Chapter 7: Truth, Lies and a New Friend

Joanna had stood outside for a good 5 minutes mostly wishing good luck to Elaine and Guybrush before she noticed the cold wind and decided to go back into the voodoo shop.

The voodoo lady was still there watching Joanna "They’ve gone to find Robyn-Louise?" she asked

"Yes"

"Ah, that…is…good"

Joanna looked puzzled "Why are you talking like that?"

The voodoo lady just stood staring looking completely glazed when Joanna turned away and saw none other than Aliciae standing behind her, her eyes glowing pure hatred.

"No!" Joanna shrieked jumping back "You were dead"

"What do you think he did? The one you thought as water-figure he was healing me he is one of me" she clasped her hands together for a brief moment like the water-figure was her god.

"But what was all that stuff about re-birth?" Joanna shook her head confused, thrown off track

"It was all lies to confuse you" Aliciae looked back at the voodoo lady "He wants me to succeed"

Joanna didn’t say anything but she was beginning to breathe heavier and started shaking slightly.

"Well now I guess I should deal with you, if I try to get Elaine first I know you will somehow slip from my hands so I might as well do it now" Aliciae took a step forward and her eyes glowed brighter than ever before.

"Elaine? How far is Plunder from Melee?" Guybrush said looking over the side of the ship at the now choppy waves

"I’m not actually sure" Elaine’s focus was elsewhere thinking of her confession to Aliciae, a grim look on her face.

"Well it seems likely to me that Aliciae will have got to her before us" Guybrush said it quietly not wanting to anger Elaine.

"Don’t say things like that" Elaine warned turning to Guybrush "We’ll stop her"

"Sorry but its likely isn’t it?" Guybrush bit his bottom lip

"Yes" Elaine looked away "But let’s hold out hope she won’t harm anyone"

Guybrush nodded ‘I hope so too’ he walked to the side of the ship Melee fading fast ‘I never thought I would have to face someone like this, I thought Lechuck was my worst’. He put his head in one hand ‘this all feels like a dream’.

Elaine herself was just as confused about everything that was happening but maybe less so than Guybrush, although she was saddened by her past about what happened she thought of Aliciae. What would have happened if Lucy had grown up? Would she have been like Aliciae? It was very likely and a scary thought that she most likely would have killed Elaine willingly.

‘No!’ the thought came to Elaine so quickly she took a step back ‘You can’t do this!’ it wasn’t her thoughts. It wasn’t Aliciae’s thought. She didn’t recognise it.

"It must be Robyn-Louise" Elaine said to herself "This is what Aliciae is hearing, we have to get there quickly".

"Plunder Island!" the voice of one of the crewmembers came from the front of the ship and Elaine smiled to herself "finally!"

Guybrush wasn’t in sight he was most likely writing in his journal probably exaggerating a lot of his writing. "Guybrush!" Elaine called "Plunder Island is close!"

Guybrush appeared from a rickety door to Elaine’s side "Sorry I was busy writing"

"I guessed" Elaine smiled "We’re close"

"Good I was getting nervous" Guybrush paused "Well more nervous, in fact scared more like"

"Be strong Guybrush" Elaine could see Plunder Island herself "I was actually just thinking of Robyn-Louise"

"Well so was I" Guybrush said, unsure "And Aliciae"

"No" Elaine just shook her head "Robyn-Louise was abandoned you mentioned you knew the mother but what of the father? I am getting suspicious what if Robyn-Louise is one of Aliciae’s kind? It all would add up then"

"Elaine" Guybrush scratched his head "Not everything we’ve encountered has made sense, it fact nearly all of it has totally confused me"

"Nearly everything confuses you" Elaine smirked

"Hey" Guybrush tried to take on a puppy dog look

"Sorry it was my first judgement of you"

"I you just trying to make me feel worse? I know I’m not Mr Perfect but…"

"No one is" Elaine said quickly "You are better than most around here the pirates that should have died a long time ago but in all fairness this isn’t a discussion we should be having now" Elaine said sternly "We have other things to think about"

"I know" Guybrush sighed "This just isn’t something I was expecting I still remember arriving on Melee Island when I was 18 with no thoughts of Lechuck or Ozzie, Herman Toothrot well HT Marley, Largo or Wally not even of Monkey Island not even of you" Guybrush trailed off.

"I don’t think anyone in your shoes would have expected anything like that, although I actually don’t think anyone would have been strong willed enough to venture so far" Elaine smiled "I can see you know in a long while telling you grandchildren of your adventures"

"Grandchildren?" Guybrush looked around quickly "Not for a long while" he tried to smile ‘Not ever’ he added to himself.

Elaine cocked her head like she had heard what he had said, "Like I said we have more important things in our hands, I think we’ve just got to Plunder" Elaine was looking past Guybrush at Plunder Island beach.

Guybrush turned around "More memories, maybe slightly better than Melee or Monkey"

Elaine nodded "Hang on, we were only here for a few minutes and then I woke up on Blood Island" Elaine thought for a minute "What did happen then? Why did I wake up on Blood Island?"

Guybrush was already walking to the side of the ship "Long story, tell you some other time".

Elaine frowned "How many times have you said that to me?"

But Guybrush was out of hearing range; he was just staring at Plunder Island she could see his head moving from side to side like he was following a bird or something.

