Under the waves

... In a wide room, perhaps even a hall, with a humanoid statue in the center. One could feel the fresh air flowing through the room. 

     Alexander looked up, there was a tower with a hole at the top. The most important thing was not that, but the drawings on the walls. They looked like mazes, and the maze drawing ended with the Kraken, or at least his drawing. I have a feeling that these drawings will be useful to us. - Herold suggested. Indeed, it would be good if we could somehow write it all down, but we don't have paper and writing tools. It would be good if there was a device that could instantly draw what you see in 1 second. I need to invent such a thing. - Charles kept talking and talking, no one really understood his point. In the end, no one wrote anything down, and they headed towards the small doors nearby. 

     When everyone went through the doors, they also understood the nature of the drawing. It was a map of the maze. When Charles was about to go back, the doors disappeared in front of his eyes. Well, then let's go! - Charles said in a cheerful optimism. Where to? - Herold looked in the weak light. To the maze exit, of course! - Charles logically stated. 

***

 Everyone went and went. Charles's strategy was brilliant, just keep moving forward. It partially worked. The team wandered through twists and dimly lit corridors. They finally reached the end after maybe 5 hours, at least that's how it seemed to everyone. 

     At the end, there were doors with the sign "Kraken" and below it was written "not". Kraken's home. - Charles thought. Are we going to fight the Kraken now? - Mur asked. Charles nervously looked back at Mur and, gaining courage, opened the overgrown doors... 

     Everyone saw... an empty room, with nothing in it. Aha, I get it now! It didn't say "not", but something else, because the last word was written in Cyrillic alphabet. The last letter was not printed, but written, and it was the letter "т", so the word "not" is formed in English. So there is no Kraken after all, at least not here. - Captain Pampelpaps just gave a whole speech. 

     Wow, how did you figure all that out? - Alexander marveled and so did the others. Oh, I just knew. - the captain said. What do we do now? - Harold said sadly. We need to go back and... - Charles didn't finish his sentence, when suddenly something bright blue flashed on one of the dark walls. 

     Alexander approached closer, and touched the small light. After the touch, the whole ancient wall collapsed, and in front of everyone there was a grandiose corridor, with pillars on both sides. At the end of the corridor was what they had all been looking for - a magical and talking device with a crystal! It should be given a name. 

     There it is! - Mur joyfully shouted. Everyone started moving quickly towards the object, only Alexander kept his usual pace. Charles climbed the steps, closer to the magical object. Thinking about his adventures, he reached out for the object. 

     Suddenly, from nowhere, a deep and frightening scream echoed. Everyone froze, even Charles, who was looking up at that moment. Suddenly, the pillars started to creak, began to crumble into pieces, and the walls collapsed forward. The whole room, probably the entire temple, started to shake and collapse. 

     Everyone rushed out, towards the exit, wherever their feet took them. The team quickly made their way through the maze, thanks to Mur's perfect memory. Soon they were out - in the fresh air. They were surrounded by waves from the sea, as if a magical barrier had been broken. The company quickly ran up the ancient steps to the island of Copenhagen, barely making it in time. 

     The sea closed behind them, just as quickly as it had opened in the first place. "Did you grab that little thing?" Pampelpaps asked Charles. Yes, here it is... no - Charles felt emptiness in his pockets. - I guess it fell on the way. 

     Hey, there it is! - Murs exclaimed, and everyone rejoiced, seeing the crystal near the shore. Murs was already preparing to swim to it when suddenly something huge emerged from the depths of the sea. It was a huge octopus, or rather - the Kraken! It devoured the crystal and fell back into the water. The impact of the water created a wave that splashed the entire crew. They watched as their hopes were literally washed away. 

     We have to get that crystal back! We'll have to defeat that monster! - Murs optimistically declared. But that Kraken is bigger than this whole island and our ship! - Captain Pampelpaps panicked. Alright, I think first we should rest for a moment. - Charles suggested to everyone, and that's what they all decided to do. 

