Reo Hinode (Oberon) – Part 2

Reo was rooted to the floor, staring at Dario’s message, his mind messier than usual. A string of texts from Everett followed, asking Reo where he was, doubtless wanting to talk about the development. This should be a huge celebration; it erased any possible change of plans to sneak on the boats to Red Island. Yet, there was a falling sensation in his stomach. He couldn’t push out of his mind that Erind and the others were heading to their very highly possible deaths. He was safe, but they weren’t.

“Why do I care?” he muttered, gripping his phone hard. It cracked. He wasn’t a gentleman in any sense, but this didn’t sit right with him. “I guess a shard of a hero remains inside me. Stupid, stupid.”

What should he do? Complain to Dario?

Wouldn’t work. Dario would either play dumb or try to convince him this was the right decision. It was possible he’d come to blows with Dario. He sorely wanted to punch Dario for being so reckless. Bullshit sacrificing the ladies for this mission. And he’d lose in a fight against Dario. That’d all be a waste of time anyway, for every passing minute, the farther Erind would be from the cruise ship.

Reo was already resolved he’d get her back and away from danger. He didn’t know how he’d do that, but he should take it one step at a time. First order of business—get to Erind.

He hurried back to the lobby and took a brochure on a stand beside the information desk. It was about the cruise ship and its security features. Where were the lifeboats located?

“Reo!” someone called out to him. It was Everett. “I’ve been trying to contact you. Did you leave your—”

“I have my phone with me,” Reo said, started walking, following the instructions to reach the lifeboats. His instincts wailed alarms, but he didn’t care. This was the right way not to care. He had done some pretty stupid things in his life… and this might be the stupidest of all. But he didn’t care.

“How many times have I told you not to put it on silent mode? You never know—”

“I thought nothing’s going to happen tonight,” Reo said, quickening his pace. “But something did happen. I know that the boats are moving.”

Everett hurried to keep pace with Reo. “Where are you going? I thought you’d be drinking your ass off by now.”

Reo didn’t respond. Should he rope in Everett with his stupid plan? Everett would be game because Deen was involved. Having someone else with him would make Reo less anxious. However, it’d also make him feel guilty if something happened to Everett.

“What’s with that look?” Everett asked. He grabbed Reo, pulling him to stop. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

“I think Erind and Deen are on their way to Red Island.” Reo narrated how he saw Erind and then looked for her, explaining why he concluded that she and Deen climbed down the side of the ship to jump on the transport boats as they emerged from the bulbous bow. “Possibly, Jubjub’s there too. I’m going to get them back.”

“Tha-that can’t be,” Everett stammered, letting go of Reo’s arm. “Dario didn’t mention anything like that.”

“Why would he?” Reo said. “You’re going to object to his plan, right? Me too. He wouldn’t put this up to a vote.” His eyes fell on the tablet Everett carried, pinned to his side with his arm. Reo realized that once he got the lifeboat, he’d need a way to know where to go. Such an important thing he almost forgot because his brain was more addled than when he snorted unknown powders to show off to a hot girl in college.

Reo took the tablet and broke into a jog. He had to hurry. The lifeboats were big and had motors according to the brochure; he had a chance of chasing the transport boats. If it were just paddles, he would’ve given up on this. What he’d do after he’d caught up to the boats… he’d just figure on the way there.

Technically, he was going to steal a lifeboat. But stealing from monsters didn’t sound too bad.

“Are you sure that you saw Erind and Deen?” Everett had a phone to his ear. He was probably trying to call them. “Maybe you were drunk.”

“We can’t get drunk. I’m sure I saw Erind. And Deen’s hair… probably. There’s only one reason why Erind would be in a wetsuit and heading outside.”

“There’s a lot of other reasons than this insanity you’ve cooked up! You’re just guessing that Erind has an artificial Core. You’re guessing that she went overboard. Haven’t you thought you could’ve just missed her somewhere? This ship is huge. And who knows what the hell you saw that was yellow? Maybe someone’s blonde wig was blown by the wind.”

“Are they answering their phones?” Reo asked, descending the stairs, three steps at a time. Much faster than an elevator.

