17: Lost Boys Lost

After partying until dawn, everyone slept through the majority of the day. I found myself unable to think back to Neverland's dark past. Peter was a demon, but I could also see the other side to the story. It was a collection of swirling thoughts that felt like they were consuming me.

"What are you still doing up?" Peter entered my tent.

"I can't sleep," I simply said, not wanting to talk to him.

"That's understandable," Peter sat in the chair beside my bed, "It's a lot of information to process. Are you starting to understand the past?"

I frowned, "I do and I don't."

"Care to elaborate?"

"You're a demon for starters," I began and earned a warning look from Pan, "You have made it clear you will kill to keep your rule on the island. And yet despite your wickedness, you've also kept the island relatively safe."

Peter was about to open his mouth to retort my statement when Felix broke into the tent. He kept his aloof stance, but his eyes reflected another emotion entirely... Fear. Peter didn't think twice before standing, "I know that look, what happened?"

"Roger has been killed and Sam and Eric are missing," Felix said.

Surprise flickered across the leader's face. I have only a few interactions with the two aforementioned boys. Roger was the older of the duo. He often took the lead in the hunts for the boys. He was ruthless and savage but loyal to Pan. His skills with a spear were top-tier among several of the other older boys in the camp. He wouldn't be taken down that easily.

Sam and Eric on the other hand were brothers who were not as skilled as Roger. However, they made up for it with their intellect. While many of the other boys would often run headfirst into battles, the brothers would take a moment to analyze their situation and opponent. Their streak of victories was something to commend them for. That's why paired with Roger, the trio were considered unbeatable.

Peter was silent as he thought things over.

"Where is Roger's corpse?"

"It's by the Babbling Brook," Felix answered almost immediately, "The brothers weren't present. What would you like us to do?"

 Finally, he made his decision.

"Gather a group of boys ranging in skill and experience. Find the brothers and retrieve the body. We'll bury him."

Felix nodded his head. Once he and a few boys were out of sight, Peter sat down silent. His head was bowed and his body tense. I could have sworn I heard him mutter under his breath, "Looks like my intuition was proven right again."

"Peter?" I called out to him concerned, "Is everything alright?"

Peter lifted his head and covered up his expression with a smile, "Everything is fine, not to worry my Lost Girl."

"Peter?" I frowned, "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Peter turned his back, "You should go to bed. No sleep isn't a good thing to have in Neverland. I have some things to take care of."

I crossed my arms, "Let me help."

"No," Peter's voice was firm.

I froze as I felt the power radiate off of him. 

"Just stay here," Peter said, "I'll be back by nightfall."

I wanted to refuse, but just then, exhaustion took over my body and I was out like a light.

I was jostled awake and instinctively raised my fist to my attacker. They caught it and I opened my eyes expecting to see Peter. I was wrong.

"Sam?" I let out shocked, "You're back? Where's Peter?"

"There's no time," Sam pulled me from the bed, "We have to go save Eric."

I barely got another word out and grabbed a weapon as he dragged me from the camp. It was almost deserted. There was no sign of Peter anywhere as he promised me this morning. Was he okay?

I frowned at the thought of the demon. My feelings contradicted each other. I hated him, but at the same time, my heart skipped a beat whenever he was near. That night on the cliff showed me a different side to him. I saw it earlier when Felix told him of the news. One of his own was dead and two were missing. Despite being the demon he is known as his concern for his boys pushed through. 

"Sam, what happened?" I asked as he was leading me through the jungle. 

"We were attacked," Sam answered, "Roger took the killing blow for my brother and I. I ran as fast as I could to the camp to find you."

"What about Peter and the other lost boys?" I raised an eyebrow, "What makes me so important?"

"You are the strongest, most powerful person I know," Sam told me, "There is no one else."

"Thanks, I guess?" I was taken aback by the compliment. 

Hearing the compliment from one of Peter's own was surprising. While I had proven myself against the Neverland Beasts numerous times, I sometimes wondered whether the boys were kind to me due to Peter. 

Sam led me to a clearing. It was dark and sinister. The trees were bare of leaves and a haze filled the area. It was thick and made it hard to breathe. A chilling wind blew through and brambles of Dreamshade surrounded the outskirts almost bleeding the life away. The closest place to hear that it reminded me of was the ruins of the Annamay Tribe territory where the Blight happened. 

Sam had stopped walking as I took the lead. 

I mustered a smile, "Don't worry, Sam, I'll find your brother."

He didn't say anything. I assumed he was still traumatized from whatever attacked them.

For a Babbling Brook, I sure am not seeing any Brook, I snorted. 

A brook was supposed to be a lush area with fresh water. Felix's report also stated that Roger's dead body was found at the Brook. Felix had assembled a team of Lost Boys to go retrieve the body. If I was being led to the same place, I should've seen traces of them on the way here, but there was no sign of them.

Alarm bells rang inside my head. Sam's sense of urgency with little information confused me. I turned around to face Sam, "I'm not seeing-"

I expected to meet the lost boy, but he was just that. Lost, and nowhere in sight.

