Jack Sparrow and the seven avatars.

Chapter ten: The next clue

Jack's face heated up at the brunette's honest appreciation. He felt so shy and embarrassed about the appreciation when he did the minimal. They were the brave ones. You are welcome, he mumbled in a low-pitched tone, finding it challenging to meet the girl's astonishing brown eyes head-on.

"Yeah, I didn't know you had it in you. You nearly gave the monster a heart attack with your screaming," Zen teased, bringing a full-blown smile to Jack's face. He felt happy inside that, for once, Zen wasn't attacking him. The others also approached him to thank him for his bravery, which made Jack's shoulders puff until his eyes met the icy blue ones watching him from a distance.

Jack's heart fluttered like a hummingbird in his chest. Lur was the actual hero. If not for him, the monster would have disembodied him. He attempted to move towards Lur to thank him for saving him, something he forgot to do when the boy let him down, but Tokorah spoke.

"Let's leave this place before more Sentinels arrive."

The others nodded their head.

"Where next?" Zen asked, and everyone turned to look at Varah, including Jack, even though he had no idea why they were looking at her. The blonde dug a hand into the pocket of her clothes and took out a folded piece of paper. Everyone surrounded her to see what it was. It was a map, and a blinking arrow pointed to a spot on it.

"I assume that is the next place we will go for the next clue?"

Karline looked up in my direction and nodded her head.

It says here that to acquire the next clue, you have to come along with the black stone, Varah spoke, reading from the map.

"And where is the black stone?" Tokorah asked.

Varah reads again from the map: " The map says that you can find the black stone in the cave east of the market." The mention of the cave brings fearful tension into the room. Everyone looks weird except for Jack, who is clueless. "What guys?" he asks, looking from one person to another.

"It is where the Vescuz lives," Tokorah answers, his expression nervous like the rest of the team, except for Narashi and Lur. They both looked calm, unbothered by these Vescuz creatures. Their ability to relax in all situations amazed Jack, who wished he had their blood of steel. He is already freaking out, and he has yet to learn what the hell a Vescuz is.

"And the Vescuzs are?" Jack threw a questioning look at Tokorah.

"The Vescuz are the next level in the demon army rank. They are creatures that hate the sunlight and so troll the caves."

"Are they dangerous?"

"No. The Vescuz are chummy like bears; all you need do is stroke their big belly, and they are out like a bulb."

Jack looked at Zen with his eyes wide in disbelief, missing the sarcasm in his voice, which caused the others to chuckle. When he realized what happened, his expression and he looked at the others. "He is joking," Jack muttered, stating the obvious while blushing. He had thought Zen would not be messing with him anymore.

"Yeah," Varah answered with a smile in his direction.

"So what are they then?" Jack asked, moving on from the embarrassing situation.

"They are as big as the sentinels but not as gruesome. They have laser eyes which shoot acid at you. Contact with the stuff from their eyes burns your flesh and drains forty per cent of your life force. And they can see in the dark."

Narashi's answer caused goosebumps to erupt all over Jack's body. Is it possible to skip the cave? Maybe we can find the stone somewhere else? Jack looked hopefully at the others. The sentinels were enough nightmares to last him a lifetime, and he was not keen on encountering something worse.

"And the coward is back."

Jack shot Zen a glare. He wished he would stop calling him a coward. He is not being cowardly, just cautious. And what is wrong about asking for an alternative option to what is a dangerous mission? The intelligent thing is always to run from danger, not towards it.

Zen arched a bushy brow at him, his grey eyes filled with amusement. With his expression, he dared Jack to do something about his words or challenge him. Jack deflated, knowing he wasn't any match for the taller boy. In the room, he is the second shortest, the shortest being Karline, who is five feet four.

"Unfortunately, there is no other way except the cave," Varah answered.

Jack nodded. He suspected as much.

"So, leader, do we set off now?" Varah turned to him, her expression bright.

Jack blushed at being called a leader. "Can I not be the leader? Obviously, I am not qualified to lead, so why must it be me?"

"That is because Kurma was chosen as the leader on Earth before we departed. As his replacement, you have to take up his responsibilities."

Jack didn't see any logic in Karline's words. She makes a better leader and should lead. "Look, guys. This Kurma guy was probably great---"

"He was great," Karline snapped before Jack could finish his words. She looked angry, which confused Jack. "I am sorry. I didn't mean to offend you," he apologized softly, feeling bad inside for angering the girl.

"You didn't. Also, you are the leader, so stop whining and make a decision. No one is born to lead. You grow into it." Karline snapped and walked away, leaving Jack to stare after her cluelessly. The brunette's actions don't exactly seem like those of someone who is not angry, and Jack wishes he knew what he did to provoke her.

"She and Kurma were close before his death," Tokorah answered the question in his eyes.

Jack wondered what he meant by close but didn't ask. He looked away from where Karline walked off to the others. "I guess we set out for the stone," he said with no confidence.

The others turned and walked away, but Varah hung behind. "Hey, don't look so down. You would be great."

Jack, who was terrified out of his mind about everything, looked up, and his eyes met the blonde's kind green eyes. "How do you know?" He asked softly. He wanted to know if there was something the blonde saw that he didn't. He had never led anything in his life before, and the only thing he was good at was playing video games, but what use are video games to anyone when faced with life demons?

Why was he sent here? He asked himself.

Varah shrugged before speaking, "Because you look like an intelligent guy. All you have to do is let go of fear, and you see that to be a leader is not much of a big deal."

"Does that mean you could be the leader?" Jack looked hopefully at the blonde.

Varah laughed like he just said the funniest thing. "Do I look like a leader to you?" She raised a brow at Jack.

Jack frowned. "But you said---"

"Dude, don't you know what a pep talk means? I am just being a good friend." Varah winked at him and walked away to join the others.

Jack rolled his eyes but smiled. He was glad to be considered a friend by the blonde, as he had never had friends before.

Jack picked up the sword he dropped and joined the others.