***

     The moon was already shining over the island when the crew sat near the ship. They had lit a campfire and were now sitting around it, drinking cocoa. Outside, everything was quiet and calm, the only sound was the crackling of the fire. Ratata ta ta taa. - the janitor, coming down from the deck, sang. "What's gotten into you?" the captain looked at him puzzled. Well, you know, I've been in the Kraken's crew all this time. - the janitor rolled up his sleeve, revealing the Kraken symbol on his arm. In seconds, a duel began between the janitor and the captain. The captain skillfully blocked the attacks and quickly thrust the janitor in the stomach. He fell into the sea and never resurfaced. Heh, traitor. - Pampelpaps muttered unhappily. The captain quickly climbed back onto the ship and commanded everyone. Tomorrow we will go after that wretched Kraken in the vast Baltic Sea, so get a good night's rest! 

     The crew set out from the island early the next morning. Pampelpaps held onto the rope at the bow of the ship. In the distance, he noticed the swaying of the waves, and immediately looked through the spyglass, seeing a purple color above the swaying spot. He thought it was the Kraken, and immediately called Alexander to change the direction of the sails. 

     The ship headed straight for the swaying spot. Everyone stood ready by the cannons. From the sea, with its immense power cutting through the waves, the Kraken emerged for a moment. Fire! - Pampelpaps screamed like a madman to make himself heard. At the same moment, Charles, Harold, and Murs fired from all the cannons. 

     The air was filled with flashes, but miraculously, only a few shots hit. "It's beneath us!" the captain shouted. In the next moment, the Kraken's tentacles emerged from the water. They began to carefully grasp the ship. 

     The captain did not hesitate to attack the Kraken with his shots. He shot as quickly as he could, but the Kraken continued to tear apart the ship. The cannons were loaded again and fired, this time without the captain's order. The heavy metal balls hitting the Kraken finally knocked five of its eight tentacles off the ship. 

     Alexander, seemingly out of nowhere, rushed out of the captain's office with a long sword in hand. He stabbed one of the Kraken's pliable tentacles with it. The monster hastily retreated back into the water, and for a moment it was quiet. 

     Murs, Herold, and Charles ran out of the lower deck of the ship. What now? - Alexander, looking across the deck, asked the brave captain. We should... - the captain didn't finish his sentence. 

     At that moment, one of the Kraken's cunning tentacles emerged from the sea cliff. It struck towards Alexander. He tried to run, but the tentacle tightly grabbed him and pulled him into the sea. Man overboard! - Pampelpaps shouted. The rescue circle was quickly brought. It was thrown into the water without hesitation, and sank after 5 seconds. Captain Pampelpaps watched in horror and then turned towards the front of the ship. 

     There he encountered Kraken again. The quick-thinking captain swiftly turned the ship so that the cannons were aimed directly at the monster. Full throttle with cannonballs! - Pampelpaps commanded. His order meant that all the gunpowder on the ship had to be used. In the blink of an eye, the cannons fired again, this time more frequently and more unforgivably.

     One shot hit Kraken right in the eye, and it sank into the water. The splash caused a huge amount of waves, and the ship capsized at least five times and almost ended up upside-down. When everything stabilized, the crew started to relax a bit, but in vain. 

     Just a few moments later, Kraken emerged from the water again, this time under the ship, and tried to engulf it! Kraken had a full mouth of seawater in which a small boat floated. Luckily, he couldn't engulf the ship, as it slid slightly upwards in time, and his jaws didn't reach it. Everyone on deck was thrown into the sea. 

     Herold and Charles huddled on a piece of driftwood that had probably fallen from the ship. Murs was nearby, on a piece of a wooden plank. And the captain... he was nowhere to be found. Kraken 3, Pampelpaps' team 0. - Murs weakly mumbled. 

     You're right, the main thing is the crystal device that the monster swallowed. - Charles reminded his friends of the main part of the mission. We could go inside the Kraken's belly and retrieve the item that way. - Herold added. Are you crazy? - Murs wondered about such a ridiculous plan. It's a good idea! - Charles supported his friend. 

     Kraken had long since sunk back into the sea and would soon return to swallow the silt. It's your plan. - Charles smiled at Herold. Kraken's mouth opened beneath all three teammates. The beast's mouth was full of rows of teeth, all in addition to the smell of rotting fish. Juu hu hu huu! - Murs, who had previously objected to the plan, now happily leaped down into Kraken's throat. 

     The Kraken's throat was like a water slide, it was a fun ride. Nevertheless, the trio soon found themselves inside Kraken's belly. The friends realized that the stomach fluid was poisonous, as they saw a small crab fall in and then a bone float up. Charles grabbed a piece of driftwood that hadn't yet rotted and started paddling with it. Murs used a makeshift oar, which was lying on the nearby driftwood. 

