A few hours later she awoke with a mouth that felt like it was full of cotton and a pressing need to use the facilities. She slid from the bed and it took a few moments for her to remember where she was. She made her way sleepily into the hallway then stumbled in the direction of the bathroom.

Unlike the mess which was brightly lit by electric lights and the cabins which were softly lit with low level infusements, the hallway was lit with a faint blue glow coming from jars attached at various points along the wall. Upon closer inspection Amanda could see that the blue light shone from a pudgy bio-luminescent caterpillar. One in each jar. She’d read about these before. The light attracted other insects which would land on the caterpillar and be absorbed as food. The skin of the caterpillar should not be touched by bare hands as they were mildly poisonous. Not deadly though, not unless you licked your fingers after touching them. She could see the tops of the jars were open, probably to let insects in or to drop them in. She wasn’t sure if there were any insects that roamed the open ocean. Either way, as eerie as it was, she was glad for the caterpillar light.

She paused at an intersection, unsure if this was where she had turned yesterday or if it was further along. Had this been one of the corridors the captain had had his crew guard? If so it was empty now. But then again maybe this was the right way. In her half asleep, still a little drunk state she wasn’t entirely sure. She continued along figuring if this were the wrong way she’d know soon enough and then she could go back.

Soon she came to a short flight of stairs and she knew she had gone the wrong way but the lanterns in the hall were a pretty blue-green down here. It was a little softer than the pure blue, and her curiosity was stronger than her needs. She continued a little further, wanting to see what was around the next bend, drawn like a moth to the flame.

She entered what appeared to be a cargo hold. Lots of boxes in various shapes. Some wrapped in sheeting, others held down with lashings. One section of cargo drew her gaze more than the others. Their shape was unmissable. Coffins. Five in all. She was considering the unthinkable, that she might just take a look and see if they were occupied coffins when a creak sounded behind her. She spun on the spot but saw nothing. It was enough to change her mind.

She backtracked quickly, a bit disturbed at almost sharing a level with the dead. It wasn’t something that normally would have bothered her. Hell, if she hadn’t been on an unknown ship, somewhere in the middle of the ocean, she might have even found it exciting or creepy cool like something out of a B horror movie. But right now everything was silent except for the distant sound of the waves outside. That plus the creak she had just heard. Things were already spooky enough without stumbling across an array of coffins in the middle of the night.

She reached the steps again and froze when she noticed the large shape at the top of the steps blocking her way. There the captain stood looking down at her.

“I was just looking for the bathroom,” she said, the words tumbling out quickly.

In a calm tone he replied, “It’s that way. I’ll show you.” He turned and led her back to the intersection from earlier. He pointed a few doors down.

“Right.” She breathed a sigh. Evidently she wasn’t in too much trouble for wandering. The relief made her bold again. “I was just wondering, those coffins back there... were they, are they empty?”

Sirius sighed. He gave a single nod, not in answer but in acknowledgment. Amanda was surprised when he replied, “I don’t always know exactly what’s on my ship, some people pay extra for that but sometimes if they can’t pay they spin a story, sometimes it’s the truth, sometimes it’s hard to tell. Either way if the story is good and I have space sometimes I’ll drop the price a bit. Those coffins are the remains of some vampires killed for their kind. Their family wants them back. They were apparently difficult to even get to the ship, their attackers had them hung up like trophies.

“In Little Rock?”

Sirius shook his head. “Somewhere else. It doesn’t really matter. All that matters is where they are going.”

It was dark but Amanda could just make out a far off look in his eyes. It seemed it was a philosophy he desired to apply to his own life too.

“What were you doing down here?” Amanda asked pushing her luck further.

“I was...” he paused. The faraway look in his eyes was still there as he stared back down the corridor at the blue and green lights. “I thought I heard something.”

If he hadn’t been looking the way he was Amanda might have assumed he meant her but it seemed like he thought it was something else.

She shivered, thinking of the coffins again but it was quickly replaced by a touch of sadness and guilt at the thought of the people who were to receive the coffins on the other end.

“Can I help you with anything else?” Sirius asked her finally.

“No, no, thank you.” Amanda turned to head to the bathroom.

“Good night,” Sirius told her, still seemingly distracted by something.

It was while she was washing her hands that Amanda regretted not asking him about toothpaste. She knew of some leaves that basically did the same thing, and she knew it wasn’t unusual for sailors to carry some. Perhaps the kitchen would have some? At the very least it should have some water and she could use a big gulp of that right now.

