(continued from Lunea)

I opened my eyes. A warm breeze gnalty passed my face. It was a feeling that made me smile. I could hear birds singing. I slowly sat up and rubbed my eyes. When I regained my focus I could not beleive the beauty of where we were.



We were sitting ontop of a cloud. All of us. The entire crew. But the cloud was thick and soft... possibly the comfiest thing I had ever sat on! butterflies fluttered about us, their bright wings leaving little trails of colour in the blue sky.

It was like a wamr summers day. Although when I looked down I saw no ground... only more sky and clouds! I realsied that we were still dead and this must be another of the immortal realms. I could feel just from the way this place looked, that this was a true place of good, not like Lunea.

We were all awake now. People had no fear of falling as when we stepped from the cloud, another would arrive under our feet.

Here was a place that I could happily spend eternity.

However there were other issues at hand. Captain Korg had the Axe of Lunea and he had been sent to the mortal world to bring about the apocalypse.

the God of light known to us as Ethernaal approached in the sky, not walking on clouds, but floating through the air. He landed gently before us.

"I must thank you Ethernaal," I said, "you have saved us from Lunea and the Dark Gods."

This place was so much nicer then Lunea.
I felt that I could almost bounce from cloud to cloud.

But there was the serious issue of Captain Korg and that axe. But what was there we could do about it now that we were dead? It was now up to the living to stop Korg. There was ntohnig we could be from here? Was there?

"What will you do about those Dark gods?" I asked Ethernaal, "They must pay for what they've tried to do to us!"

i was sat here" wow nice i decided to relax as much as i could untill somthing else bad happens.

I first turned to Adrian Warner.

"No," I said in responce to his thanks, "it is I that must thank all of you. I would have trapped forever in that staue if it were not for you. This is just my way of saying thankyou."

I then truend to Colin 'Boulder' Wilkins.

"The Dark Gods are very powerful," I said, "they control many of the immortal realms and are not people that we can just 'banish'. However the day will come when the Darg Gods are sent away forever. But I fear that day is still far away and there is much trickery for them to play with until then. And that leads me to my question... exactly what took place in Lunea before I was freed?"

The Knigston crew members told me in detail all that had happened since Adrian Warner first died and was duped by Shinira in Lunea. How they had got the Axe of Lunea from the Vampire Witch Queen. How they had all died and been sent to Lunea where Captain Korg had arrived. How the Dark Gods had given Korg the Axe....

This troubled me greatly.

"Every life Korg takes with that Axe... their soul will be sent to Lunea," I gasped, "this means that Luena will grow strong, and the Dark Gods will grow even stronger. It also means that my fellow Gods of Light and all our realms will grow weak and eventually disapear forever."

I paced the cloud on which I now stood. Everyone was looing up to me, waiting for what I had to say.

"Captain Korg must not be allowed to use the Axe of Lunea and bring the apocalypse down upon the mortal world," I said, "But we Gods cannot prevent this. We cannot personnaly interfere with the world of the living. That means that someone else will have to go there and try to stop him... but who?"

"We could do it," I said suddenly. Everyone looked at me. "You could send us back, I know you have to power to. You could send us back and we could fight Korg and attempt to stop the apocalypse."

Everyone began to whisper to themselves. I was unsure what the rest of the crew though about this. But I, for one, knew it was the right thing to do. Besides, I was a werewolf hunter, there was still much I needed to do... still many werewolves I needed to get rid of. My time in the 'mortal world' could not be over yet.

"What say you?" I said to both the God and the rest of the crew.

I stared at Mister Johns dumbfounded. I had always know he was a lunatic, hunting werewolves for a liing you had to be, however I had no idea he was this crazy.

Wanting to try and fight the most dangeorus man to ever live, who hold the most powerful weapon ever created... insane!

We would not stand a chance against him!

Then I looked about my surroundings. Yes, this place was peaceful and beautiful and warma dn welcomming, however there was something about it that I did not feel quite at home about. Then it hit me.

There was no such thing as money here!

Here in Hesthia everything was free and everyone was equal. Equal! That meant that I, a man who has lived all my years earning all my money, was equal to someone as hopeless and poor as... as... as Max Decker!

I soon realise that this was not the place for me. there was still muchfor me to do back in the mortal world. Finsih my book for one! Earn more money for another! I had to be given my life back... I just had to! And if that meant going to fight Korg then so be it.

Of course I would not do any of the fighting. I would just go and hide under a rock until it was all over.

"I agree with Mister Johns!" I said suddenly. There were gasps all around and everyone turned and stared at me. They could not beleive what I had just said.
"We must do everything we can," I continued, "Korg cannot destroy the world! We must return there.... we must be given back our lvies!"

"I agree," I said.

I had been quiet for a while, since we arrived in Lunea to be exact, I felt like I was just 'going with the flow' of everyone else while everything sunk in about what had happened on Devil Island, then on the ship, and finally in Lunea. I felt that I had much more to offer and I felt that there was more I could do to help Captain Warner and his crew. It was time for me to step up and be counted. I just hoped I would be able to help, and not just to help tidy people's injuries up.

I looked around at the living clouds and peace entered my mind. Then I noticed Emmsi's brave agreement, she seemed to be finally taken leadership into her hands. After all the events taking place I came to the conclusion that she didn't care anymore, and what harm would it be go defeat Korg - we're dead anyway right? But I sat back thinking about the idea, considering facing Korg.

He would tear me apart. I killed one of his son's and half his family. I wiped out his entire encampment with my brother, all of his best foresters, hunters and archers died a terrible death that day. I didn't even think twice, I just thought about the getting one over the mightest pirate of all time.
But that was in the past.

Cander also agreed at Mister Jonh's suggestion and I looked around and felt that I was the only one that wouldn't speak out. I didn't fear Korg, I just would...dislike meeting him.

The crew seemed to have their minds set. They wanted to go and try to stop Korg.

"I can send you back to the mortal world," I said, "You would all regain your lives. You would be alive again. However there would be a price for granting life to those that are dead is not something that is done easily."

I paused and looked around at the faces of the Kingstons crew.

"When you wake you will be disoriented... you will not remember ever dying... this loss of memory will pass. You will remember eveything but it will take a while. Also there must be an exchange..."

This is the part which most concerned me.

"One of you, when this task is completed, must return to Hesthia. You must die and spend the rest of eternity here with us. I am sorry but that is the only way."

I listened to what Ethernaal had to say. It would be risky going back to fight Korg. No living man had ever defeated him in battle. However I knew it was the right thing to do.

Then I heard Ethernall talk of the exchange. That after, or if, we managed to defeat Korg, one of us must return here to Hesthia forever. It was sad news.

I looked at my crew. How could I let any of them return here? They were my responsibility. It was my fault that they were in this situation. I knew what I had to do.

"I will return," I said suddenly, "it is only fair. Besides, I had already thought I would be spening the rest of forever in Lunea after defeating Queen Car'liria. Had begun to accept the situation."

I sighed. Once again death was on the horizon for me. But then, when it came to fighting Korg, death was on the horizon for many of us.

"Alright Ethernaal," I said, "send us back. We shall do what we can."