World Refugees Final Mix

Now that her curiosity was piqued, Calum dismissed the magic again and approached her, though still restraining her with that same invisible force from before. He knelt down near her and blew a stray strand of dark hair out of his eyes - a gesture that he may have borrowed from the person whose body he currently inhabited.

"It's nothing much," he said, apparently unbothered by Ari's agitated state. "Simply your life in exchange for information." He reached out, brushing his fingers against her right temple, his eyes going distant and unfocused for a moment. "Fi angen at canfod."

No sooner had he spoken the spell did a sharp burst of static fly from his fingers to Ari's head. He paused for a moment, staring at something just beyond the woman he had kidnapped, before frowning and pulling away. He rose to his feet and walked away from her, not saying anything else.

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Ari watched tiredly, too drained to even struggle against the annoying invisible forces holding her down. She scowled more at his 'deal' already figuring it'd be something along that line. Geez. And here she thought it would be something more interesting and ow. Static hurts.

Staring at him, possibly unhelpfully cursing him out mentally some more as he read through her memory or whatever he was doing dammit, why couldn't he be like every villain ever and announce what he was doing instead of being all vague-like she frowned right back at him as he got up. Maybe she didn't have what he wanted~? ...But that would be bad. Even less of a reason to keep her around. Dammit all.

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He stayed silent for several minutes, long enough for the last remaining light of the sun to vanish and plunge Neverland into blue night. Off in the distance, on the coast of the island, red and gold bonfires from the natives sprang up, sometimes interspersed with the gold and silver lights of the fairies. He rapped his fingers against the side of the ship, lost in thought, before finally turning back to Ari.

"I could use that," he whispered, more to himself than to her. He frowned curiously at her, and then nodded at his conclusion, stepping away from the starboard side of the ship and approaching her again. "You have been most helpful, Miss Ari. But I'm afraid all you will be from this point onward is a hinderance."

He circled around her, stopping behind her and then kneeling down on one knee. He reached out, still keeping the spells that held her in place in tact, moving quickly and silently as if to break her neck. But at the last possible moment, he leaned forward, moving his hands to her shoulders, and said in a voice completely devoid of emotion or accent, "Sorry, Ari. But you need to sleep." And at that single word, the spell was cast.

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Dammit. She needed to stop being so correct on these things. "I'd say you're welcome but you really aren't." She said dryly.

There wasn't much she could do expect sit there, her stomach twisting in fear as he circled behind her. His voice made her eyes widen a bit, trying to turn and see before everything went black.

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One of the crew members who had overhead the splash earlier had finally made his way up on deck, gazing cautiously past the barrels and the coiled ropes and the cannons. It was dark, but the moon provided enough light to see by. He could make out the two trespassers just aft of the gangplank, the woman slumped in sleep and the man gently lowering her to rest on the deck.

The crewmember gulped as the man's attention swiftly turned towards him - there was cold, precise fury in his strange blue eyes, and he thought that maybe he shouldn't have investigated the scene. And then he thought that there was something strangely off about the air between them. And he didn't think anymore.

Calum rose back to his feet, crossing back across the deck to look back at Neverland. He closed his eyes wearily, and then waited. The girl would be here shortly, and then... he shook his head. All in good time. All matters would be sorted out eventually.

He would fix this mess.

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These past few months had been hard, in so many ways. He'd had to be apart from his family, friends, and the woman he loved for long stretches of time. He'd had to struggle to keep his college education afloat while balancing terrestrial and other worldly crises that seemed to pop up on a weekly basis. He'd had to plan a wedding.

The hardest of all, however, had been having to sit back and not help his friends as they faced crises after crises, save for the occasional bits of information, when everything that made him who he was demanded he do everything in his power to help them.

Still, YenSid had insisted that was the best course of action available to them. It was obvious someone, or something, was on the move, and given how they had just barely survived Xemnas they would need every edge they could get. That was why he needed to move in secret, learning as much as he could and getting as strong as he could while trusting in his friends to be able to put out the wildfires that were popping up all over. He had to pick his moment very carefully.

Only now, his moment had been chosen for him.

Calum may not have been behind everything that was going on, but one thing was certain, he was smart, ruthless, and very dangerous. Now this smart, ruthless, dangerous man had Ari, and the only one close enough to fight him was Ray. Brandon knew Ray was powerful and determined, but that didn't mean he was going to let her fight alone. Refugees supported one another, and if he couldn't even do that, then there was no point in calling himself one.

That was why he had broken his silence, why he had taken his ship to Neverland to grab Ray, Peter, and Tink, and why the Cork was skimming over the water, new stealth systems activated, making a beeline for where Ari was.