She returned the corridor with the intention of finding the ship’s gallery. There was no sign of Sirius but as she was passing by that blue-green lit corridor she heard noises coming from further down. The clatter of wood and someone swearing. She didn’t hesitate to follow the sound. She was pretty sure she knew who it was this time.

When she reached the cargo hold, sure enough, she found Sirius. He was trying to stomp on some variety of fast-moving beetle. Nearby, was a fallen over barrel which had obviously housed the beetles.

In the dim light it took Amanda a moment to recognise the type of beetle. When she did she rushed towards Sirius. “Get away from them. If they get on you they’ll kill you.”

Sirius froze at the sound of her voice just long enough for Amanda to watch in horror as one of them ran up the outside of his trousers. She didn’t wait.

“Quick! MOVE!” she insisted. She grabbed his hand tried to pull him to the other side of the room.

Luckily he was already moving away from the beetles for there was no way she could have pulled him had he resisted.

He paused half way across the room and looked back at them in puzzlement, not aware of the one that was searching for a way to his bare flesh.

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Knowing she had seconds she ducked around the front of him and frantically searched for where it was. She glimpsed the tail end of it just as it disappeared beneath his shirt. Without thinking she yanked his shirt up to reveal rock hard abs. She paid no attention to anything but the beetle. She grabbed its body just as it started to dig into his stomach.

She burnt it first and then threw it. A subtle burn, no flame, just intense heat. She didn’t want to reveal her powers and while it might look roasted if someone found it there was no way of getting a good hold of those beetles alive. She knew too well how they could twist their bodies. Crushing was difficult for their shells were hard. And their slicers were sharp. They would cleanly cut or dig their way into skin, embed themselves within the body itself and eat it out from the inside out, every fleshy bit until there was nothing left. To hold one was a death sentence to all but those who could bring fire with their own hands.

“Are there any more on you?” she asked as she spun him and patted him down with no regard to personal space.

“What are they?” Sirius asked, obviously taken aback both by the bugs and Amanda’s sudden invasion.

Eventually she stepped back satisfied there were no more on him. She turned to face the overturned barrel. Beetles scurried in all directions but they mostly stayed to the edges and crevices between things. She hoped there were no holes in the walls. So far none had crossed the room toward them or the door but every so often one would venture out a little further in a non-linear fashion. It wouldn’t be long before they found them.

“Flesh-eating beetles,” she replied. “We need to get rid of them before they get into the rest of the ship.”

“Will they hurt the ship? Eat through the wood?” Sirius asked taking a quick inspection at the bloody marks the creature had left on his stomach.

Amanda shook her head. “Just the people on it.”

Sirius nodded. “They shouldn’t be able to get out of this room any other way than that door then. How do we kill them?”

Amanda hesitated there. She didn’t want to say ‘fire’ least it reveal her powers but nor did she want to let these creatures roam this ship. She racked her brain. Then she remembered.

“Garlic, they hate garlic and... and something else.” She knew there was another herb they also disliked the smell of. A better one, but for now the thought was gone.

“Will it kill them?” Sirius asked.

Amanda shook her head again “No, not unless you drowned them in it I think, and even then. But they definitely won’t cross it.”

“What about salt?”

Another head shake. “No.”

“Where are we going to find enough garlic?” Sirius asked that question more to himself than Amanda for he was half way up the stairs already on his way to wake the needed crew. “Are you coming?” he asked when he realised she wasn’t following.

“I best stay here. I can keep em from getting out.”

“How are you going to do that?”

“I can kick em back in,” Amanda lied. She knew the beetle released a sticky substance that latched itself on to things whenever it felt itself moving unexpectedly. There was no way she could kick them but she could burn them. And Sirius didn’t need to know any of the details.

He looked doubtful though so she added, “Go, just get some garlic. I’ll be fine. I’ll shout if there’s any trouble.” She said it with such conviction that he did as he was told.

Luckily none of the beetles came near the door and Sirius returned soon with Shiv and a couple of other crewmen. She did however notice a couple scurry up and around the side of the coffins.

“You want us to what?” Shiv asked.

“There’s no way we have enough garlic,” another ventured.

“Just for the door, to keep them in,” Sirius replied.

“I could make a soup,” the fourth man suggested.

Shiv gave him a doubtful look but Sirius instructed, “Do it. And bring a mop, but we want to prioritise the entrance.”

The two men left.

“They’ll destroy the cargo,” Shiv moaned.

Amanda shook her head somberly and countered. “Only the fleshy cargo.”

Sirius and Shiv followed her gaze to the coffins. One of the lids appeared to be moving slightly.

