"Hm hm hm hm hmm, hm hm hm hm hm, hm hm hm hm hm hmmm…" Terrafin hummed as he swam through the loamy earth with only his fin stuck out from the soil.

Doesn't seem like there's anybody here, Terrafin thought as he kept his ears trained on the ground above. Better move o—

Terrafin cut off as his fin hit some wooden thing and sent him tumbling over himself with his feet stuck straight out of the earth. With an audible groan, Terrafin set himself upright and stared right into the eyes of a furry brown canine covered in rags and jewelry who fell down onto the earth. All around this canine were various belongings that were presumably his, and they were scattered everywhere! A miniature wooden table, several different kinds of cards, various other knick-knacks, and stuff like that…

"Watch where ye're going, ye muscled buffoon!" The canine exclaimed as he got up and dusted himself off. "Ye hast any idea how long it took me to set that up?"

"About five minutes?" Terrafin suggested as he shrugged and gave the canine a sheepish look.

The pirate froze for a moment, gave Terrafin an uncomfortable look, and chuckled nervously as he leaned back. "Never mind, just give me a moment."

The pirate grumbled as he walked of and began gathering his things. He stashed the cards and other items away in his jacket, sat the table upright, and set the cards face-down onto the table. After he took a deep breath, the pirate pulled up a wooden chair that was half-buried in the ground, brushed off its seat and sat it behind the table. He took a seat as a sneer spread across his face.

"What'cha doin' here, sharky?"

Terrafin took another, more attentive gaze at the canine, and snarled as he looked behind the booth to see a golden cage which trapped a trembling mabu man. "You're one of those pirates, aren't'cha?" Terrafin jumped up and slammed his bulky fists onto the wooden table the pirate was sitting behind. "I'm here to set you guys straight!"

Terrafin pounded his fist on the table a second time for emphasis. "You—"

Terrafin lost his footing and dove nose-first into the table, and the cards flew everywhere! Terrafin regained his stance, blew the cards that fell on his snout upwards, and watched as the cards gently landed back onto the table.

"Ye're one of those Skylandees, ain't ye?" The canine pirate watched as Terrafin nodded slowly and sighed. "Well, I have no doubts that yer here to shut us down, but before ye do that—" the pirate waved his hand over the cards he set up "—how's about a game of Pirate Cards?"

Terrafin bit his lip. Slam did say not to take up these guys, and for all he knew they could have some kind of dirty trick up their sleeves. But, this does look pretty easy. Terrafin looked down at the six cards stationed at the table, drummed his fingers on its wooden surface, and took a deep breath.

"What could possibly go wrong?" Terrafin asked himself under his breath, looked the pirate dog straight in the eye, and slammed his hand on the table. "Fine! I'll take you up on your offer!"

The pirate dog smirked as his eyes lit up. "Well then, sharkie, this game's simple." The pirate dog gestured towards the cards once more. "See these cards here? All ye have to do is match them up with their identical others!" The pirate dog narrowed his eyes and pulled something out of his raggedy coat. "But before ye play, we have to make a deal."

Terrafin raised his eyes and furrowed his brow. "And what would this deal be?"

"Well." The pirate revealed the object he withdrew, a metallic alarm clock, and place it on the stand. "I'll set up a time limit of five minutes, and if ye win, then I'll do whatever ye requests." The pirate's look turned threatening, complete with a sinister glare and snarled teeth. "But if ye loses me little game, ye become me prisoner FER LIFE."

Terrafin flinched for just a moment, and his eyes focused on the six cards on the desk. This could turn out pretty bad if he lost. But then again, only six cards.

"Alright, I'll take you up on your little game. And if I win—" Terrafin looked over at the mabu trapped inside their gilded cage "—you're gonna free that guy you have trapped there."

"It's a deal." The pirate shook Terrafin's hand and set the timer. "Now, let the games begin."

Terrafin brushed his hand across his chin, reached out, and flipped over a card to get an image of a pirate ship on the front.

"Schooner!" The pirate proclaimed.

Terrafin gave the pirate a weird look, and flipped over another card which depicted the image of a worn paper map.

"MAP!" The pirate announced as the two cards magically flipped themselves on their fronts.

Just then, a small panel drew open on the booth, and from it emerged a tiny cannon that shot the minute hand on the clock! Just like that, the minute hand nudged ahead by about a minute!

