Rise of the Isle of the Lost Read online

  Copyright © 2017 by Disney Enterprises, Inc.

  Cover design by Marci Senders

  Cover art by James Madsen

  Hand lettering by Russ Gray

  All rights reserved. Published by Disney • Hyperion, an imprint of Disney Book Group. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. For information address Disney • Hyperion, 125 West End Avenue, New York, New York 10023.

  Designed by Marci Senders

  ISBN 978-1-368-00209-7

  Visit www.DisneyBooks.com

  and www.DisneyDescendants.com

  Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Left Behind

  Under the Sea

  Chapter 1: A Celebration of Auradon

  Chapter 2: A Sudden Wild Magic

  Chapter 2¼: A Sudden Wild Magic, Indeed

  Chapter 3: A Fishy Story

  Chapter 4: The Girls from the Isle

  Chapter 5: Royal Engagements

  Chapter 6: Hooked on a Feeling

  Chapter 7: Fairy Goddaughter Casts a Spell

  Chapter 8: The Little Mer-thief

  Chapter 9: Race to the Bottom

  Chapter 10: The Jet Set

  Chapter 11: Biceps to Spare

  Chapter 12: Swordplay

  Chapter 13: How Many Wonders Can One Cavern Hold?

  Chapter 14: Nemesis

  Ocean’s Elevens

  Chapter 15: The Sorcerer’s Snare

  Chapter 16: Lad and Lass

  Chapter 17: Rug Burn

  Chapter 18: A Spell for Every Occasion

  Chapter 19: The Sorcerer’s Secret

  Chapter 20: Desert Pride

  Chapter 21: Thieves in the Night

  Chapter 22: A Pirate’s Life

  Chapter 23: Sail Away

  Chapter 24: Building a Compromise

  Chapter 25: Doom and Gloom

  Chapter 26: Secrets and Lies

  Chapter 27: Treasure Hunt

  Chapter 28: Twisted Mysteries

  Chapter 29: Rivals

  Chapter 30: Skeleton Island

  Chapter 31: Pirate’s Booty

  Showdown

  Chapter 32: Into the Deep

  Chapter 33: Power and Glory

  Chapter 34: Evil Enchantment

  Chapter 35: All for One

  Chapter 36: Lost Revenge

  Chapter 37: No Place Like It

  Chapter 38: Something There That Wasn’t There Before

  Chapter 39: Oh Captain, My Captain

  Chapter 40: Evie’s 4 Hearts

  Chapter 41: A Second Chance to Make a First Impression

  Chapter 42: The Villains of Our Story

  Acknowledgments

  Also by Melissa de la Cruz

  About the Author

  For Mattie & Mike,

  Always

  And for

  Heidi, Sasha, and Calista Madzar,

  friends & allies, thank you for all your support and enthusiasm for the series!

  Once upon a time, the offspring of an evil fairy and a sea witch were friends. Mal, daughter of Maleficent, Mistress of Darkness, and Uma, daughter of Ursula, Witch of the Seas, were an inseparable duo, partners-in-petty-crime. Mal had purple hair, flashing green eyes, and a mischievous streak, while Uma had turquoise locks, eyes the color of the abyss, and a wicked sense of fun. Luckily for the poor, unfortunate souls who lived on the Isle of the Lost, they didn’t get to see each other very much, since they lived on opposite sides of the island and went to rival schools—Dragon Hall for Mal and Serpent Prep for Uma.

  Life on the Isle of the Lost—where all the villain folk had been banished after King Beast united all the good kingdoms and exiled all the evildoers and their snarky sidekicks—was already difficult. For one, an impenetrable dome covered the island and its surrounding waters, keeping out any source of magic, as well as every kind of Wi-Fi network. For another, most of the island’s residents subsisted on leftovers from Auradon’s mainland along with the goblins’ terrible coffee. But life always got a little worse during the summer when school was out, because that was when Mal and Uma could hit the streets together again.

  They would rampage up and down the island, terrorizing step-granddaughters and traumatizing even the most stalwart goons, and no one would dare voice a peep of annoyance, for fear of something truly frightening—the girls’ mothers.