“Drat!” Sirius exclaimed with a note of resignation. “Well there’s not much we can do about that until we secure the door. Shiv, go find out where they nearest island with garlic is. We’ll need to restock.”

Shiv gave a nod and he then he fled.

“Did any come through?” Sirius asked Amanda.

She shook her head.

“Good. Go back to bed, we’ll handle it from here.”

“I should stay, I’m familiar with them,” Amanda replied.

Sirius gave a nod of acquiescence.

Lucky for them none of the beetles came near the door in the surprisingly short time it took the crewman to make a garlic soup and find a mop. Unfortunately the main reason for this may have been that the large number of beetles, after having found the coffins, were heavily distracted by their contents.

“They won’t eat bone will they?” Sirius asked eyeing the coffins, concern plainly etched on his face.

Amanda shook her head. “No but they’ll pick them dry. The real question is how you’re going to get them out.”

“What will kill them?”

“Fire,” she admitted. “A really big gun?” She shrugged. She could use her powers. Getting every individual beetle would be hard though, and risky, unless they could lure them out into the open, and she still didn’t think it wise to reveal what her powers were, not unless she had to.

Sirius’s dark eyebrows knotted together.

Shiv held up a knife in question.

Amanda continued “Their shells are supposed to be able to blunt a blade but even if that did work would you want to stab every single one?”

Shiv looked defeated. Sirius gave a sigh, shoulders drooping. All three of them stood there thoughtfully while the other two crewman slathered a thick creamy garlic sauce on the floor.

“Was the cream needed?” Sirius asked in incredulity as he gazed down at the soppy mess.

Shiv chuckled.

The man who had suggested the soup looked up. “Figured more viscosity would make it last longer, don’t want it evaporating.”

Sirius nodded. “Good man.”

Shiv gave another laugh. He seemed to be bordering on a state of delirium.

Sirius gave him a disapproving look but then he noticed something on the other side of the room. Something Amanda had just seen as well. There, in the corner, was another large box that the beetles all seemed to be congregating around. They were even more interested in it than the coffins.

“Shiv, who’s stuff did we pack into that corner?”

Shiv stopped laughing. “Huh?”

“Who’s box is that?”

“Hmm, Sirena Silver or Yoashi Mao. Yoashi’s boxes are on that side.”

“Tea and ammunitions,” Sirius mused.

“Sirena’s are on the other side, that one is…” Shiv seemed to be having trouble remembering.

“Sirena’s boxes had the beetles.” Sirius said.

“Supposed to be books if I remember right.”

Sirius snorted. “Books and jewellery. I remember that box, she said desert jewels.”

“Well, she’s technically correct,” Amanda explained reluctantly. “They are known as desert jewels in some places.”

Sirius groaned.

Shiv gave another laugh.

“You might want to cover the walls and ceiling,” Amanda suggested to the moppers.

They looked at her with wide eyes.

“What!” Shiv exclaimed. “You telling me those things climb on the ceiling.”

Amanda gave him an apologetic look.

“Well, at least we don’t have to worry about whatever was in that box,” Sirius seemed nonplussed at this point. “You find that island Shiv?”

“Yeah, a deserted island about a day from here, should make it tomorrow mid-morning. Short detour from our location to get there but if we take it, due to the currents and reefs it’ll add a bit on coming out the other side, plus we’ll need to gather some supplies, we’re short on some other things anyway. We’ve got time spare at most places but we’ll be late for Scarlett.”

“That the Corpse Islands?” Sirius asked.

Shiv gave a single nod.

Sirius gave one in reply. “We can gather some clams and bananas to sell at the next port while we’re there. That island has versot weeds and brown fangs too. With them I’ve got an idea we might try on the beetles.”

“Brown fangs?” Shiv seemed hesitant “Are you proposing we poison the beetles somehow?”

“Would that work?” Sirius asked Amanda.

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly.

“Anyway, that wasn’t what I was thinking. I was thinking at the very least we can lure them and drown them in garlic soup.” Sirius decided.

“With the brown fangs?” Shiv asked.

“No with the versot weed. It’s got a fleshy smell,” Sirius replied.

“Ah.” Shiv nodded “Good, that sounds like a better plan. I sure as hell don’t want to be the one catching a brown fang. And what about Scarlett?”

“Scarlett will just have to wait.”

Amanda wasn’t sure if Scarlett was a place or a person but by then the crew had finished up their pasting of the soppy garlic barrier. Sirius left one of them in charge to watch the door, promising a replacement in two hours. The others returned to their quarters. None seemed too worried now the beetles had been contained, at least for the time being.