Chapter 78: Going Overboard
"Beach it!" Raven roared, as the ship was moments away from the Island.
The crew bellowed as they put all of their strength into maintaining the sails and the ship's course. Cracking wood and grinding earth could be heard by all on board as the ship ran aground.
Kace swore as he raced below decks, he could not believe his stupidity. Grugda was still out cold and resting while all of the commotion gas been going on.
He took the steps two at a time before racing to the crews quarters. He nervously gulped as he noticed water filling up the area. 'Hopefully, Grugda didn't fall from the hammock and crown in this!'
Kace was in no mood to waste time, lowering his shoulder he barged into the door. Causing it to splinter and explode inwards. His momentum carried him into the room.
Before Kace could take note of the situation inside, a massive fist connected with his face, combined with his momentum, it caused his feet to rise into the air as his body tilted on an axis. The back of his head was the first to slam onto the deck before sliding across the water covered floor.
He came to an abrupt stop as he crashed against the wall. Laying there stunned from the unexpected assault heavy footsteps splashed toward him.
"Are you. Alright?" Grugda asked, somewhat embarrassed. He had woken up during the fighting above and was worried that Kace might have been an enemy checking the rest of the ship.
"Fuck me, Grugda! You could've at least checked who it was first!" Kace replied in fake anger as a broad grin broke out on his face. "Good to see you're alright, though. You had me worried."
"You too." Was all that Grugda managed to say in response. He was too happy to see that Kace had not lost himself to his Beast Form.
The ship began to tilt and turn as it broke against the resistance of the solid earth beneath the water. The pair, having almost lost their balance, started to swear almost nonstop.
"We'll catch up later! First, we better get our arses in gear."
Grugda nodded in approval as the pair stumbled their way towards the upper deck. More than once, an unbolted piece of furniture slid across the floor and slammed into them. They were giving them new bruises to add to their collections. Eventually, they stumbled their way up the last of the stairs.
The free raced past them as they prepared to brace themselves for the ship to collapse in its side. Realising the situation Kace used his Spider Thread to secure Grugda and himself and not a moment too soon.
The ship began to capsize as the crew waited for the right moment to jump into the shallow waters. If they jumped too soon, they might have ended up getting crushed by the ship.
They held on to the rails at the edge of the deck with desperation painted on their faces. Raven and Mr Penny seemed as calm as a tranquil lake. Meanwhile, Mr Thomas appeared to be the only one who was smart enough to pack as much equipment and rations into a pack as he possibly could.
Kace had to admit he was impressed with how level headed the man was even in this situation. The ship began to lose speed and finally, its own weight dragged it onto its side.
A couple of the crew lost their nerve and did indeed jump too soon. Luckily they did not have to suffer as they were crushed beneath the heavy mass of the ship.
The eyes of the rest of the crew kept darting to their Captain. They had complete faith in him to give them the command when the time was right.
"Now!" Raven yelled, just before the bannister hit the water.
Everyone leapt with all of their strength. Bodies flew through the air only to cause a small splash as they sunk into the sea. Kace, on the other hand, used the timing to release Grugda and himself.
Only to take ahold of the Eljein and attach another Spider Thread to the to of one of the masts. Using the angle it created, they managed to swing far enough to do a roll as they hit the sandy beach.
Raven and Mr Penny casually made their way to the beach while walking along a bridge made of ice. Sophia was cursing all sorts of profanities as she dragged her soaking body onto the sand.
That being said, Mr Thomas was cursing far louder than anyone else. The pack had almost caused him to drown under its weight. However, he persevered not wanting to let go of what could potentially end up as life-saving resources.
As the rest of the free reached their position a few moments later, even more grumbling could be heard. Raven was not in the mood to let them rest, though.
"Alright everyone up! Unless you want to wait here for that to come and eat you!" He bellowed ad pointed his finger at the figure of Yul protruding above the treeline.
The crew's eyes filled with panic as they realised how close the horror was. It was a sufficient motivator for them to get up off their ass and move. They had no time to waste!
Although they were all beaten and tired, every one of them headed for the jungle. Captain Raven led the group as though he had a destination in mind. It was in a completely different direction from the one they had taken the first time that they had arrived.
Kace looked around at the fear-stricken crew. Most of them seemed to be trying to decide if their destination or the creature headed towards them was the thing they should fear the most.
Not knowing what to expect Kace quickly planned out what he could do depending on individual circumstances. Meanwhile, the heroes aboard the 'Hurricane' and the other two ships were squirming with anticipation.