The pirate chuckled as he noted the confused look on Terrafin's face. "That's the trick of me cannon deck," The pirate explained as he stroked the booth. "Every time ye get a wrong pair, that lil' cannon takes a minute off ye time!"

"Hey, that's cheating!" Terrafin retorted as he bore his teeth.

The pirate placed a furry paw on the booth as he leaned forward and smirked at Terrafin. "I'm a pirate. Do ye really think I care?"

Terrafin growled and looked back at the cards before him. With a diligent hum, he flipped the ship card over once more.

"Schooner!" The pirate announced.

Terrafin growled as he looked over at the pirate, who now seemed much more punchable than before, and back at the cards. He knew that the map card was diagonal from the ship, but not much else. Maybe he should try the card next to it? Terrafin flipped over the next card, which revealed a wooden chest filled with gold coins and other kinds of treasure. Definitely not the one he was looking for.

"Booty!" The pirate declared ever-so-smugly as the cannon popped out of the booth and shot the clock down a minute more.

Terrafin clenched his teeth and fist, and twitched his eye so slightly as he looked down at the cards once more.

"Time's a'tickin', ye best make up yer mind soon~" The pirate crowed as he stroked his chin.

Terrafin shot the pirate another glare and looked down at the deck of cards. His gaze trailed over to the metal clock, which had about a minute and a half left on its timer. He better come up with something fast! Terrafin breathed in and looked over the ship card.

"Schooner!" The pirate proclaimed as he stroked his chin.

Terrafin gazed over the deck and flipped over the ship card's bottom card to get an identical ship!

"… Schooner?"

The pirate's eyes widened as the matching card magically flew back into his pocket. Terrafin made a smug grin towards the pirate, and flipped over the map card.

"Map!" The pirate exclaimed, a hint of worry in his voice.

The pirate's eyes widened even more as Terrafin flipped over the card beside it, which revealed an identical map card!

"… Map."

The pirate sighed as the map cards flew back into his pocket. That pirate didn't even speak as Terrafin flipped over the last, twin cards with two matching images of a chest filled with coins printed on their front. All he did was stared dumbfounded as they flew back to his possession.

"Alright buddy, I won." Terrafin looked over to the pirate dog and gestured. "Now hold up your end of the bargain."

The pirate sighed, turned around and walked over to the cage. "Alright, matey, ye win." The pirate rummaged through his coat and pulled something out. "But!"

"But what?"

The pirate whipped around and pointed a cutlass just inches away from Terrafin's face. "That doesn't mean I have to keep up my end!" The pirate jumped onto the booth and sprang onto Terrafin. "I'm a pirate, after all!"

"If that how you're gonna be—" Terrafin swung out of the way as the pirate landed on his face "—then bring it on! I've been itchin' for a fight!"

The pirate growled as he launched himself towards Terrafin, who only cracked his knuckles and swiftly bobbed out of the way! Terrafin reappeared behind the pirate's back as the pirate stared in confusion, and punched him! The pirate groaned as he fell on his face, the wind completely knocked out of him, but growled and reached for his cutlass. When his grasp on the handle was firm, he sped forward and slashed Terrafin.

Well, he probably would've if Terrafin hadn't grabbed onto the blade and tossed it up! As the pirate flew into the air with his cutlass, Terrafin jumped up and launched out a rapid-fire barrage of punches! His fists flew so fast that one could barely even see the pirate until he finally fell down onto the ground with a face full of bruises and black eyes.

"Uncle! Uncle, I say!" The pirate wailed as he tried to stagger up, only to fall back down on his back. "No more, please!"

"Looks like I'm the champ here," Terrafin smirked as he walked over to the pirate, "which means it's time for me to take my trophy!"

Terrafin dove his bulky hand into the pirate's jacket and pulled out a golden key. As he swung the key around his finger, he walked back over to the cage and looked it over. The mabu inside glanced over at Terrafin with a frightened look in his eyes, but his fear vanished as Terrafin unlocked the cage!

"You're free now, buddy!" Terrafin proclaimed as he patted the mabu on the back.

"Oh, thank you so much!" The mabu exclaimed as they shook Terrafin's hand. "I tried to stop the pirates myself, but I'm a lot worse at card games than I thought."

Terrafin gently nudged the mabu aside. "Don't worry 'bout it! Just get back home, alright?"