This man had been hurting Brandon's friends for months while he'd been helpless to watch. Now it was time to pay him back for that.

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Ray, now a fairy, sat on the console with Tink as Brandon drove. Peter was hovering restlessly, listening to them talk.

"I don't even know where she is," she was saying, "not for sure. She said she was in a forest where she could hear Captain Hook, but--"

"Hook?! He's got her?" Tink demanded.

"No, no... well, maybe. She said she heard him, but I dunno." Ray sighed. "I dunno if I'll be able to do much to help, but--"

"But she's your friend isn't she?" Peter interrupted. "You have to try!"

"I will!" she retorted, taking flight in agitation. "But first we have to find her." She floated over to Brandon, glancing at the map for a moment before looking up at him. "Do you have any idea where we're going?"

Unfortunately for her, all he would hear is a bunch of doubtful jingles.

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He listened carefully - other than the quiet murmuring of the crew belowdecks and the lapping of the water, the night was silent. Not even the ticking of that crocodile interrupted the peace. He closed his eyes, using that ability Josiah had to sense other people's souls. He almost smiled - an unwanted gift from the demon - even as he bypassed the souls of those on the ship, and extended the sense towards Nev-

No. Behind him. Across the water.

He looked back over his shoulder, and this time, he did allow himself a small smile. Well. This would be interesting.

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Brandon did have to admit, Ray's current form somewhat undercut the...seriousness of the situation.

Especially the jingling. The jingling was really hard to take seriously.

Still, he could extrapolate what she was probably asking about, given her body language, and what Peter had said. Tilting the joysticks slightly to keep the ship low to the waterline, he checked the sensors before saying, "When I heard Ari was in trouble I went to check the last planet she'd been on before we got world shifted again, just in case. I managed to find some signs of a battle, and the place stank of Calum's magic. After that I headed straight here and used my ships sensors to find where Ari is. She's on a ship just a few minutes away."

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She didn't miss how he responded to the jingling. She could practically hear him laughing. But, given the current situation, she ignored it.

"Oh," Ray said simply, sitting back down. She wrung her hands and tried to think of ways she could help. She'd tried using her magic before, but for some reason it wouldn't work when she was like this. "What am I supposed to do to help," she mumbled, "shine light in his eyes?"

"That could work," Tink said brightly.

"Until he calls up those shadows," she muttered darkly. "But we'll get her." They sat in silence until Ray and Tink were both in the air again, fluttering in excitement.

"Is that it?" Peter demanded. "Is that the ship?" He squinted at it. "That's Hook's ship, isn't it?"

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He walked to the port side of the ship, past a sleeping Ari and glanced out over the star-dotted waters. He sensed two souls that he recognized from Josiah's memories, and two that he didn't. Citizens of this world, perhaps? It didn't matter either way.

He closed his eyes, murmuring a spell in Welsh, and then held out a closed fist over the waters. The black waters bubbled ominously around a given radius of the ship, but other than that, did nothing spectacular. But the pirate didn't falter, just continued the spell, letting it die down after a moment.

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Again Brandon had to piece together what Ray was saying from her body language and Peter's words, though this time all he could figure out was that she was irritated about something. Of course, this being Ray, there were a fair number of possibilities for why she was annoyed.

"Peter, could you do me a favor and translate for those of us who don't speak fairy? Like me?"

Alan, sitting on the shelf where he was plugged into the ships computer squaked indignantly.

"Right sorry, and Alan. He doesn't speak fairy either."

Peter's question, however, preempted any further attempts to communicate, and looking back Brandon nodded grimly. "That's it."

Switching the Cork to autopilot, Brandon unstrapped himself from the pilot's chair and began making his way to the ship's entrance ramp. The Cork, in the meantime, lifted itself up so the ramp would line up with the deck of the ship.

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"Something about light in someone's eyes," Peter said dismissively, obviously wanting to get right to the heart of things. He followed Brandon without a second thought, Tink and Ray right behind him. "Can't we go already?" he demanded. "We can just fly over there!"

"Does he know how to fly?" Tink asked, eying Brandon.

"Pretty sure he does," Ray answered. "So what's the plan, anyway? Or are we winging it like always? That always was my favorite stragety..."

"Mine too," Peter agreed enthusiastically. "It's more of an adventure that way! Oh, she asked if we have a plan," he told Brandon as an afterthought.

"Aside from getting Ari."

"Other than getting your friend."