*****

 "For a corpse, this is more mutilated than I have ever seen before," Peter stated flatly as he stared coldly at the body of what was once his lost boy.

"There was barely anything we could recognize," Felix told him, "We only knew it was him when we pulled this out."

In Felix's hand was a bloody handkerchief. Peter recognized it as being something special to Roger. He had come with it and would only use it to clean his weapons. He believed that it would instill strength in his weapons. 

"Sir?" Felix snapped Peter out of his thoughts, "Is everything alright?"

Peter thought of Jess asleep back at the camp. He knew she had wanted to come with him, but did not want to place her in danger. While having not slept aided him, he felt guilty for using a little magic to push her over the edge to sleep. By the time it wore off, he should be back.

"Everything is fine," Peter mumbled, "However, I can't help but think that some new threat is making its appearance. We haven't lost a boy since..."

The Blight, Peter could finish his sentence. The cataclysmic event that took the lives of many of his boys. As a leader, Peter carried the burden of knowing it was his fault his boys fell. A raging fire burned within him at the very thought. Since it ended, Peter vowed to never let it happen again. he doubled up on the training so the boys would be better equipped to face threats. 

"Any sign of Sam or Eric?" Peter asked the boys searching the area of the brook. 

He was greeted with many shakes until Devin returned. His face was pale. His fingers twitched as he faced their leader.

"Devin?" Felix stepped forward, "What's wrong."

"It's Sam and Eric," Devin sputtered out, pointing off into the distance. 

The group ran in that direction only to stop short of the even more grotesque sight before them. 

Pinned up against the tree was a mess of tangled limbs and blood. Each brother was cut in half and forcibly stitched together with Dreamshade. Eric's eye was lifeless and dead. 

"Sam's still alive!" Felix gasped. 

Peter looked at the named half of the boy. Despite the mutilation, his mouth slowly let out weak, pained gasps. 

"Are you sure you should approach?" Felix asked him protectively.

"It'll be fine," Peter assured his second.

He faced his dying Lost Boy, "Sam..."

He took out his dagger, "Rest in peace."

Peter then put Sam out of his misery but not before he heard Sam say something. Something that would haunt him. Jessica. He had promised her that he would return to the camp by nightfall, but finding the brothers was an unforeseen setback. He wondered whether she was wondering where he was by now. Hopefully, she wouldn't be stubborn enough to leave the camp to find him.

"Peter?" Felix noticed a change in their leader.

The green eyed boy turned to his boys, "Sam and Eric were already dead when we came here. Magic has manipulated the amalgamation of a body to appear alive. Burn the bodies so that our foe can never do this again then return to camp."

Peter didn't wait to hear their response. Instead, he teleported back to camp. His mind was racing as he tried to figure out what was going on. Someone was killing his Lost Boys and somehow they were going after his Lost Girl. 

He mentally eliminated possibilities of who could have done this from his list. This wasn't the actions of the pirate and his crew. Captain Hook may have been a pain in his side, but even he would not go this far. Plus, he would always make a show of anything he did to Peter and his boys. 

Tinker Bell was another person that came to his mind. She may be a faerie without wings, but she was cunning. After all, before Wendy and Jess, she was the first female part of his group. He knew she didn't die after falling into the chasm, but did not know how she survived. He did have his suspicions when it came to the forces on this island beyond his comprehension. Tinker Bell was friends with Jessica and while she may have parted from him, they held an agreement to not interfere with each other. She may be a faerie, but she was not stupid enough to try anything. 

Peter returned to the camp. Many of the Lost Boys had gone to bed while those stationed as sentries were patrolling the camp. They bowed their heads at the sight of him. 

"Pan," they greeted, "Welcome back."

Peter nodded and let them continue their job. The camp appeared in the same state as when he left earlier that day. He approached the entrance to Jess' tent. 

"Sorry to worry you my Lost Girl," Peter began, "But as you can see everything is-"

His green eyes widened as he was met with the sight of an empty bed. Jessica was nowhere in sight. The word that Sam's corpse uttered before becoming remains was her name. Something was after her and he didn't know what it was. 

He exited the tent and grabbed his nearest sentry by his shirt. Their face was wide with fear as he looked down at them. 

"P-P-Pan," they stuttered in fear.

Peter knew the boy was intimidated and that suited him fine. As a leader, his boys needed to know who was in charge. Peter clenched his jaw, "Where is Jess?"

"She left with Sam when she woke up about an hour ago," the boy cried out.

Peter dropped the boy to the ground and shook his head, "That is impossible."

"Why?" The sentry asked.

"Sam is dead." Was all Peter told him as he left the boy standing in shock.

Peter tried to use his powers to sense Jessica's whereabouts on the island. However, she couldn't find any trace and that filled with his dread. There was only one place his powers weren't able to reach. Dark Hollow.

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Hey readers,

Sorry for such a delay in the story. I had to take care of things going on outside of writing that made me lose my motivation to write. Good news, I bounced back and have loads of ideas for all my stories (Be sure to check those out). Thank you again for the continuous support and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter.

Cheers,

Eden

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