Greif wrapped itself around Anastasia Verdise like a weighted blanket. Trying to coax her into staying in bed, she nearly let it when a stray ray of sunlight peaked through the cabin window to hit Anastasia's face. She groggily sat up, her wings flapping as she stretched. Lupita stirred in her sleep, still clutching the emptied remains of a box of tissues. Anastasia sighed as she realized they'd fallen asleep in the same clothes as the night before and silently tucked a beaded braid under Lupita's bonnet from where it fell. After putting the empty box on the nightstand, Anastasia blinked her eyes open as she panned her gaze around the captain's cabin.
To call it a mess was beyond an understatement. There were scattered piles of both Anastasia and Lupita's clothes. Books lay about the cabin from where they'd been flung off the shelves, and more than a few emptied liquor bottles were rolling around the floor. Anastasia spied the desk, lying in two pieces in the corner, and sighed, silently chastizing the anger she was sure was justified the night before.
Anastasia's bare foot touched the, and she hissed at the chill. Clouds formed tight rings around her wrists and ankles, and she hovered in the air to cross the cabin.
She lifted a picture frame off the dresser, a small, sad smile tugging at the corner of her lips. At the time, Anastasia hadn't thought it was necessary to take a celebratory photo. Still, it hadn't taken her long to be grateful they had. The photo consisted of six smiling teens in various poses adorned with enough precious jewelry to make the gilded King of Thieves green with envy.
Delicate fingers brush the faces of two of the boys in the photograph. One was a gentle giant with a smile twice as wide, and the other was a silver-haired boy caught in the middle of laughing. Even now, Anastasia could almost hear that insufferably loveable laugh, and she had to wipe a tear from her eye before it fell.
Anastasia tilted her head as she heard someone move about the Dream of Paradise's, and her brow furrowed in anger. She set down the picture and hovered over the door, giving the still-sleeping Lupita a fleeting look before closing the door behind her.
Once she exited the room, Anastasia moved like a whirlwind through the ship's interior, her feet only returning to the floor when she got to the main deck.
The day had just begun as twilight transformed the sky into a brilliant red, orange, and gold mosaic. A warm morning breeze swept through her long, black hair, her winged ears spreading to catch it between their blue-gray feathers. Even high in the sky as they were, it still carried the calming scent of the salty sea below.
Anastasia crossed her arms, "You could at least tell us bye before you leave." She flinched at the sound of hostility, and in a softer tone, she added, “Who knows when we’ll see each other again.”
Matthius sighed deeply, shoulders slumping as he set down one of a half dozen small supply crates he’d been transferring to his ship, the Raven’s Shadow.
“You know I’ve been a big fan of goodbyes,” Matthius said somberly. He turned to face her and carved off a fraction of a smile to add. “Besides, just because you don’t see me doesn’t mean I won't see you.”
Even if Anastasia knew it to be technically true, she could tell he meant it as a joke, but it fell flat as neither was in a laughing mood.
Matthius walked across the gangplank connecting the two ships to stand in front of her. He’d taken his standard form of a tall, white human male with sandy blonde hair and a tan that was only a few shades lighter than her dark chocolate skin.
Anastasia took the time of him walking over to fight her body's urge to grow and look down at him. If Matthius seemed to notice, he made no indication as he hopped onto the Dreams main deck.
They stared awkwardly at each other for a moment before Anastasia looked away toward the horizon. Keeping her voice neutral, she said, “You…don’t have to leave. Lupita missed you, so did Sam and…” Anastasia bit down a sob that tried to sneak past her lips and said, “Rion.”
Matthius nodded slowly, his gaze following hers to look at the horizon. “And what about you?” He asked quietly.
Anastasia pulled her crossed arms tighter across her body until they were less crossed in annoyance at him and more hugging herself for reassurance. “Before you two left, I never stopped to think about how quiet everything on the ship would be. At first, I thought it was nice to get a few nights of rest without waking up to his nonsense or your skulking at all hours of the night.” Anastasia shrugged, “But if I’m being honest, peace and quiet’s overrated.”
Matthius turned to look at her under a raised brow. Anastasia kept a straight face for a solid three count before both burst into laughter. It was loud and somewhat forced, but the act relieved their tension.
Wiping a tear from his eye, Matthius said, "What that loudmouth wouldn't give to hear you say that."
"Yeah, I'm sure he would," Anastasia said wistfully.
Matthius watched her, his smile withering into a frown. ''I’d stay with you guys if I could, but I don’t think your dad and I will see eye to eye. Plus...as long as he's still out there, none of us are safe. At the very least, I have to warn Gisele. Maybe with her, we could-"
"Could what, Matthius?" Anastasia threw out her hands, walking away from him. "Even when it was the six of us, we couldn't kill him. And now that Rion's..." She clenched her fists, and took a steading breath, "And now that Rion's dead, even with Gisele and whoever else is dumb enough to help. We'll be lucky if we stop one of his games, let alone kill him."
Matthius stood behind her, hesitating for a moment before placing a hand on her shoulder, "There's a lot of strange rumors floating around the Iega right now, one’s stranger than usual...with any luck, maybe we can get one of 'em to work out in our favor."
