah uh...we'll be happy if you don't sue us for your grievances!" King Featherbutt laughed nervously and hid his spear.
"Don't worry matey!" Abacab said patting Featherbutt on the head. "We left our pirattorney on the previous island! We couldn't sue your Featherbutt if we tried."
Everyone burst into laughter, but after remembering the time they got struck by lightning, everyone quieted down and Ramone muttered in his foppish voice, "I'm not above a cash settlement."
Chloe squinted her eyes out on the horizon. A low fog hovered in the distance, shrouding everything. "so what lies ahead, Featherbutt? Is that the Buckingham Blue out there!"
"Oh that," Featherbutt said. "That's not Buckingham Blue, but rather the Mists of Nothing!"
"Dat doesn't sound ominous!" Vinnie shuddered, hiding behind Monica.
"You see," the big chicken creature said. "As you get closer to Buckingham Blue, the weather gets more chaotic and unusual. Some weather is extremely unnatural because the place is cursed."
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"Like how?" Chloe said, beaming. "I'm ready for anything these weather gods throw at us."
"I'm not!" Ramone shouted. "That Electra nearly turned me into boiled goat milk!"
The King of the Thunderbawks hopped up and down. "The mists of nothing are called thst since they literally lead to nothing! You could spend days in that magical fog and not find anything!"
"But" Chloe muttered "How the shell are we gonna find our way out of it?!"
With his spear, the Thunderbawk drew numerous points in the sand and connected them. "You see, in the mist there are numerous rocks. You will have to sail in a careful path past every single one!"
"Sounds easy enough," Chloe remarked, but how will we know in what order to sail around them?"
"They are in groups of one, two, three and so on...but be warned, even if you follow them there is a divergent pathway. One leads to out of the Mists of Nothing and the other...leads to Hideaway Island."
"Hideaway Island?!" Everyone exclaimed.
"What is that?" Chloe shouted.
There was a hollow look in King Festherbutt's shiny black eyes. "It's a place people go when they never want to be found. Refugees, criminals and other ne'er do wells hide there...in fact, there was a young man named Rene who visited here earlier. Said he was on a self searching voyage!"
"Senor chicken?" Monica exclaimed suddenly, as Vinnie cuddled her from behind. "What did this Rene look like?"
"Tall, blond and handsome by you human standards," Featherbutt answered. "Dressed like a waiter!"
"Sounds like my kinda man," Ramone remarked before his eyes widened. "Say Miss Monica isn't that..."
"Django the Slasher!" Monica exclaimed in her heavily accented voice. "The bastardo! I've found him at last!"
"Waitaminute," Vinnie said as he massaged Monica's shoulders. "That means we're going to need to stop at dis Hideaway Island. But I guess its up to our captain if we do it!"
Monica's dark brown eyes looked deeply into Chloe's with such determination even her demon eye couldn't swivel away. "Please chica," Monica pleaded. "I must avenge mi hermano and mi papa. I cannot let their deaths be in vain."
"Of course," Chloe laughed "We're doing this, Swordslady! Even if you're taken, I can't resist a beauty like you I'm need!"
"Another cutthroat island of scum, scoundrels and thieves?" Ramone asked shivering.
"Is that a problem, Rammy?" Choe asked trying to act like a sweet little girl again.
"No..." Ramone said with a sigh. "At this point, I love and breathe hooligans."
"Looks like Hideaway Island is our next destination!" Chloe exclaimed.
Monica balled up her fist. "Do you hear that mi familia. You will be avenged in the name of Montero!"