A Tale That Could Not Be

With everyone up to date on the news of Marjeneh’s arrival they wasted no time in gathering their supplies and hurrying to the docks. Red, seated atop Bigbad, exchanged a beaming smile with Jack as they sped down the streets at a steady jog. Sauradians glanced at them curiously and at one point they were nearly run over by an ox cart but they never slowed down.

Bigbad led the way, clearing a path before them and following Red’s directions. She had ridden Bigbad for so many years that their connection was almost mental; she hardly noticed herself giving him any information yet the wolf knew exactly where to go.

Red’s spirits soared at the sight of Marjeneh standing before her sleek vessel. She called out to her and waved and the cheerful woman waved back, a great smile on her face. After the group reached her they took a few moments to catch their breaths and then introduced themselves.

“I see the life of a sailor has served you well, Sinbad,” she said to the man, giving him a sly wink.

He winked back and grinned. “The pampered life of the wealthy appears to have done the same to you.”

“It certainly has its advantages.” She flipped her silky hair back and then turned her attention to the others. “I am glad to see that you have all made it here so quickly. To be honest, I had almost debated sleeping for a few more hours but I see I chose wisely in not doing so.”

Hook and Jack were standing as close as they could get to the ship and were both examining it closely. Red watched them feel the wood of its hull and study its lateen sails from a distance. Hook rubbed his beard thoughtfully and Jack was tapping his chin at the same time. Had she not known any better she would have thought them to be father and son.

“She doesn’t pack the punch that Jolly Roger did,” Hook was saying.

Jack nodded. “She’s built lighter, though, which should, in theory, give us more speed.”

“She’s a beautiful vessel, I’ll give her that, but beauty means nothing out in the open ocean.”

“I don’t know, captain, do you think she has what it takes?”

“I’m certain she does, Jack. It’s those lateen sails that worry me as I have only briefly handled them and that was ages ago.”

“I heard Sinbad say that he had used them a few times on his voyages. I’m sure he’ll refresh your memory.”

“Good. That reminds me…” Hook then turned around and walked up to Marjeneh as she busied herself talking with Cindy and Belle. He poked her shoulder hard, eliciting a cry of pain from her, and then said, “Excuse me for that but I need to know if your crew is trustworthy.”

Marjeneh rubbed her shoulder, mouthing the word “Ow” as she did so, and nodded. “Of course they are trustworthy. I wouldn’t get you any other kind of crew.”

Hook and Jack exchanged a glance.

“How can we know for sure?” asked Jack.

Marjeneh frowned. “Are you doubting my loyalty? I generously offer you this ship, free of charge, as well as a fully paid crew and you doubt that I am on your side?”

“The last crew we had tried to kill Hook,” Sinbad clarified to Marjeneh. “Forgive him if he’s being cautious.”

“Oh,” Marjeneh said, her expression softening somewhat. “Well, like I said, you don’t have to worry about them. They are all good men and will serve you well. None of them are former pirates or criminals or anyone that might hold a grudge against you. They all have families and won’t do anything that would endanger them—like betraying me. I assure you.”

Hook and Jack exchanged another glance and then nodded, appearing satisfied with her answer.

“I guess there is nothing left to do but set foot on her deck,” Hook said, allowing a grin to creep on his face.

Marjeneh nodded once, smiling wide. “That’s why I brought her here!”

“Wait!”

The companions and Marjeneh turned their heads toward the speaker only to notice Prince Aladdin upon a white horse with two other men riding beside him. One man was middle-aged and wore regal vestments of red and violet with a golden crown upon his head. The second man was much younger with a head of golden hair, blue eyes, and dressed in royal blue garments. Behind them rode four armoured guards bearing the standard of Frenis, a wolf’s head biting down on a sword, and the standard of Sauradia, a bird of fire with a rolled scroll in its talons.

“We were just about to leave, prince,” Sinbad said to Aladdin, dripping venom on the royal title. “We will be out of your sight for good.”

“That brings great joy to my heart,” Aladdin replied behind his red shawl. “I am not here to prevent you from leaving.”

“We are here for her,” the crowned man barked, pointing a rigid finger straight ahead.

Red followed the finger and found it pointing directly at Belle. The two women exchanged glances of mixed confusion, alarm, and slight fear.

“Excuse my father,” said the younger man, offering everyone a polite bow. “He is not one for pleasantries. I am Prince Florian Charming and he is the king himself, Lord Henri Charming. We were here for political reasons due to the war and all that it entails but we came across some interesting information that stated a certain wanted felon was sighted in the city.”