As the mabu cheered and ran free, Terrafin glared back over at the pirate who only rested unconscious on the ground. A nagging feeling in his gut told him that he should probably do something about that pirate, but then again, he did seem pretty beat up. Terrafin shrugged. He'll just leave that dude here; after all, it would be wrong to kick a guy when he was down. So, Terrafin just jumped back into the earth and swam off…

§

Zap paced behind the various bushes, and his persimmon eyes trained on the various pirate canines that ran rampant as they all gambled, fought, played cards, and otherwise caused mayhem throughout the sleepy town. As his eyes narrowed, Zap focused on the outlier within the crowd. There among the chaos, was a timid-looking, bright orange feline mabu who held their head down as they walked through the swarm of pirates.

"Hey, kitty-cat!" called a canine from a stall. "You wanna play a game?"

The feline mabu quickly shook their head as they ran faster, but two burly canines grabbed the mabu by their arms. The bulky canines dragged the mabu to the stall, all while they futilely struggled!

The third pirate's eyes perked as they took note of the mabu, and a grin spreaded across his face as the mabu further struggled to escape from his captors. The third pirate's hands folded on top of each other as they seated their legs on the counter.

"So, I have a new customer, do I?" said the third pirate, their grin curled into a sneer.

The mabu was forced into a chair while the other two pirates loomed above them. They tried their best to wiggle out of their trap, but it was no use. Every little jolt, every little wiggle made the pirate guards slam them back into the chair. That mabu was clearly at a disadvantage.

Who do those dudes think they are? Zap thought as he growled low, sparks crackled at his mouth. Games aren't any fun if you make someone play 'em!

The stall pirate went on to explain something, but it was inaudible to Zap's ears—mostly because he was too angry to care. As his whole body grew slimy and sticky, Zap narrowed his eyes further, his focus completely zeroed in on the stall pirate. He leaped out towards the stall pirate in a flash, and tackled the stall pirate out of his seat! The stall pirate scream out as he turned around and saw Zap seated on his chest and ready to shoot.

"GUARDS!" The stall pirate as he shook his fist. "GET THIS LIZARD!"

"I'm not a lizard, dude!" Zap growled, his voice a bit staticky from the lightning that charged at his muzzle. "I'm a dragon and YOU'RE toast!"

Before Zap could shoot, however, he heard earth-shattering footsteps and turned around only to gulp. The two burly pirate guards abandoned the mabu they tormented, and imposed themselves over Zap, their muscles rippled as they crackled their knuckles and growled.

"You dudes seem really tense!" Zap sat firm on the stall pirate as his muzzle crackled. "Looks like you need some ELECTRO-THERAPY!"

As he finished his quip, Zap shot off a round of lightning bolts at the pirates. who merely flinched and rolled their heads around!

Crap, these dudes are too thick for my lightning! Zap leaped off the stall pirate. Looks like it's time for Plan B!

Zap zipped right under one pirate's legs and zoomed a good bit away! His skin secreted a thick goo that coated his legs and made them extra-shiny. C'mon, just a little more! Zap stopped short as the earth shook, and zoomed away once more. He knew what that meant! He zoomed to the right, but stumbled into a stop as he bumped straight into the legs of a bulky guard!

"SCUSE ME!"

Zap zoomed southward before the guard could capture him, promptly caught another guard charge after him, and veered right! It seemed like he got away in time as his skin grew moister, but he caught a house as it came into view! He turned left, but spied another pirate guard loomed over his path and turned southwest. Oh, wasn't he lucky—there was another guard there too! Zap snorted and dashed right under the guard's legs once more, whipped around, and opened his jaw as wide as he could.

"You dudes don't give up, do you?" Zap demanded as a giant yellow glow emerged from his mouth. "All I've gotta say to that is COWABUNGA!"

As Zap finished his cry, a giant lightning bolt probably twice his size bounced out of his mouth and launched itself straight at the twin guards! The guards shouted out in pain as their entire body jittered with electricity so intense it made their fur stand on end, literally!

While they were busy getting shocked, Zap zoomed back to the stall; after all, those guys wouldn't be a problem for a bit.

"Alright, dude, you're cornered," Zap exclaimed as he jumped onto the stall and glared down the stall owner, who brushed slime off of his coat. "You better tell me what's going on here?"