Elaine narrowed her eyes trying to see what he was staring at but she couldn’t see anything and decided to leave the ship now.

Puerto Pollo was just the same as Guybrush had last seen it except the Kenny the lemonade/cannon sales boy wasn’t there. Neither was Haggis, Edward or Bill but he suspected they were still somewhere on the Island but he had no time to look for them.

"Where did you hear this Robyn-Louise was?"

"I heard that person Pete had her he was keeping her in the small house by this place where Kenny once was".

"How old is she?"

"I don’t know around 3 or 4"

Elaine could see the house it was white and quite small but was clearly old and tatty looking on the outside. She walked right up to the dusty wooden door and tapped lightly, no answer. She banged slightly harder and heard a high-pitched voice saying something that she couldn’t make out.

The door opened and a tall thin woman opened the door she looked at them strangely "What do you want?"

"I’m sorry" Elaine tried to look past her "I was looking for someone named Pete about a young girl"

The woman thought for a moment "Pete is out, I’m looking after a girl named Silvia"

"Silvia" Elaine nodded "Yes that was her real name"

"Do you know Pete?"

Elaine paused "Yes, we have just come to see Silvia though"

The woman eyed both of them and then groaned and stepped out of the way to let them in.

The house was just as tatty on the inside as it was on the outside it was fairly empty too just some old dusty furniture. The woman walked out towards another door at the corner of the room "Wait here, I’ll get Silvia" she said quietly over her shoulder.

Guybrush stood silently looking around with a slightly disgusted look on his face but he probably didn’t want to be here anyway. Elaine took a few steps back and forth thinking what to do if Aliciae had got here first.

"Alright"

Elaine turned to the door it was the woman talking but not to them. Guybrush looked at the door suspiciously but didn’t move Elaine walked quietly up to the door and put her head to it holding her breath for a few seconds.

"Come on"

"No, I want to stay here"

"It’s just two people who want to see you"

"Parents?"

"No I am sorry"

"They might be parents"

"They may be but not yours"

"How do you know?"

"They don’t look a thing like you and besides Peter told you mummy has gone on a trip and she won’t be back for a long time"

"She doesn’t want me"

"She did"

"I don’t want to see them"

"Please Silvia"

"If I do will you take me to see mummy?"

"Ok"

Elaine backed away from the door when she heard the voices stop. It didn’t sound like Aliciae had got there first; she wouldn’t have talked like that. She moved and stood back next to Guybrush.

The door opened with a creak and the woman reappeared looking a little flushed next to her was a young girl, she was quite tall for a girl of 3 or 4. She had dark eyes, pale skin and black hair and she was wearing a worn blue shirt and beige trousers that know looked like shorts.

She looked at Guybrush for a split second and then turned to Elaine but held her gaze on her for a few seconds longer before looking back up at the woman.

"Who are they, Sand?"

The woman looked down "Sandra and I am not sure they wanted to see you"

"They might be dangerous"

"Do they look dangerous? They just want to see you"

"Your mean you let dangerous people into the house, you want me to get hurt" Silvia sniffed slightly.

"No, please I don’t want anyone to hurt you I do care I do"

"May I cut in?" Guybrush took a step forward "We are not trying to hurt you Silvia we really did just want to see you"

Silvia glared at him "I don’t know you are, stranger"

"Alright, my name is Guybrush" Guybrush gestured to Elaine "And this is my wife Elaine"

Elaine crouched down so she was eye to eye with Silvia "We just wanted to know about you dear. How old are you?" Elaine was speaking in a more gentle tone, quite unfamiliar to Guybrush but it relaxed Silvia.

"I am 4" Silvia smiled

"That’s nice" Elaine smiled "Do you like it here?"

"No" Silvia stamped her foot "Don’t like Sandy, don’t like Peter want my parents"

"Where are your parents?"

"Mummy on a long trip" Silvia smiled

Elaine bit her bottom lip she had already caught the hint on what that actually met although Silvia didn’t understand "And daddy?"

"Don’t know, no one will tell me" Silvia pouted "Go home with you?"

The sudden question startled and he looked at Elaine but she was still looking at Silvia "But didn’t you say we were strangers?"

"You sound nicer than Sandy and Peter says I know these things, he say I am different to other children"

‘Please take her’ Guybrush noticed Sandra mouthing to Elaine

"Well we can’t keep you permanently" Guybrush tried to say nicely

Elaine kicked Guybrush just enough for him to gasp "We can"

Guybrush shook his head rapidly "No room" he said

"No room? In the mansion?" Elaine put a sidelong look in at Guybrush "We’re taking her"

Silvia clapped her hands "Yay! Near-parents"

"What?" Guybrush asked rubbing his leg

"Near-parents my real wants aren’t here you can be the near-parents" she said with a huge smile.

"Alright" Guybrush sighed he was wondering where Aliciae was.

Back on Melee Island…

The voodoo lady opened her eyes, she felt like she had slept for years. She felt drowsy and confused but she had never felt that way before. She was in her chair in the voodoo shop but she felt broken memories swarming around her brain.

What had happened? Something had definitely happened here that she wasn’t supposed to remember. She remembered Guybrush and Elaine leaving, Joanna? Where was Joanna? Where was Aliciae?

She couldn’t remember why Guybrush and Elaine had left they must have been tricked, she realised that Aliciae may have caught Joanna. She had to somehow get in contact with Guybrush and Elaine.