“An arrow pierced through the imp’s eye, and he released his hostage, meanwhile, the golem was overwhelmed with familiars, stumbling about the perimeter of the castle trying to battle against the mighty Kraken and the elusive Pina-”

“You forgot to mention Reggie the raccoon’s contribution.”

Eli had just interrupted Tam’s vivid retelling of Troivack’s civil battle that his family, with their familiars, had been instrumental in winning.

However, no one should overlook Reggie the raccoon, as he was quite infamous in his own right for being unfathomably large, yet somehow healthy, belonging to a Troivackian witch who aided the king’s army in the war.

Tam let out a long sigh.

He had never seen Reggie the raccoon, but he had most certainly heard about him in great detail throughout the years from his father, sister, and brother-in-law…

He didn’t understand the fascination with the rotund beastie.

“But… Which are imps and golems again?” Luca sat at the edge of his chair as was his norm when listening to his father speak about the ancient beasts that had been summoned from the Forest of the Afterlife to aide the first witch, daughter of the Gods, in banishing the devil to another realm, and assisting her in taking power in the Troivackian kingdom.

“Imps are the ancient beasts associated with water. They are seven feet tall and usually have purple, black, or blue hair. Their eyes are similar colors, and they have three pupils in each eye that spin,” Tam explained, pointing at his own eye and drawing circles to illustrate his point. “My father’s familiar says that they can turn into sea creatures in water, and wield their element as well as the most powerful water witches.”

“And golems are the giant rock men tied to earth power? Taller than some keeps?” Luca started to recall.

“That’s right. They don’t talk much, and I’m sure you’ve heard about the stone golem that is loyal to the new Daxarian queen’s familiar. He stands off shore of Austice and guards the harbor,” Tam confirmed.

Luca nodded along, though a line had formed between his eyebrows as he sifted through the information. “Sirins are associated with air magic. They fly, have pointy teeth, white or gray hair, and red, blue, or even white eyes, can sing the most beautiful song you’ve ever heard, or scream and drive you mad.”

Luca shuddered at the imagery just as a particularly biting wind whisked through the trio.

Their vessel was two thirds through their journey to Zinfera, and every night since the first, Tam, Eli, and Luca had sat on the deck with tea (that Eli insisted on brewing), snacks, and the sextant, as Tam told the fantastical stories of the stars, or, on a night such as that one when the clouds above blocked the moonlit sky, legendary tales of the Ashowan family.

The future duke was an exceptional storyteller, and it didn’t take long for both Eli and Luca to look forward to their evenings together above any other time of the day.

“As for the last of the ancient beasts associated with the elements. Dragons. Dragons… well… They’re giant lizards that burp fire,” Tam concluded bluntly, making Luca laugh. “We know the least about them as they rarely show themselves, but they are associated with the fire element, and are thought to have superior intelligence.”

The group fell into an amicable silence, as Tam leaned back into his seat, his hands folded over his belly as he stared out over the inky sea.

“Tam?” Luca asked suddenly.

“Mm?”

“My Uncle Liam said you’re a witch…”

Tam’s easygoing expression tensed, and he did not hurry looking back at his son.

“And… I heard one of the crew members say that Eli’s a witch, too.”

Both Tam and Eli looked at each other, hardness entering their eyes as Luca continued speaking.

“What… kind of witches are you?” Luca finished, though he was looking increasingly uncertain about asking as the tension in the air was as taught as a harp string.

Neither Tam nor Elie answered at first, instead they stared at each other in wordless communication.

“Luca… Both Eli and I aren’t like most witches,” Tam began carefully. “Neither of us like to talk about our magic. No one knows what mine is, and Eli… Eli does not like her magic. I understand why you are curious, but, in the future please do not ask about it.”

“But wh-”

Tam stared firmly at his son, and though there was an apologetic turning of his mouth, the set tone of his eyes left little room for debate.

Luca, looking horribly chastened, gulped, and started fidgeting with his thumbnail.

Burning shame scorched Tam’s chest. The boy hadn’t fidgeted in days… However, despite starting to squirm, Luca still went on to ask. “What if I… I’m a witch though? What if it’s like your magic?”

Tam felt his heart drop to his stomach, a moment of panic seizing him at the thought that Luca should inherit his magic, before he managed to come back to his senses.

“It has never happened that mutated witches have children with the exact same abilities. So you aren’t in danger of that, and to you most likely would’ve already noticed some kind of magic by now. It’s not very often magic to come any later than seven years old.”

“So you’re a mutated witch?” Luca latched onto the tidbit hopefully.

Tam drew himself straight at the question, and his gaze sharpened, making the boy shrink back.

“Luca, how about you go to bed now?” Eli interjected smoothly, already sensing that the situation was about to escalate.

“O-Okay,” the child stammered before nervously sliding to his feet.

As he did so, Tam took the opportunity to mask his emotions, and resume a more relaxed posture. “Have a good night, Luca. I’ll see you in the morning.”

The boy gave a shy wave, but couldn’t bring himself to meet Tam’s eyes as he made his way back to their cabin, where he had a hammock hung up for him in his father’s quarters.

Once Eli and Tam were alone, the assistant looked expectantly at her employer.

He stared back unimpressed.

“Weren’t you the one saying I needed to exercise more caution around Luca?” Tam pointed out cooly. “Was that line of questioning Luca was pursuing not something to be wary about?”

“They’re normal questions for a child to ask, my lord. Especially one who hasn’t grown up around a lot of witches,” Eli defended calmly.

“Luca normally doesn’t push boundaries when they’re set. That was strange.”

“Or it’s a sign he is getting more comfortable with you.”

Tam let out an irritable breath. “How should I have handled that then?”