“Belle is no felon,” Hook said defensively, standing beside the worried young woman. “You must be mistaken, your highness.”

“That is not what the folks in Our Lady are saying,” the king objected. “Those are my loyal subjects and I will not have them suffer while the cause of their misery sails the world freely.”

“Frollo is the felon you want!” Cindy shouted, her face reddening with fury. “He tried to kill Belle and me!”

“Judge Frollo has been dealt with,” King Charming stated. “A most disturbing case was brought forward to us by a certain disfigured individual and Frollo will now live the rest of his despicable life behind bars. Frollo, however, was not the one destroying property and slaughtering Frenisian knights and guards.”

“Artemian was there too,” Belle said weakly.

Prince Charming shrugged in helplessness. “Unfortunately for us, we can’t find him; otherwise he’d be locked up too, if not executed. You are here, though, and that gives us a chance to exact some form of justice.”

“Belle was only saving herself!” Cindy interjected, standing in front of her friend like a shield.

“Come with us quietly,” King Charming said in a low, threatening voice. “Do so and you will not be harmed. Give us reason to unsheathe our blades and you will not leave these docks alive.”

“You must answer for the damage you have caused,” added Prince Charming in a much softer tone. “The monster inside you cannot be allowed to roam about unopposed. He has slain lives and I understand he was only saving himself, as well as you, but he is a murderer nonetheless. Murderers must be brought to justice.”

Red didn’t know what to say or do. She wanted to argue and fight and save Belle but she didn’t know how. As horrible as it was, Prince Charming had a point. She glanced at Belle and marvelled at how bravely she stood. She was on the verge of tears but her back was straight and her jaw was set. Red then noticed that her lips quivered ever so slightly and one of her eyes was blinking faster than the other.

Red then gasped as understanding dawned on her. Belle wasn’t being brave for the sake of the king and prince but was instead struggling to hold Beast at bay. She was being strong for her own sake, lest Breast break free and do something rash and perhaps violent.

“We have to go now,” Red said mechanically and without thought. “It’s not safe.”

“What are you saying?” King Charming asked gruffly. “Are you threatening me?”

“No,” Cindy answered for Red, catching on. “Beast is about to come out and he won’t be happy that you called him a monster.”

“Everyone on the ship,” Hook ordered immediately. “NOW!”

Belle whimpered and dropped to her knees as her body shook violently. “Beast, calm down! Please!”

Jack, Sinbad, and Hook hurried to the ship as Red stood where she was. Her crossbows were in her hands, as if by magic, and on Belle’s other side stood Cindy, her hands curled into fists. They weren’t about to leave their sister alone. Bigbad remained as well, his ears flattened and the fur on his neck and back raised.

“Kill her before she unleashes the creature!” King Charming ordered. The four guards tossed aside the banners they held and produced crossbows of their own, these ones much larger and stronger than Red’s. They aimed them at Belle and quickly fired before anything could be done about it.

The bolts streaked through the air and pelted into Belle’s shoulders, collar, and chest but she hardly seemed to notice them. Red immediately lifted her crossbows and fired two shots in quick succession, disabling two of the guard’s crossbows by shattering their locking pins. As the other two guards reloaded she did the same. For several tense seconds it was a battle of who could reload their crossbows the quickest and fire first.

Red’s crossbows were reloaded the soonest and were once again fired immediately. One of her bolts snapped the bowstring of one of the guard’s crossbows and the second one dug into its stock, cracking it and ruining its integrity and thus rendering it useless. King Charming ordered his guards to rush in and they did so, leaping off their horses and brandishing their broadswords as they charged toward Belle.

Red hurriedly reloaded her crossbow and Cindy stood in front of Belle, resembling a mouse standing up to four armoured wolves. Just as Red raised her newly reloaded crossbows she was shoved aside and knocked to the ground. Looking up, she noticed Sauradian spearmen charging toward Belle as well, their razor-sharp speartips aimed for her heart.

Frenisian guards and Sauradian spearmen were then suddenly sent flying back as a terrible roar echoed throughout the docks, shaking the ground, rattling masts and posts, and making sails and flags quiver. In Belle’s place stood Beast, covered in grey fur and bulging with muscle with spikes upon his back, shoulders, and head. Long silvery hair cascaded down from his head and his eyes burned red with rage. The crossbow bolts that had pierced Belle were nowhere on Beast’s body and Red assumed that they had been pushed out during the transformation.

The guards and spearmen renewed their advance, albeit slower than before. Beast shoved Cindy aside and launched himself upon the Frenisian knights. Their blades hacked and slashed but couldn’t pierce through his thick hide. His claws, on the other hand, tore through the armour like paper and his great strength pounded the knights into mush. The spearmen surrounded Beast and thrust at him with remarkable speed and accuracy. Though their weapons could not break through the hide they appeared to cause some discomfort and Beast roared at them, swiping at their spears.

