Hook seemed keen on taking the challenge, anyway. His sword was already in his hand, and the two were squaring off for a fight. “Shall we keep it between us? A fair fight?”
Peter glowered at him. “My friend is sick. I need to get her to a doctor.”
“Looks like your friend decided to take a swim with some mermaids. She’s not terribly bright, is she?” Hook laughed. “Perhaps I needn’t worry about killing her. It seems she’ll do the job on her own soon enough.”
“Sidney!” Sasha called to her sister. She was some thirty feet away and the water between them was dark. There was no telling what was in there—mermaids or…worse.
She knew what lived in the waters of Neverland. And while shedidn’t hear any ticking, she knew the crocodile was going to show up sooner rather than later. And that’s the last way she wanted to go. She wanted to swim out there to help her sister, but also,death by crocodile or very murder-happy mermaids.
Sidney was on her side, still coughing up water. But shewasbreathing, which was a good sign. She groaned, barely audible from the distance between them.
The clang of steel on steel forced Sasha to focus her attention back to what was going on between Hook and Peter. Hook was clearly the better swordsman—years of experience and skill coupled with strength and better leverage.
However, Peter could fly. And despite Hook’s continued snarls of “Bad form!” every time Peter would dance away from a slash of Hook’s sword or namesake weapon in a way that would have been otherwise impossible for a normal person, it didn’t stop Peter from doing it.
Peter was older than the other Lost Boys in this iteration of the story, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t still far younger than Hook in comparison.And children didn’t care about cheating if it meant that they won in the end.
Sasha watched on, confused as to who she was supposed to be rooting for. On one hand, she was meant to be on Hook’s side. On the other hand, she wasreallynot on his side and had no reason to be. The only reason she had to side with Hook was that she wasn’t really sure if Virtue would keep his promise to her andnotkill “Mr. Smee” while he was in character.
And she didn’t really want to find out the hard way.
But it seemed this time she wasn’t going to have to. Hook knocked the blade from Peter’s hand with his own and took the opportunity to slash his jagged metal hook down over Peter’s chest.
Peter howled in pain, falling back against the sand. His hand fell into a half inch of water.
The tide was coming in.
Uh oh.
That wasn’t good.
Peter pressed a hand to his chest. The hook had gone through the shirt and flesh without any care, digging deep through his skin. He was bleeding, and badly. Sasha wasn’t a doctor, but it looked serious.
Captain Hook laughed, taking a step forward, lifting his sword to drive it through the heart of his foe.
“I’m unarmed!” Peter lifted his hands in surrender. “Bad form! Striking down an unarmed foe!”
Hook hesitated. With a deep, frustrated growl, he took a step back and lowered his blade. “Give him your sword,” he barked at one of the other pirates.“Now!”
The pirate drew his sword and tossed it to Peter. It landed in the sand by the boy.
Peter climbed to his feet, wincing in pain, holding his chest. Blood was seeping through his fingers, dripping into the sand and the water that was quickly rising to overtake what little beach they had to stand on.
Sasha moved to stand on a higher rock. “Captain, the water’s coming in fast.”
“We’ll be done here soon enough.” Captain Hook lifted his sword. “Pick up the sword. Face your death like a man.”
“See? That’s the mistake you keep making.” Peter Pan laughed. “I’m not a man.”
Hook jumped for him, but it was too late. He’d fallen for the obvious trick. Peter flew away, but he couldn’t make it far. He nearly fell from the sky and could only make it to the rock where Sidney was still slowly regaining consciousness.
Peter collapsed next to “Wendy.”
Hook snarled in hatred and rage.
Without warning, he whirled on one of his pirates, and stabbed the man through the midsection with his sword. The man’s eyes went wide in pain and shock, staring first at the face of his captain, and then down at the blade that protruded from his stomach, in disbelief.
Hook yanked his sword from the man, who toppled to the sand in a heap.