"Cornered?" The stall pirate chuckled as he glared down Zap with a fanged smile. "Who says I was cornered?"

"What're you talking about?" Zap bore his teeth and took a step forwards. "I took out your—MMPH!"

Zap was cut short as something grabbed him by the back and yanked him off of the stall! It was something so strong, so bulky that he couldn't break free no matter how much he struggled, and he could barely breath from how tough a grip it had on him! It made his head spin! As Zap squirmed and tried to shout out, he heard a familiar low cackle, while something turned him around to face his captors...

Who were none other than the pirate guards he had dodged earlier! Despite a few singed hairs, they seemed perfectly fine! But how? That bolt was several thousands volts of lightning at least!

"Me guards are a lot more resilient than ye give them credit fer, lizard," the stall pirate scoffed. "Speakin' of lizards, guards!"

The guards turned back to the stall pirate with orders carefully awaited.

"How's about a game of pop the lizard?"

The guard that held Zap in his clutches made a sickeningly gleeful grin as he tightened his grip around Zap's neck! Zap croaked out as he swung around and tried to kick the guard, but it was nothing to the guard, who only continued to keep Zap in his chokehold. Zap’s head went numb as his vision started to fail, but something hit the guard on the head and caused him to loosen his grip!

Zap grasped for air, for sweet oxygen as his strength returned to him, and looked down at the ground to find… A playing card? Zap heard groans above him as the guard who kept him captive moaned and stumbled about. Wait, now's his chance! Zap closed his eyes and shuddered as another layer of slime coated his body until he was nice and slick, and wiggled his way back onto the ground!

The second guard yelled out to the first and jabbed his giant finger at Zap, but, those few seconds of hesitation were all Zap needed to finish this. Zap looked down at his slime-coated paws, zapped them with a bolt of electricity, giggled as the familiar, stinging surge of electric power tickled his entire body! The sheer strength of the current that covered him made him glow like a giant lightbulb, but he didn't mind. It was just what he needed!

Zap gargled as the guards looked down at him with a level of surprise, or maybe fear, and they yowled as Zap charged forward and headbutted them right in the chest! The guards fell onto their backs as their whole body crackled with electricity. Meanwhile, Zap landed on them and smirked as he wiped his paws on their chests—paws that were covered in electrically-charged slime! With every stroke of Zap's paws, more electricity surged into the guards, who screamed with pain each time till they finally fell unconscious.

Zap scoffed and zoomed back and jumped onto the stall, his gaze directed back at the stall pirate. The stall pirate, in return, now gazed at Zap with such an intense level of fear that it looked like he saw a ghost!

"I'll give you two options, broski," Zap gurgled as he paced back and forth on the stall. "You can tell me what you're doin' here and I'll let you go free—" Zap glared down the pirate "—or, I can splash you with slime that's been charged up with five thousand volts of raw lightning!"

"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT!" The pirate sobbed as he dove under the stall and trembled. "I'll tell ye what ye want to know!"

"Glad to hear it, dude!" Zap's tone became cheery as he hopped onto the pirate's chair and looked down at the pirate. "What are you dudes here for?"

"What do ye think we're here fer?" The pirate scoffed, and whimpered as Zap shot him another glare. "TREASURE! Our cap'n had us come here to steal the island's treasure!"

"And where is that boss?"

"He's at the mayoral estate on top of that giant hill over there!"

The pirate crawled out from his hiding spot and pointed over to a giant hill topped with a fancy-looking mansion that loomed over the island. Yeah, that definitely looked like a mayoral estate.

"Thanks for the tip, bro!" Zap hopped off the chair and watch the electric charge that once surged through his slimy body slowly fade away. "Oh, and by the way…"

The pirate whimpered as he stared at Zap, and yelled in surprise as a giant glob of slime splashed him and stuck him to his stall.

"Don't go anywhere!"

Zap smirked as he skated off. While Zap skated away, the land slowly turned less and less dense with population. No pirates, no mabu, no nothing! Just the occasional lamppost or old, abandoned building, maybe a shadow figure or two. Wait, shadowy figure?

"Who's there?!" Zap exclaimed as he caught a slender, shadowy figure dash off and disappear into the shadows out the corner of his eye. Did he imagine it? Zap only shrugged as he skated over to the hill. "Can't worry about that right now!" Zap chirped as he disappeared from view. "I've got a mayor to save!"