     From the other side of the belly, a familiar cry was heard. Soon, a human figure was also visible - it was Pampelpaps! Oh, captain! - Murs happily exclaimed. Greetings, shipmates! - the captain replied. Pampelpaps stood on a small sandbar with palm trees, which the Kraken had apparently eaten. All three approached the sandbar. 

     Oh ho ho, thank you for coming to look for me! - Pampelpaps exclaimed joyfully. Actually, we stumbled upon it completely by accident. - Charles admitted. Anyway, it's good that you're here, because I saw the device we are looking for nearby. - the captain explained. Murs started to look around and immediately spotted the device. He swam towards it on his "boat". 

     Everyone stood restlessly on the small sandbar, inside the Kraken's belly, looking at the object. Murs searched for how to activate it, and almost did, but a growl echoed from the Kraken's belly. We need to get out of here, otherwise we will be washed down immediately! - the captain protested. The crew looked at each other, and after a moment they all started looking for something that could help them get out of the beast's belly. 

     Murs grabbed some old ropes and threw them at the old captain's feet. Herolds found an old metal lever, which turned out to be the Antivacuum - a device that shoots a rapid and powerful wave of air by rearranging air molecules in a specific location. Charles only found an old rusty nail, but he knew it would come in handy. Everyone, partly conversing, devised a plan.

     Charles threw the nail with great precision and it got stuck right at the top of the belly. Then, Murs threw the rope, which conveniently snagged onto the nail. Finally, everyone grabbed onto the rope, as well as each other, and Herolds pressed the button on the Antivacuum with the green button. 

     They quickly shot up through the belly, the nail fell and the rope too, but they were still flying upwards. They flew through the darkness, through the tube connecting Kraken's mouth to its belly. Soon, light appeared at the end of the tunnel. 

     The team flew into Kraken's sharp mouth and quickly grabbed onto one of the front teeth. Uh, what now? - Herolds asked the crew, slowly sliding down from the sad tooth. Next, we do this. - Pampelpaps pulled a gun from his pocket, aimed it at the top of Kraken's mouth, and fired. 

     Everything started rumbling, luckily they all held onto the tooth tightly. After a few moments, the band was expelled from Kraken's mouth, it spat them out! Finally, they all saw daylight again. With big splashes, they landed in the sea. When they emerged from the water, a large, mighty ship was floating in front of them. Rescuers! Several ropes were thrown from the ship to help those stuck in the water climb aboard. 

When the soaked travelers climbed up the ropes onto the dry ship, they realized they had made a mistake... 

     They were greeted by a band of pirates, who melodically called out to the travelers "yo ho ho hoo!" "Oh no," the crew thought. They were surrounded by all kinds of pirates - one had torn and patched clothes, another had wide and dirty clothes. In short, everyone had dirty clothes, except one who had just come out of the cabin. He smiled and then looked sternly at the quartet. Everyone fell silent. 

     Well. - said the sleek pirate. - Well done, crew, we have caught a very valuable person, it is none other than Captain Pampelpaps! The famous leader of the "Eye of the Storm," and he even brought his shipmates with him! 

     Famous? And who are you then, huh? - Pampelpaps, tired, looked and asked. Oh ho ho ho hoo, I forgot to introduce myself, I am the most dangerous pirate in the entire Baltic Sea! My name is Captain Balts, this sea was named after me, because I am so powerful! - the pirate bragged arrogantly. 

     I'm pretty sure this sea was not named after you, but rather... - Charles couldn't finish his sentence. Silence! I don't want to hear your basnas! - the pirate captain growled. Basnas? What is that? - Harold didn't understand, and neither did his friends. You wouldn't understand, because unlike me, you don't know all 10 languages that exist! - Balts bragged again. Aren't there about 100 languages in the world? - Charles asked uncertainly. No, the rest are not real languages, they are nonsense. - the pirate captain attacked again. 

     Balts pointed to something with his hands, and the group of pirates grabbed Charles and the others. The friends were thrown into the basement dungeon. The prison was not too big, with bamboo panels forming bars on the wooden walls. Behind the bars were piles of barrels and boxes. A pirate closed the door and locked it with a silver key. 

