She frowns, trying to pick out a word from the babble of screams and barks. “The orangutans are saying stuff like our captain’s crazy . . . you’re going to be chucked in the sea for the sharks to eat . . .”

“What?!” says Win.

“Shh!” says Rose, straining to hear. “That big one just said, Captain’s going to cut you into little pieces and make you into sushi . . . no, stew.”

“I don’t want to be stew!” says Win, his eyes wide with panic. “What’s stew?”

“It’s like thick soup,” I say.

Win yelps and the orangutans turn in our direction and start to creep closer, their eyes gleaming. The five of us squeeze together, a mass of black-and-white fur and trembling bodies.

“Arthur, can’t you do something?” says Rose. “You’re the one who loves pirates so much!”

“Tell them who we are,” I say, thinking fast. “Tell them that we’re the Masters of Roar and I’m their, um”—I try to think of the best word, one that suggests ultimate piratical power—“I’m their Sea Lord, and I’m taking command of this ship.”

Rose does her best to translate my words into Ape and finishes her speech by pointing at me.

For a moment there is silence—a respectful silence, I think—until the orangutans start growling and laughing at the same time. One of them manages to get it together enough to shout some words in Rose’s face.

“What did it say?” I ask.

Rose looks at me with big eyes. “It said, Sea Lord is the main ingredient of the captain’s stew . . . yum, yum.”

“It actually said, ‘yum, yum’?”

Rose nods and Win puts an arm around my shoulder. “Bad luck, shipmate.”

Chapter 29

Arms yanked behind our backs, Win, Rose, and I are pushed toward the captain’s cabin.

My legs feel wobbly as I start to wonder what sort of person, or ape, lies behind those elaborately carved doors. I frantically search my memory for any cannibalistic stew-loving captains that were in my pirate games. Unfortunately it sounds like exactly the sort of thing I would have made up.

I hear a snarl, a hand hits me on the flat of my back, and I stumble forward.

“I think you’re supposed to open the door, Arthur,” says Rose.

I reach for the handle, take a deep breath, and turn. It swings open and we’re shoved inside a shadowy room. The door bangs shut, leaving us in darkness.

There are no lamps, and shutters cover the windows. But that doesn’t mean there’s no light. Strange glowing lights are dotted everywhere. I see worms, starfish, pulsing fluorescent flower buds, and they are all trapped inside jars.

“What is this place?” whispers Rose.