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He stepped back to the starboard side of the ship, crossing his arms and going back to waiting. Plans were not executed irratically, even when they had to be improvised on the spur of the moment. There were always traps and backups and- he glanced up at the sky.

Complications.

He only raised his eyebrow at the motley crew that apparently appeared out of thin air, but didn't call forth any magic or weapons. He didn't even call out a greeting - after all, this wasn't his ship.

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I hit him hard and fast, Peter, you grab Ari and get her to the ship. After that..."

Brandon stepped onto the edge of the ramp, glaring down at the man below.

"We improvise."

A second later he vanished in a blur, Thunder Stepping from the ship to directly in front of Calum, fist wreathed in lightning as he threw a punch at the pirate's face.

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Peter scowled. He'd never followed anyone's orders; why should he start now?

"Hey, watch it! That's still Josiah's body!" Ray yelled after Brandon.

"Ray said that's still Josomething's body," he relayed before dashing off toward the ship with the fairies in tow. "She can't be that hard to find. You guys look around; see if you see her anywhere and I'll look over here..." He flew off, leaving Ray and Tink to search on their own.

Ray shook her head and flew off with Tink. After a little searching, they saw something on the deck and came closer to investigate.

"Is that... It is! Where'd Peter go, that's Ar--" Ray let out a yelp as she and Tink suddenly found themselves trapped. They both viciously attacked beat on the glass, only to see an ugly face looking in on them a moment later. They recoiled, and the pirate grinned.

"Looky what I found," he drawled. "Won't Pan be happy to see I caught his little friend for the Cap'n..."

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Calum didn't even blink as Brandon all but disappeared - but he moved almost as fast. He twisted to the right just as the attack came speeding centimeters from his face, conjuring a strong gust of bitterly cold air between them with his left hand.

In his right hand, he called up the same magic he had threatened Ari with only moments before, but he didn't throw it at Brandon. Instead, he threw the magic aft, over the other man's shoulders and directly into the steps right behind them. The stairs exploded from the force of magic, sending splinters - both wooden and icy - flying across the deck.

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The first attack never seemed to work. Luckily, that meant Brandon had long since learned to always have a followup.

He twisted his toes inside his boot, a trick he'd been working on for a while, he conjured a sloppy Fire spell around his foot and lashed up, hurling it at Calum's face before Thunder Stepping backwards to give himself some room.

Drawing Marvin, he ran his hand along the blade and shouted, "Blizara!" The talking saber was suddenly encased in a massive blade of ice. Then he was charging back into the fray.

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None of the commotion went unnoticed, as Captain Hook himself came storming out of his quarters, demanding to know what was going on on his ship. He immediately ran into the pirate with the jar and grabbed it with a sinister smile. Pan would enjoy this little ace up his sleeve, wherever he was.

With the trapped fairies in hand, he moved on and finally spotted the two engaged in battle. He roared in fury about the damage to his ship and started to head down when Pan swooped in, infuriatingly out of reach as he hovered with that silly dagger of his.

"Sure you want to do that, Peter? You could miss and hit your precious fairy friends..." he sneered, brandishing the jar.

"Tink!" Peter exclaimed angrily. "Let her go!"

"Yeah, don't mind me, I'm just here for shits and giggles," Ray said dully.

"Oh, I don't think so, Peter--" The boy swooped down, grabbing at the jar. Hook stumbled while trying to dodge and lost his grip; it went rolling rolling on the deck. Peter dove after it.

"Will you just get Ari out and come back for us later?!" Ray screamed, she and Tink both rolling around in the jar with their eyes squeezed shut.

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Calum's eyes flashed darkly at the sight of a flame spell, and he quickly threw up another spell - a strange mix of ice and air - that just barely blocked the fire. An icy look passed over his face, one that could have been masking fury or something else. Either way, the moment Brandon brandished Marvin, Calum did nothing except take a step back and throw his arm out.

One of the knives that Josiah always kept with him went flying out of his hand, blade aimed straight for the other man's heart.

Not even waiting to see if the knife struck, he jumped up onto the side of the ship for needed space and height, and then threw a warped thunder spell... coming at Brandon from behind.

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Brandon knocked the knife to the side as he moved forward, pressing his attack.

He sensed the lightning even as Calum was still casting it, and thinking fast he Thunder Stepped right in front of the man, then waited until the last second before jumping straight in the air, using his Thunder magic to add to his height.

From above he rotated in mid air, conjuring flame into his free hand. He hadn't missed Calum's earlier expression, and if something pissed off the enemy it gave him an edge.

"Feel the heat!"

He unleashed the fireball down at Calum.

