I stand on the deck of my ship. My arms are crossed and my expression fixed in a look of determination that matches the determination filling my heart. I knew this was going to be a challenge the second I set my eyes on that Darling brat . My family doesn't back down from challenges. I'm going to get her off my island. 

I've already given my crew orders to take us as close to Skull Rock as possible. From there the plan is for me to take a dingy from the ship to Skull Rock. The final fight will be for me alone. I don't need an army behind me to take on a single girl. And this is my fight, my responsibility. I am going to end this. 

As soon as we got word that Wendy was spotted near Skull Rock Tink took off to check on Peter. Tiger Lily went back to her territory to see if she could monitor any changes in the island from there. Not that I need any reports from her. I can feel it in the air. Change is already very thick in the air. I have to stop this before it's too late. 

I look up when I hear one of my crew members call my name to get my attention. They point out over the water, towards the sky. I look up and see Tink flying towards the ship. When she gets near I take a small step to the side and she lands next to me. 

"What's the word?" I demand. My tone short and sharp, blunt and to the point. I don't worry about offending her with my tone though. 

Tink tilts her head at me, clearly not understanding what I mean with my question. Thankfully this doesn't stop her from giving her report though. "Peter is not well. He has started to lose his energy and is no longer able to fly and use the magic of the island." If I didn't know better I would think her tone and expression is grim. This isn't good. 

My face turns even more stony at her words. If that is even possible. "He's losing his magic." It isn't a question. It seems like an obvious statement. Tink nods gravely in confirmation. 

I knew that was going to be the answer. But a part of me was still holding on to hope that I was just imagining the change in the air around me. That Peter was fine. That all of this was just a horrible nightmare. Maybe I could still be on the deck of my ship, waiting for Peter and Tink to return from the mainland. But her confirmation shatters those hopes. I knew the truth. But I didn't want to believe it. And her confirmation just makes the burden of the situation weigh even heavier on me. 

"Then she's found the instructions to make her the new avatar of the island's magic." I say solemnly. Tink copies my solemn nod. "Clearly she doesn't understand the consequences of this." She doesn't know that the current avatar will die, and a part of the island's magic will go with him. That's the problem with the warnings being at the end. Being after all the instructions and everything else. People like her don't bother to continue once they've found the information they want. A foolish practice, but an unfortunately common one. This is exactly why the warnings should go first. Too many arrogant people don't bother to read everything. 

Tink doesn't even blink. She doesn't even glance at me. We both look out at the horizon in front of us. The life being drained from the island almost makes the landscape seem to grow duller with every second. "As she grows stronger, Peter will grow weaker." 

"And since Peter has been bonded to the island since he was an infant the process will kill him." I inwardly curse myself for thinking this out loud. Saying it out loud seems to make it more real. Give it more power of being a possibility. 

Tink nods at my obvious statement of fact. Her face is still set, unchanging. Her voice grows an even more serious undertone to it. "You know what you have to do?" She may have phrased it as a question, but seeing as there is only one way to answer it, it feels more like a command. And it's an order I am more than willing to listen to. 

I nod. "The only way to stop her, and save him is to end this. Forever. Before she completes the process." She is still vulnerable as long as the process hasn't been completed. I can still stop this. I have to stop this. 

Tink finally turns her head away from the view in front of us and looks at me seriously. Sensing her stare, I turn my head also so we are face to face. I am getting really good at deciphering the subtleties in her expressions. I would take the time to feel proud about this if the current situation wasn't so dire. "You know that only one of you is going to come out of this alive, right?" 

I nod and look back out at Skull Rock. I'm prepared for what I have to do. I also know that I won't fail. I have too much here to motivate me. I have too much to lose and nothing will hold me back. Nothing is going to keep me from protecting my home. My brother calling that we've reached our destination pulls me from my thoughts and I take a deep cleansing breath. I need to make sure I am in the right mindset before I face her. I turn and make my way to my cabin. If I'm going on this journey alone, I am  going to make sure that I will be prepared. 

Only one of us is leaving Skull Rock. And I'm going to make sure that it's me. That is the only outcome I will accept. Wendy wanted to stay in Neverland forever. I'm going to make sure she never leaves.