  One hot day in June, not long after each had turned ten, Mal and Uma were playing on the docks by the water. The two bad little girls were pranking Hook’s crew, making tick-tock noises to scare the pirate captain himself, and getting on Smee’s already agitated nerves. They giggled naughtily behind some empty barrels as their best trick of all went off without a hitch. One pirate after another tripped and fell on the slippery wooden planks, which they had covered with a nearly invisible slime. It was Mal’s idea to coat the decks with bilge and oily, murky scum, and she laughed with glee to see it work so well.

  “Here comes Cruella De Vil,” said Mal, spotting a telltale black-and-white bouffant rising from the crowd of pirates. “Let’s get her!”

  Cruella was a nemesis of theirs. As one of the only citizens on the Isle who wasn’t afraid of Maleficent or Ursula, the Dalmatian-obsessed lady never hesitated to pinch their ears when they tried to make her their victim. They were determined to get her back one of these days, but they’d have to be crafty.

  They watched her sauntering down the docks with a ratty spotted fur on her shoulder, glaring at everyone she met.

  “What’s she doing down here, anyway?” whispered Uma.

  “Goblin barge is arriving soon, and she likes to have first dibs,” explained Mal, holding her breath as Cruella sashayed closer and closer to where they were hiding. “She’s always hoping someone’s thrown away an old fur coat.”

  The girls looked at each other, eyes sparkling with mischief. Mal raced to pour another batch of the disgusting concoction in Cruella’s path, but the giant bucket was too heavy for her.

  “Hurry!” said Uma, running to grab the bucket’s other handle.

  “I’ve got it!” said Mal.

  “Let me!” said Uma. “You did Gaston!”

  Mal chuckled darkly at the memory of the big man going bottoms-up on the dock and finally crashing over the railing with a loud roar and splash, his sons slack-jawed at the sight.

  Uma pulled the bucket to her side.

  “Stop it! Let go!” Mal demanded.

  “You let go! You’re splashing it on me!” whined Uma.

  They each yanked on the bucket. As Uma wrenched it away, Mal lost her grip on the handle, overturning the pail and its contents—and she tripped and fell upon their own slippery puddle.

  “Mal!” yelped Uma, as her friend skittered down the length of the dock, flailing, all the way to the edge.

  “Help! Help me!” Mal screamed, as she attempted to grasp the wooden rails while she sped toward the sea. “I can’t swim!”

  But the irony that the mastermind had been caught in her own naughty little prank and the sight of her purple friend sliding down the docks like a flopping wet fish was too hilarious for Uma to resist, and instead of running to help, the little sea witch was doubled up on her knees in laughter.

  Mal spun down past the gaggle of pirates, past a confused Cruella De Vil, and disappeared overboard.

  That shook Uma from her laughing fit. “Mal!” she called, rushing to the railing’s edge. “Mal! Where are you? Are you okay?” Uma craned her neck, searching the churning waters for
a sign of her friend.

  Her heart stopped, for she couldn’t catch sight of Mal’s purple head anywhere in the waves, and while Maleficent might find it amusing that her daughter had landed in the drink, she would not take too kindly to the news that her one and only spawn was gone forever.

  “Mal! Where are you?” Uma cried, a little desperately now.

  Uma felt a tap on her shoulder and looked up to see Mal standing there, totally dry. “You didn’t fall in!” she cried in relief.

  “I caught a wooden rung right before I fell,” said Mal sweetly.

  “You’re all right!”

  “Yes, I’m okay,” said Mal with a sugary smile that suddenly turned evil. “But you’re not!” she yelled, and before Uma could blink, Mal reached behind her back and dumped a huge bucket of smelly and disgusting baby shrimps all over Uma’s head. Turned out Mal had scampered back up on the docks just in time to see the goblins unloading the latest catch from the barge. Furious at her friend for laughing at her bad luck, Mal decided to create a little bad luck herself.

  Uma screamed.

  And screamed.

  And screamed.

  Sadly, the smell never quite left Uma’s hair, no matter how many times she washed it.