All of Everett’s very valid questions didn’t occur to him. They didn’t matter because he truly saw Erind. Wetsuit. Barefoot. Add to that Erind’s weird behavior during their mission, and all the other mysterious things that happened—Reo didn’t tell Everett about those. Granted, Reo still didn’t have solid proof. Time, however, wasn’t on his side.

“They’re not picking up,” said Everett. “But it’s midnight. They’re asleep.”

“Go check on them and tell me if they’re in their rooms.”

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to steal a lifeboat and follow the Red Island transport boats,” said Reo, checking the brochure again. “Go now, so you can tell me before I get too far from this cruise ship.”

“You’re fucking insane!”

“That’s nothing new.”

“I’m not going to let you do this—”

“You’re not—”

“—alone.” Everett finished. “I’m not going to let you do this alone.”

Reo turned to Everett, feeling embarrassed. “Erm. Thanks, man. Appreciate it.”

Everett was on his phone again. “Hello, Myra?” Everett gave Reo a nod. “Sorry for waking you up, but there’s an emergency.”

Reo knew that he shouldn’t be surprised Everet was going along with his plan, though it sounded insane. They had been through a lot. Also, this was the first time in a long time Reo got this serious. Everett must’ve felt that Reo wasn’t messing around.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Reo listened while Everett told Myra to check Deen and Erind. It was hard to convince Myra, so Everett had to give in and tell her about what Reo said. Myra’s voice didn’t need to be on loudspeaker for Reo to hear.

“Reo thinks Erind has powers?” Myra blared. “And she’s on a secret mission we don’t know about? Yeah, right. Anyway, I’m going to check on them, so calm your asses. Then I’m going to sleep. I don’t care if you guys want to explore the Pacific Ocean.” She ended the call.

“As expected of Myra,” Everett said.

“I’m surprised she agreed to help,” said Reo. “I thought she was just going to trash me and laugh.”

“I can sense she’s a bit worried,” said Everett.

Everett next called Dario, asking if they had any plans to chase after the boats. It was a short conversation. Everett relayed to Reo that Dario said it was up to the trackers and sensors that Jubjub installed. Their mission was over, and it was time to relax.

“Why didn’t you ask him about Erind and Deen?” Reo asked. “Never mind, He’s not going to admit anything.”

“He’s not going to admit what isn’t true,” Everett said. “Look, I’m not saying you’re a liar or that you’re hallucinating, but you have to admit that you’ve been really stressed. Your mind is jumping to—

“Are you backing out?” Reo jabbed his thumb at a lifeboat. “We’re already here.”

Everett sighed. “Someone needs to take care of you. I just hope Myra will give us an update before we get too far from the cruise ship.”

“Do you have any idea how to get this lifeboat down to the water?” Reo thought that the lifeboats were simply secured by ropes. Cut the ropes, and the boats would fall. That was what he saw in movies. Modern lifeboats worked differently. The lifeboat was secured by cranes, one in front and another at the back. The cranes would probably extend outward and lower the lifeboat with pulleys.

“Let me.” Everett clambered onto the cranes and melted their respective locking mechanism. Once dislodged, the cranes were free to extend with a bit of help.

Both of them pushed the lifeboat outward. Superstrength made their work easy. The next problem was the pulleys.

“We can’t just drop the lifeboat,” said Reo, realizing his earlier plan was stupid. “What if it falls upside down?”

“I’m thinking that we could’ve used the controls over there,” Everett said.

“It’s destroyed now. It’s probably locked anyway, so passengers can’t fiddle with it. Here’s an idea: we’ll destroy the pulleys and lower the lifeboat ourselves. You take that side, I’ll take this.”

Everett chuckled. “I know I signed up for something crazy when I joined our group, but I never thought I’d steal a lifeboat.”

“Same, man,” said Reo, a smile flashing across his stressed face.

Reo and Everett carefully climbed to the ends of their respective cranes. The swaying of the boat became more pronounced. It was dark below, so Reo couldn’t see how far he’d fall. Very fortunate. He dismantled the pulley and yanked out the thick rope inside. He coiled the rope around his arm, feeling the weight of the lifeboat.

“Fucking heavy,” Reo grunted, bettering his position so he wouldn’t get dragged by the lifeboat. He pinned the precious tablet to the side of his body. “Are you ready?” he yelled at Everett.