Prince Aladdin joined the fray, leaping off his horse’s back and entering in the middle of the circle of spears. Beast went to clamp his jaws on the man’s head but Aladdin was quicker. He rolled behind Beast and scored a wicked slash across his back, fur and blood flying.

Enchanted blades! Red remarked in alarm as Beast cried out in agony. Prince Aladdin cared nothing for Beast and would kill him if given the chance. Red tried to shove her way through the wall of spearmen but they were stronger than she was and their armour prevented her from paralyzing them with her crossbow bolts. Cindy was trying as well but she too was unable to break through.

Salvation came in the form of Sinbad. He returned to the scene, leapt atop Bigbad’s back and then shot off of it, landing into the circle of spears. Aladdin had cut Beast a few more times already and Belle’s terrifying lover was simply not fast enough to catch him. Sinbad changed all that. He was as quick and agile as Aladdin and immediately set himself upon his cousin. Prince and sailor clashed blades and battled fiercely as the circle of spears grew wider to offer them more room.

Beast, now free to act, turned his attention back the spearmen and bowled through them, knocking several to the ground before slamming his fists through their skulls or slashing their armour and rib cages clean off their bodies. Rage consumed him and made him unpredictable and dangerous. Beast, as much as he despised being called one, truly was a monster at that moment. Red, wanting it all to end, fire two paralyzing bolts at him.

They bounced off his body harmlessly, as Red had hopelessly predicted.

Unexpectedly, however, Beast turned his red eyes her way and growled menacingly. Saliva and blood dripped down from his lips and teeth, pooling on the ground, as the terrible creature advanced on her.

“Belle!” Red called out as she began backing away. “You can control him! Stop him! It’s me, Red!”

Beast roared and then charged, his clawed feet pounding across the ground like the beating of war drums. Red’s crossbows were unloaded and all she had to defend herself were two regular daggers that wouldn’t pierce his hide anyhow. She could only stand, petrified in fear, as someone she had once considered a friend barreled toward her.

A shadow suddenly loomed over her for a second and then a large, black shape slammed into Beast, throwing him back. The two creatures rolled on the ground for a short distance, claws tearing and teeth biting before breaking off and facing one another. Bigbad’s eyes burned redder than Beast’s and his lips were pulled back, revealing two rows of sharp teeth and fangs like swords. He growled with such ferocity that Red shuddered. She had never seen Bigbad so furious and she wondered if any force in the world could stop him at that moment.

Beast roared before charging at the wolf. Bigbad dug his claws into the ground and shot himself toward the muscled creature. The two met with such force that their impact shook the ground and rattled Red’s teeth. Even Sinbad and Aladdin, who were still battling, were momentarily knocked aside. Bigbad clamped his jaws around Beast’s neck and threw him aside. Beast soared through the air and crashed into an abandoned ox cart, reducing it to kindling beneath his weight. Rising to his feet, he retaliated by tackling into Bigbad and throwing the wolf to the ground. Beast then began pounding his fists into the wolf’s body with such force that Red could feel the impact in her own bones. Tears began streaming down her face and she screamed at Beast to stop.

But he did not listen.

Bigbad was not so easily defeated, however, and he kicked Beast away, rolled over on his paws and then lunged. His jaws clamped over Beast’s arm and as Beast began striking the wolf with his free arm Bigbad swung his head to the side. Still holding on to the arm, Beast was thrown into the side of a stone building. The collision was thunderous and left behind deep cracks in the building’s wall. Bigbad kept up the attack and bit down on one of Beast’s legs, swiftly throwing him up into the air and then leaping up after him. Beast slashed Bigbad’s face as he reached him but the wolf swatted aside any other attempts and went for Beast’s leg again, biting hard. Dozens of feet in the air, the wolf then swung his head toward the ground and let go. Beast plummeted through the air like a comet and crashed into the ground with such power it created a small shockwave. To add insult to injury, Bigbad landed on Beast’s body with a rough thud. The wolf then leapt off and stood in front of Red protectively as blood dripped to the ground from numerous wounds on his body. Red stood and watched, afraid to touch her greatest of friends for fear of hurting or startling him.

Beast growled and hauled himself up to his feet, battered and bruised but ready to fight once again. He roared with such intensity that Red, and everyone else around, was forced to shield their ears. Aladdin and Sinbad had stopped their battle and were on their knees with their hands pressed hard against the sides of their heads. Bigbad’s ears were pulled back but the wolf made no move to attack. He had given everything he had and still Beast remained fit enough to take on an army.