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“A lot of people know you’re a mutated witch. You could have confirmed that and let it be. Furthermore… It isn’t a bad thing if Luca is the devil for him to start showing his agenda,” Eli reasoned, holding her ground.

The future duke didn’t respond to that argument immediately, and instead turned it over in his mind while looking back out over the water.

“My lord, I know I’ve said this a few times, but we still don’t know if he is the devil or-”

“I know. But there is still the chance he isn’t, and if he isn’t the devil…?” Tam shook his head, at a loss at how to proceed.

Eli sighed. “If you would be so kind as to indulge me, my lord, but how about we switch sides of our argument. Why did you get so upset about your own son asking about your magic? He has every right to be afraid when it’s clear you yourself are terrified.”

Tam’s eyes widened, and he recoiled as a spectrum of emotions struck him. He was grimacing, his face full of pain, but he still looked like he was going to respond to his assistant’s astute observation, when he froze. His gaze locked on to something in the water.

“My lord?” Eli frowned, then followed his line of sight, and felt icy dread fill her being when she noticed what he was staring at.

A loud bell clanged from the helmsman of their ship before Tam or his assistant could move or say another word.

“PIRATES!” the captain roared while emerging from below deck, his emerald coat with the brass buttons still undone as he proceeded to dash up to the helmsman

Tam rose from his seat at the table, and without looking, reached over with his left hand and pinched out each flame from their candlesticks.

“Eli, you are going to go to my cabin, and you are going to stay there with Luca until I come get you. There will be two passwords. If I say that everything is clear, that means someone is holding me at knife point, and you are going to hide Luca immediately. If I say everything is fine, it’s safe. Understood?”

The assistant bobbed her head.

When Tam was finally able to tear his eyes away from the long lifeboats that had crept up along the ship, he discovered that despite the imminent threat, Eli appeared perfectly calm.

Tam lowered his gaze in thanks and she turned to see to his orders, leaving him to look back over the water to try and find the vessel the pirates must have come in on.

Inside his pockets, Tam’s hands curled into fists as his magic started tearing urgently at his chest.

He swallowed with difficulty and closed his eyes.

This was precisely what he was worried about happening while trapped on a boat…

A situation arising that meant he may lose control over his magic, and not only would there be witnesses, but there would be a chance that someone could get caught up in his power, and he could do nothing to help them.

*

“Captain Pinnel, the pirates are just bobbing around the ship while their own vessel draws closer, we’ve got Basque and Torrie on either side of the decks prepared to fire off the crossbows at them, but we don’t want to waste resources.”

“They’re anticipating taking no survivors if we jump in the water…” the captain rumbled ferociously as he stared at the lifeboats.

“Why are you allowing their captain aboard ship?” the first mate who stood with the captain, Declan, had his dark brown eyes intent on his superior.

The captain, a fit man in his early forties, stared at the pirate’s ship that was pulling up alongside their own. “Because Lord Tamlin Ashowan said it would be fine if we did.”

“What?” the first mate turned the toes of his boots to face his superior squarely.

“He said he would defer to me, but that he believed he could manage the negotiation, as long as we didn’t reveal who he was.”

“He is a pampered noble!” the first mate declared angrily. “He is well-known for being adept at paperwork and useless everywhere else! He is not capable like the rest of his family!”

“Have you seen him train with his assistant?” the captain asked softly, his eyes gleaming when they rested on Declan.

“No, I haven’t,” the first mate confessed before perking up interestedly. “Why? Did you see his magic?”

“No… But he is skilled. He can handle himself far better than you think. I only watched for a short while before he noticed me and stopped, but truthfully? I sincerely doubt anyone in the Ashowan family is useless.”

“You’re gambling our crew getting slaughtered on barely any-”

The sound of a gangplank slamming down on their deck stopped Declan from making another furious comment.

The two men turned toward in time to see the Zinferan pirate captain sauntering across the gangplank without a care in the world, the yellow plume in his hat matching the yellow of his baggy pants. He wore a well made black coat that he had obviously stolen from a nobleman who was a different, larger size altogether, and a crisp white tunic that signified he was a rather wealthy pirate… And of course, no one missed the curved sword on his hip.

He had long black hair threaded with white, but as for his facial features, they were hidden by his hat, though a silver hoop in his right earlobe flashed in the faint light of their torches and lanterns…

“Where is Ashowan?” Declan asked suddenly as he glanced around the ship deck, expecting to find the future duke standing, wearing his usual black vest and pants, hands in pockets, waiting.

Instead he was nowhere to be seen.

The captain said nothing, but there was a peculiar calm about him… Almost as though he knew something Declan didn’t.

One of the Daxarian crew members approached the Zinferan pirate as he stepped on board with five other men under his command at his back.

“Did you tell Roberts to greet them?” Declan asked the captain slowly.

“I didn’t,” Captain Pinnel craned his neck to see that his crew member was gesturing toward the bow of the ship, still looking remarkably unperturbed.

“Why would Lord Tam want to meet with the man up there?” Declan wondered with growing exasperation.

Captain Pinnel paused, tilted his head, then glanced over to the port side of his boat as he listened to shouts and orders to move the lifeboats drifted up, which drew a smile up from the captain’s mouth.

“By the Gods he guessed right.”

Declan looked at the captain, puzzled.

“Lord Tam just forced two of the boats to have to move to keep an eye on the pirate captain. We have less eyes on us on this end of the ship. Declan, start quietly letting the men know that my cabin is empty and… if they happen to have those steel spears, they should be able to add some… renovations to the pirate ship beside us from my window.”

Momentarily stunned by the turn of events, the first mate gave a quiet chuckle of awed disbelief before saying, “Yes, sir.”