“Ready!”

“Slowly lower!”

Their teamwork was pretty good. If Reo felt the load getting heavier, he stopped lowering the rope so Everett could balance it. If the reverse, Reo would lower his end of the lifeboat faster. It was taking longer than he’d like, but they couldn’t rush it and risk losing their ride. He was getting anxious at how far Erind could’ve gone.

Before the lifeboat could reach the surface of the ocean, Reo yelled at Everett to stop lowering. Using his brain—it was working now—he foresaw that strong waves might smash the lifeboat against the cruise ship. The lifeboat was already swinging like a pendulum. He started descending the rope. Reo used only his arms and superstrength, his legs holding the tablet.

“What next?” Everett said as he landed on top of the lifeboat.

“Feels weird being in charge,” said Reo, landing next to Everett.

“This is your gig, you call the shots.”

“And get the blame if things go south,” Reo said. “Take this tablet and get in the lifeboat. I’ll cut the ropes.”

Everett followed his instructions. Reo cut the rope attached to the end first. The boat tilted, but it stopped at a diagonal position instead of hanging straight from its front because its end hit the water. Reo scrambled to cut the front ropes to correct the lifeboat’s position. He entered the lifeboat just as it roared to life.

“You know how to operate this thing?” Reo asked.

“I’ve spent a few summers working on a fishing boat,” Everett explained.

Reo took the tablet as Everett steered the lifeboat away from the hulking cruise ship. “I call shotgun! I’ll be your navigator for tonight, ladies and gentlemen. We’ll go that way! The tracker is blipping over there. Northwest? Is that right?”

“You sound happy,” said Everett.

“It’s the adrenaline rush. And the fear… hiding that fear.”

There was silence between them. Waves grumbled against their boat as they steadied themselves through the bobbing. The massive groaning of the cruise ship became dimmer as they separated ways with no.

Without words, Reo and Everett shared their thoughts. This was going to be an insane ride. They might not even make it back. That was what went on Reo’s head anyway. He didn’t know if Everett thought the same.

Everett’s phone rang. They both jumped.

Since Everett was on the wheel, Reo answered it. “Greetings, Myra. What tidings do you—?”

“Reo? Are you with Everett? Have you two gotten off the cruise ship?”

“After a daring mission that involved stealing a lifeboat, we have—”

“Deen and Erind are missing. They weren’t answering when I knocked on their rooms. I broke down Deen’s door to get inside. It’s empty. Johann’s helping me check restaurants and bars—maybe they’re just hanging out—but so far nothing.”

Reo and Everett exchanged glances. “We’re going to look for them,” said Reo. “And we’ll bring them back.”

“Dude, it’s so weird hearing you say responsible things,” said Myra, her tone gentler. “Take care over there…”

“Erm, thanks.”

“Do you want me to do anything else?”

“Yeah, go find Dario and punch him”

“What did… say? I can’t…” Myra’s voice kept getting cut off. Then Everett’s phone lost signal. The cruise ship was too far away.

“Guess it’s just us, buddy-o,” said Reo, putting his arm across Everett’s shoulder. “I’m going to apologize in advance if we’d end up dying. Seriously, my bad here. I’m not even sure why I’m doing this.”

“It’s my choice to be here,” Everett replied. “Also, I can’t die until I save Deen.” They laughed. “Kidding aside, I’m not going to blame you one bit. I’d do the same. I don’t know why Dario did this, but I’ll give him a piece of my mind when we get back. How far away are we?”

“Still far,” said Reo, looking at the tablet. “I hope we don’t lose the signal may be lost. Wait… one of them is gone?”

“Out of range?”

“It’s back. And gone. I don’t know why it’s getting faint.” Reo continued to observe. His gut told him something bad was going to happen. He expected it, but he didn’t know what. “The other trackers are also behaving weirdly.”

“Are we losing them?” Everett asked.

“Now… we’re nearing them. They’re coming to us.”

“What? They’re turning around?” Everett craned his neck to look out the windows. Just darkness.

Reo couldn’t see anything either. “Is this thing malfunctioning?”

Then there was a huge thud, and their lifeboat was overturned.