  Much worse, Mal’s nickname for her caught on, and from that fateful day forward, everyone called Uma “Shrimpy” behind her back.

  Except for Mal, of course, who called Uma Shrimpy to her face.

  From the sandbox to the doomball courts, the animosity between the two girls festered and bubbled over the years—especially during rival super-sinister-thirteen birthday parties, which they scheduled on the same night. Somehow, Mal always ended up on top.

  But Uma knew the day would come when she would beat Mal at her own game.

  One fine day…

  Three years later, that day had not yet come. Especially not after the shiny black limousine drove up to the Isle of the Lost. Uma had never seen a car like that—the only means of transportation on the island were rickshaws pulled by goblins, old skateboards, and rusty bikes. It was clear limousines were more than just cars; they were moving cocoons of luxury, decked out in buttery leather seats and filled to the brim with sugary drinks and snacks.

  So what was it doing here of all places, on this forgotten island of villains?

  The young sea witch elbowed her way to the front of the gaping crowd so she could get a better look at what was happening. At sixteen she was small for her age, but more than made up for it by cutting a striking figure. She wore her turquoise hair in a river of long braids that fell down her back, and was partial to patchwork leather dresses and low boots decorated with fishing nets and seashells. Truly, Uma was one of the head-turners on the island, not that she cared. Uma had bigger fish to fry—literally, since she worked at her mom’s Fish and Chips Shoppe.

  The assembled group of louts, toughs, and goons (otherwise known as the population of the island) were oohing and ahhing at the sight of the marvelous automobile. No one had any idea why it was there, or what it meant, but before a riot broke out among the villainous ranks, the door to Maleficent’s castle opened and Evie, Carlos, and Jay walked out carrying luggage, followed by their parents.

  “Bring home the gold!” yelled Jafar.

  “Bring home a puppy!” urged Cruella De Vil.

  “Bring home a prince!” Evil Queen cried.

  Uma nudged the fellow on the left. “What’s going on?” she asked. “Are they leaving?”

  The henchman nodded, barely concealed envy on his face. “Rumor has it they’re going to Auradon.”

  “Auradon? Why?” said Uma, appalled and intrigued at the same time.

  “To go to school. Some kind of new proclamation or something. They’ve been chosen to attend Auradon Prep.”

  Carlos, Jay, and Evie trooped into the car.

  “Is anyone else going?” Uma asked, just as a fourth villain kid burst through the castle doors. An annoyed-looking Mal handed her backpack to the driver.

  Of course Mal had been chosen too.

  Uma watched as Mal looked up to the balcony, where Maleficent raised her staff in goodbye, her green eyes blazing. After a moment, Mal’s purple head disappeared into the limousine as well.

  Somehow, instead of feeling glee at the sight of the four villain kids’ depressed and resentful faces, Uma only felt a spark…of envy.

  Why wasn’t she chosen to leave the Isle of the Lost and live in Auradon? Was she not wicked enough? Not special enough? Why was she left behind like a common goblin?

  And why was Mal chosen instead?

  Uma had to find a way out of the Isle of the Lost. If Mal and her crew were living in Auradon, then that was the place to be—the place where Uma needed to be. Not here, working day in and day out at Ursula’s Fish and Chips Shoppe slinging fish cakes and lost-soul casseroles to the rabble. Uma was special: she was the sea witch’s daughter, a force to be reckoned with! She couldn’t stay here, lost and unloved and unappreciated!

  There was nothing she could do, however. The weeks went by, and the dome was impenetrable. There was no way out of the Isle of the Lost. No matter how much she wanted to leave, there was simply no escape.

  Until one day a few months later…one ordinary day, like every other, but unlike every one that came before it, when something different happened.

  Uma was getting her hair done at her favorite beauty salon, Curl Up & Dye, watching the television while sitting under the dryer.

  “It’s the Coronation. Wish we could be there,” the hairdresser said with a sigh, as a handsome Prince Ben bowed his head to accept the king’s crown and the duties that came with it.

  “Mmm,” said Uma, indifferent to Auradon’s pomp and glory. Young Dizzy, the wicked step-granddaughter who was sweeping up tendrils from the floor, was glued to the sight.