Beast seemed to know this and when his eyes settled on Bigbad again Red was certain she saw him grin. She reloaded her crossbows and fired two quick shots but once again they only bounced off.

Bigbad growled louder as Beast approached and Red noticed his muscles tensing and his claws digging into the ground. He was preparing to leap. As powerful as Bigbad was, however, he could not win against Beast.

To Red’s shock, Hook and Jack entered the fray. The former captain fired his pistols at Beast, scoring hits against his back and neck but shedding no blood. Jack charged, leveling a spear he had taken from one of the fallen spearmen. Beast turned around to face them and snarled. Off to the side, Red spotted Aladdin and Sinbad joining the battle, the two setting aside their differences for now to face a common threat.

The Charmings continued to sit on their horses and watch, though the prince seemed eager to join the battle. The king shot him a glare as he stepped forward and it kept him where he was, putting a swift end to that. Marjeneh was peeking from behind a crate, her face several shades paler.

Beast grabbed Jack’s spear as it came for his chest, wrenched it from the young man’s hands, and then swept it under the legs of Sinbad and Aladdin, throwing them to the ground. Jack leapt on Beast’s back and jabbed with his dagger furiously. Beast shrugged him off and threw him toward the ships. Jack soared for dozens of feet before landing into the water, narrowly missing a docked ship’s hull. Hook pulled off his glove, extended the hook-like claws on his wood and metal hand, and began slashing madly. He ducked under a sweeping arm, closed his fist, and swung an uppercut under Beast’s chin. The powerful blow sent Beast stumbling back a few feet, momentarily disoriented. Hook stayed on the offensive, slamming a fist in Beast’s knee, shoulder, and then slashing his hook-claws across his face. Hook’s brave stand, as amazing as it was, only lasted a few minutes before Beast retaliated. Growling in fury, he slammed a fist in Hook’s gut and then tossed him into Aladdin and Sinbad as they recovered from the spear sweep. Red, willing to lose it all, ran toward Beast and fired two more shots, if only to get his attention. Tears blocked her view of everything around her but she approached Beast all the same. Bigbad stood at her side, ready to die in her defense.

Cindy appeared then, standing at Red’s other side.

Beast looked down at them through eyes of red flame and breathed deeply, long strands of saliva dripping down from his toothed maw. Red’s body, cold with fear, warmed with a fierce determination and the type of courage she had only read about. Dropping her crossbows, she grabbed Cindy’s hand in hers and gave it squeeze. Cindy returned the squeeze, her tear-filled eyes fixed on Beast. With her other hand, Red grabbed a clump of Bigbad’s bloodied fur and held it tightly. The three stood before the unstoppable monster and awaited their fate.

Beast, suddenly and shockingly, took a step back and blinked.

Belle was fighting him! Red noted in disbelief.

“You can do it, Belle!” Cindy cried out, coming to the same conclusion. “Fight him!”

Beast growled and gave his head a shake, blinking rapidly. The fire in his eyes seemed to dim slightly and it appeared that Belle was winning the battle. Red felt hope lift her spirits and she called out to her friend and sister, urging her to keep fighting. Cindy cried out with her, the two of them offering what encouragement they could. Bigbad pulled back his head and howled, lending Belle his strength. Beast growled and snarled and soon fell to one knee, gripping his head in his clawed hands. He roared in defiance but whatever Belle was doing it appeared to be working. Beast eventually placed both hands on the ground and shut his eyes.

Red and Cindy watched as his long silver hair began to darken, turning into the mahogany shade that adorned Belle’s head. The transformation was beginning! Belle was overpowering Beast! It was soon to be all over!

Unable to control her emotions, Red’s tears poured from her eyes as she hurried to Beast, who was now gradually shrinking and losing his fur and spikes. Upon reaching the figure, she slipped off her red cloak and draped it over the naked Belle. Cindy and Red helped her up to her feet before crushing her in a hug so tight she was nearly suffocated. Bigbad approached her and began licking her face in gratitude.

“You did it, Belle!” Cindy exclaimed victoriously. “I knew you could!”

Belle smiled briefly before abruptly growing serious. She eyed Red and Cindy in turn, her brows furrowed deeply, before saying, “Beast didn’t cause this. Someone fueled his rage.”

Red and Cindy exchanged curious and confused glances.

“Who?” Red asked.

“Someone capable of manipulating the fire in all things.”

Cindy’s grey eyes flared and a deep frown formed on her face. “Gaphir!”