END GAME: THE COUNTDOWN STARTS

[sailmods]

[the prisoners wake up on cold, hard floors.

the lights are bright, glaring, a sterile cell with sterile bars facing a sterile hall. the prisoners with you, across from you, and no one else. no rocking of a ship in waves, nothing. just the prisoner and their prison.

time passes, one assumes. the rhythmic click of Friday’s heels down the hall. it’s almost like the ticking of a clock.]

Comments

From Fio

[sabigoe]

■ "I think Miss Friday can still hear us. I kept talking to her and one time, she almost stumbled over!"

(And then, a little later when Friday stops making her rounds:)

■ "...Miss Friday hasn't come back to check on us for a while. I hope she's okay. But she dropped this letter. It says, 'Hi. Bridge open. Danger. Fight.' I don't know if she's the one who wrote it. It sounds like... it might've been Sparkles. It always says hi to me like that! Or maybe... Mister Captain? I'm not sure. I know Flan's been trying to teach Sparkles how to read and write..."

■ "I know it's really scary right now for a lot of us. It's okay to cry if you have to. Or shout and yell... just let it all out! But, um... we've been through a lot of scary things before. Don't give up. We can get through this together too!" (Mostly Fio just trying to be encouraging. 👍)

■ "I'm okay. Don't worry. I'm very brave!" (To anyone that cares.)

[fonomena]

- Jade is glad to hear that Fio is okay. He'd like her to know that he's fine as well. Since she's recommending it, maybe he'll have a good cry after all! (He doesn't, of course, but maybe it's the thought that counts...)

- There is also thanks for sharing the letter. It sounds like either the Captain or Sparkles may not be under complete control after all; this is promising news. Apparently anyone who can get free will be able to enter the bridge, if they can reach it. Our lovely museum curator is probably within. Surely there will be some form of security out there, though...

[sabigoe]

■ Seemingly about fifteen minutes later (time isn't real... but it feels like some time has passed before Fio says something else!), Jade receives another message from Fio, asking:

"Are you feeling better now, Mister Specs? Sorry, I don't have a handkerchief to lend you." She really believes he may have had a 'good cry'...

■ "I don't know how we're gonna fight the mean lady... no one could even stop her back when we were on the Eterna."

[decohere]

"You're very brave, sweetheart. And so is Sparkles for getting that letter to you. No matter the danger, we'll be ready to fight. Once we figure a way out."

[sabigoe]

"I want to fight alongside everyone too! But first we need to figure out how to get our powers back... maybe Judy and Callie are prisoners somewhere too!"

Maybe Judith and Calcite also have little striped prisoner uniforms that fit their teddy bear and dragon bodies.

[decohere]

"We might have to be prepared to fight without powers... But hopefully Judy and Callie and Catduggy are all safe together. We'll rescue them too."

[sabigoe]

...Ava won't be able to hear Fio's big loud sigh that she might have to sit on the sidelines yet again while everyone else fights the big bad.

[decohere]

Nah Ava fully expects Fio to stomp on feet and pull sneaky moves even without powers because she's so small and easy to overlook. Go sunshine princess!

[light_mischief]

He has similar sentiments to pass on as Ava has, as well as to reassure her that she's going to be okay and to congratulate her on getting Friday's help. His exact words include, "Way to go, Sunshine Princess!"

[sabigoe]

Fio hops up to latch on the bars, and shouts a response down into the corridor. As if clinging as high as she can onto the bars would somehow make her even louder. It doesn't... but their jail cell neighbors are close enough to deliver a very excited, loud little girl's message to Skulduggery easily enough:

"Yeah! When we're outta here, Sunshine Princess is gonna fight too!"

...Maybe. If she can get her powers back.