  On-screen, Fairy Godmother was holding out her wand, but in the blink of an eye, someone else had taken it, and then a huge explosion rocked the whole island.

  “What was that?” Uma cried, rushing out of her chair and running outside, just in time to watch a dark shape rising up into the sky, flying like a veritable bat out of hell.

  “Magic! The dome is broken!” she heard someone cry. “Maleficent is gone!”

  Like the rest of the island’s residents, Uma saw her chance—it was time to go! Time to leave the Isle of the Lost forever! But without a bridge, there was only one way to get to the mainland, so the island’s residents were scrambling to the shoreline. Uma followed the crowd rushing down to the docks to find a ship, a boat, a way out—and just as she had clambered on the last goblin rowboat and made it a few miles away from shore, the dome closed again.

  They ran smack into the invisible wall.

  Wha—? How—?

  Uma pressed her nose against the unseen barrier and tried not to scream.

  She was still stuck on this witch-forsaken rock. Later that day, she watched with a weary annoyance as Mal and her friends celebrated their victory, dancing around some castle while fireworks went off in the distance.

  Mal and her crew.

  Crew.

  That was it! That was how she was going to get off this island. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she couldn’t do it alone. What was that saying? No man is an island? Well, no one should live on an island either, at least not unless they had a choice in the matter.

  In any case, Uma vowed then and there to put together a real crew of her own.

  Friends don’t let friends stay on the Isle of the Lost.

  “And now, please welcome Sebastian and the Seven Wonders of the Sea!” the cheerful announcer, a merman floating above the waves, joyfully declared. A magnificent clam-shaped stage rose from the ocean and slowly opened to display the famous crab and a row of pretty mermaids launching into a rollicking tune. The sandy beachfront in front of Ariel and Eric’s castle had been turned into an outdoor stadium, complete with bleachers above the water. Seated high up in the royal box with Ben and her friends, Mal e
agerly clapped with the rest of the audience gathered for the start of the annual Seaside Festival, a daylong celebration of merfolk life. Next to her, Evie was taking zapps on her phone with Arabella, Ariel’s niece, who was something of a fashion maven and idolized Evie’s style. The two were currently sporting matching V-braids and poison-heart necklaces. Evie had even made Arabella’s outfit, a lavender-colored blouse with a lace bodice along with a distressed leather skirt.

  Evie and Arabella couldn’t stop giggling. “What’s so funny?” Mal asked.

  “Mal, do this filter with us!” Evie said, and Mal obliged, sticking her tongue out at the camera. The image on the phone turned the three of them into mermaids complete with curved green tails.

  “That’s pretty much what I look like when I swim,” Arabella said approvingly.

  “Cool.” Mal smiled.

  On the stage, Sebastian was zooming around on his claws, belting his heart out while the mermaids harmonized and splashed, swimming in synchronized patterns around the stage.

  “Who knew crustaceans were so talented?” Mal whispered to Ben as Sebastian hit a high note. Ben grinned and squeezed her arm in agreement.

  He looked so handsome in his royal coat and sash, the golden crown on his honey-colored hair. The crowd cheered when they saw him smile, and he waved back from the balcony. “Come on, Mal, give them a wave,” he urged.

  Mal hesitantly raised her hand and waved as well, and another cheer rose from the crowd. She was still getting used to the position of royal girlfriend and all the attention it generated. She never wanted to embarrass Ben, and she was keenly aware of how different she was from his former girlfriend. Audrey was the epitome of an Auradon princess—she looked so perfectly sweet and lovely that birds would perch on her finger, while Mal was definitely a villain kid from the Isle. A reformed villain, for sure, but chirping birds certainly wouldn’t be worshipping her any time soon. Unlike Audrey, Mal preferred to wear leather pants rather than pretty dresses. So far the people of Auradon didn’t seem to mind, and Mal was grateful they were so accepting.

  “How do they fly so high?” asked Carlos, as the mermaids shot into the air to the rhythm of the music and performed dizzying backflips. “I thought they were mermaids, not fairies.”