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He glanced up, a dark look passing over his face again. But something in his eyes was sharp, calculating. Just as Brandon called the fire magic down, he murmured something in equal parts Latin and Welsh, but did not move until the last possible second. He hissed out the last word of the spell, and the fire collided with shadows colder than arctic winds. But the shadows didn't stop there - some spilled from the initial spell over the sides of the deck, down the hull, and into the water... where another spell had alrady been lying dormant.

There were a few brief seconds of silence... and then a wall of water exploded around the ship, blocking off any visible access to the island of Neverland or the surrounding sea. The ship rocked alarmingly as blackish-blue water rose higher than the even the topsails, obscuring even the moon. Calum jumped onto the shrouds of Hook's ship with the ease of someone who had been doing it all of his life, and glanced back at Brandon. With his right arm still hooked around the ropes, he clenched his free fist, and, like a ghost materializing out of nowhere, a cutlass appeared in his hand. He didn't say anything, didn't show any more emotion other than a raised eyebrow as if to say "well?" before nodding in the direction of Pan and Hook's duel.

And then the waters came slamming down onto the deck, with enough force to force anything or anyone not bolted down off the deck and into the churning waters beneath the ship.

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Brandon swore as his spell was blocked again, realizing that a long range assault was not going to work. Even as gravity took hold and he began to fall back to the ship his mind was racing, striving to formulate a new plan of attack.

Of course, given flying was not one of his abilities, his thinking time was rather limited, and after a few seconds he was forced to conjure an Aeroga spell, the wind shield encasing his body just moments before he hit the deck and pushing him back up to defuse the force of his impact before being dispelled, only leaving him with a sore shoulder from where his spell had rebounded. He’d have bruises later, but considering he’d normally have broken his arm at best he could deal.

Bouncing almost comically to his feet, Brandon regained his balance just as the massive wave rose over the ship, casting them in shadow. Looking up, Brandon fought the urge to groan, his mind racing to keep up with this sudden change in the battlefield. Ari was unconscious on the deck, Peter was off doing his own thing, and he had lost track of Ray and Tinkerbell.

Calum seemed to be challenging Brandon to continue their fight, but Brandon's first priority had always been protecting his friends, and if he had to lose the fight to get Ari away, that is what he would do.

Luckily, he had a spell that might let him have his cake and eat it too. It was something he had started working on during the dark days towards the end of the war with the Organization. He hadn't gotten it ready in time for that conflict, but now he'd had months to practice. Now was the perfect time to field test it.

Before he could begin, however, Brandon thunder stepped in front of Ari, standing over the sleeping girl. Then, without sparing a second to check on her, to observe the battlefield, to even truly think about what he was doing, Brandon began to cast his spell.

The first step was to cast Aeroga again, encasing himself in a miniature windstorm, the force of the spell causing his hair and jacket to thrash about him. Bringing his hands together, he closed his eyes and reached for the lightning that dwelled within him, the power that he had struggled with for so long, but through months of effort had made his ally. He took that power, one that represented unflinching courage, and began to channel it into the spell he had already cast, one that was linked to his sense of excitement. He mixed not only the spells themselves, but the very emotions they had become linked to within him. Feeling and magic mixed as one, and soon the wind surrounding him sparked with lightning, each accompanied by a small rumble of thunder. The windstorm had become a thunderstorm, one that encased Brandon like a suit of armor.

This was his new spell, Hurricane.

He’d just gotten the spell together when the wall of water collapsed on top of everything. Kneeling on the deck on top of Ari and expanding the spell to cover her, Brandon slammed Marvin into the wood and braced himself for a moment before the wave hit him like a runaway train. His arm muscles screamed in pain as he hung on, his legs threatened to give out, he could hear his gloves begin to shred, and blackness crawled on the edges of his vision as he fought with all his will to maintain the spell. Still, between the lightning enhanced winds blowing the water around him and his sword as an anchoring point, he held his ground.

Finally, after what felt like eons, the water finally abated, leaving him standing above Ari, both of them ironically dry in the midst of the soaked deck. His body wanted so badly for him to just lie down and rest, but he rallied his reserves, drawing on adrenaline, magic, and sheer human stubbornness to force himself to his feet.

Looking up at Calum Brandon yanked his sword out and lifted it as if in challenge, before suddenly thrusting forward with his empty fist. The wind around his arm stretched and shot forward, as if some sort of a rubber band that had been released, slicing through the air at the pirate. The wind had shaped itself into a mirror of his fist, crackling with lightning around the knuckles and aimed right at Calum’s chest.

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