     Everyone still lay on the floor, exhausted from the battle with the Kraken. After several minutes, Charles sat up and began to speak loudly. Until nightfall, we could come up with a plan to escape, and at night, when all the pirates sleep, we could execute it! Good idea, but I still want to rest. - Harold complained. Okay, let's rest first. - Charles agreed. 

     After an unknown length of time, everyone woke up. Captain Pampelpaps had rolled out a piece of paper on the floor. And he had assumed a pose reminiscent of meditation. Murs sat next to him, supporting himself with his hands. Harold simply stood, and Charles was in a horizontal position, his head resting on a pillow that had already been placed there. Alright then. - Harold, approaching the rolled up piece of paper, began. - How are we going to get out of this cage anyway, huh? 

     Pamps could break down the door with his wooden legs. - Murs voiced his idea. Pampelpaps scowled at him. And then what? - Harold looked at Murs, but Charles answered. Then we would just sneak out onto the deck, grab a lifeboat, and row to the shore. 

     But we don't know which way the shore is! - Harold pouted. It doesn't matter. - Charles dismissed. - We won't sail forever, eventually we'll reach some shore. Everyone murmured in agreement, and settled back down, only the captain remained in the same position. But after a while, it was heard that he too lay down to rest a little more. 

     After a while, Charles woke up and it was clear that it was night. Silence and darkness prevailed all around. Hey, wake up! - he whispered to his companions. Pampelpaps grumbled and then got up. He was followed by Harold and Murs, who also groaned from being disturbed from their sleep. 

     Despite their fatigue, after a moment they were all standing on their feet. Alright, so you know what to do. - Charles said, and Murs nodded in agreement. Everyone made way for the captain, who approached the door, and, after a moment of contemplation, knocked down the door with one kick. Hm, that was easy. - Pampelpaps muttered to himself.  

     Next, the gang wandered through the dusty basement up to the stairs, which creaked cruelly. It seemed like they would wake up all the pirates, but that didn't happen, and everyone safely made it to the deck.  

     Alright, I'll go prepare the boats, you guys stay here! - the captain commanded.  Everyone was nervous, but stood calmly and waited for Pampelpaps to return. Everything seemed peaceful until a familiar figure emerged from the shadows on the other side of the ship...  

     It was the janitor! The same one who had been with Captain Pampelpap.  What are you doing here!? - Murs was genuinely surprised.  Hey, representatives of the Kraken's signs are eternal and will never cease to exist! - the janitor scoffed in a somewhat hoarse voice.  

     Murs grabbed a nearby sword and prepared to attack the janitor, but then Pampelpaps arrived.  What? You, you rascal? - Pampelpaps was also surprised. - Give that to me! - Pampelpaps commanded Murs to hand over the sword, and of course, he obeyed.  

     The captain growled at the janitor like a dog, and then both of them started running towards each other at lightning speed. Pampelpaps blocked the janitor's first attack and then struck him on the side. The old janitor stumbled. 

     But after a moment, the janitor recovered and in an instant flew Pampelpaps to the other side of the ship. When the old captain landed, there was a splash.  Murs realized he had to help. He picked up an empty glass bottle and went on the attack. Charles and Herod watched Pampelpaps. 

     The janitor, noticing Murs approaching, immediately jumped into the air and landed behind Murs. Murs didn't fall for the confusion and immediately hit the janitor on the head with the glass bottle. It shattered into a million pieces.  The janitor grinned and hit Murs hard on the head with a stab, and the boy fell to the ground. 

     When the vile janitor turned around, Pampelpaps lunged at him with a sword in hand. The captain plunged the sword into the janitor's chest, and he was thrown back into the water again.  The heroic captain looked at his sword, which had a dark, violet liquid on it, shimmering. Something related to the Kraken's sign, at least that's what it seemed to him.  

     Murs calmly got up and wiped the sand off his shirt.  Ha! That was easy! - Murs chuckled.  Be vigilant, more of these rascals may appear. But now, let's go to the boats! - the captain, ignoring Murs, said.  They all quickly ran down the stairs to the small dock of the ship, where two small boats were moored.  Get in! - the captain ordered, and they did so.  Slowly, the two boats rowed further and further away from the ship. They all tried to relax after everything that had happened at sea.