Anastasia looked at him, and Matthius gave her his best reassuring smile. She nodded, trying her best to look convinced. After an awkward moment, Matthius removed his hand. He was about to head for the gangway when Anastasia pulled him back into a fierce hug. It surprised Matthius initially as she shrunk in his arms, but he graciously accepted after a second. When Anastasia let him go, they shared a wordless look that spoke volumes, and he returned to the Shadow.
Matthius paused as he readied the ship's takeoff sequence. He had a conflicted look before turning back to Anastasia. "Those rumors I heard, some of them were about your dad…and what he's hunting. I think I know why he needed Sam's help."
Anastasia set her jaw at the mention of her father. She didn't want to accidentally snap at the mention of him when things were so close to ending on a happier note than the situation had any right to be. Instead, she patiently listened to what he had to say without interruption. Even when the information made her want to smash a ship into splinters.
When Matthius finished, he pressed a button on the plinth next to the helm, and the Shadow started to get some distance between it and the Dream. Before taking off he added, “Take care of yourself, Anna. I know you’re tough, a lot tougher than me even, but try not to be too tough on yourself for past mistakes.”
Anastasia said nothing, only giving him the faintest nod before watching Matthius fly the Shadow into the now-blue horizon. She heard rustling beads behind her and asked, “You didn’t want to say bye?”
Lupita yawned as she stood beside Anastasia and leaned her head against her shoulder, “I told him last night. Unlike you, who wanted to wait until the last minute to tell their brother you loved him.” Sleep riddled her honeyed voice, but the playfulness was still there.
“I didn’t say that.” Anastasia quickly countered.
Lupita looked up at her with a smirk, placing her gentle hand on her cheek, “I love that you think that,” Their gaze held for a precious few seconds, but tears welled in the corners of Lupita's eyes, and she blinked them away by looking at the horizon. “So what do we do now?”
Anastasia's wings stretched, catching another warm gust of the salty air between its feathers. "Now we see what my dad's trying to get his hooks into and why he needed Sam to do it."
The voyage back to rendezvous with the Hunters Moon pirate fleet was uneventful. Anastasia’s magic ensured that, pushing the Dream's speed to its absolute limit and well beyond that of most monsters that used the skies as their hunting ground.
Lupita tried to get Anastasia to relax, but after she shared what rumors Matthius had learned, she was every bit as ready to bring Samir home.
Even with the speed boost, along with not taking any detours, it took them the better part of two weeks before they found them. Two weeks that allowed Anastasia’s grief to shift to anger and an eerie sense of forbidding the things to come.
Anastasia heard the fleet before she saw them, and mainly thanks to her hearing that she found them at all. Fifty ships hid in a mountain range of clouds above the Eastern Iegan Sea.
Besides Lupita, herself, and the hundreds of pirates making up the fleet, the only living things Anastasia could see were a small pod of Banda. The massive whale-like creatures gorged on the clouds only a few short miles from where the fleet floated.
Anastasia pulled the Dream of Paradise beside one of the fleet flagships, the Crescent Howler. The large cirrus class dwarfed the Dream, and Anastasia shared a glance with Lupita as they noticed the newly installed rotary cannons mounted on the Howler’s deck. It didn’t outright confirm the rumors, but Anastasia’s hope they were false waned by the moment.
Lupita put her arms around Anastasia’s neck as she picked her up and flew to the Crescent Howlers' main deck. She folded her wings, but that did little to keep her from hearing all of the unsavory murmurs they garnered from a bunch of men who, at best, hadn’t had the touch of a woman in about a month, given by the smell.
Someone behind them whistled loudly and said, "Ladies! So nice to have you back aboard. I hope you're feeling…refreshed after your little vacation.”
Anastasia rolled her eyes so hard they almost got stuck in her skull. Lupita gently nudged her side and gave her a look that said, ‘Be nice’ before turning to the speaker.
“Thanks Bahur. It wasn’t that type of trip, but we appreciate that anyway.” Lupita smiled at him so warm it could've melted the ice caps, “Do you know where Sam is? We’d really like to see him.”
Anastasia heard several of the pirates' hearts skip a beat at the inflection in Lupita's voice. If Lupita had directed the question at them, they would’ve been scrambling to show them the way. Unfortunately, the greasy bipedal weasel who called himself Bahur Naseer only took that in stride.
The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
“Oh, c’mon, Lupita! You just got here! I was just telling the boys how I wanted to start dancin' lessons.” Bahur said as he danced up to them, getting a round of laughs from the crew. He stopped just short of Anastasia’s reach, standing a few inches shorter than her current height of six feet. Bahur gave her a weary glance but otherwise ignored her in favor of leaning forward to partially loom over Lupita to loudly whisper, "How bout you let Tweety here go about her way, and..." He looked her up and down, "You and I find somewhere for a private lesson.”
Anastasia's fist clenched, but a subtle nudge from Lupita made her ignore him. She looked about the deck to distract herself, only to find that her concerns were quickly rising. The rotary cannons alone were enough to wipe out a small island off the map, depending on the type of ammunition, but that wasn’t the only new toy the pirates had to play with. They’d replaced the Thunder Cannon installments with a new artillery gun unlike Anastasia’s ever seen before. The usual cannons weaponized sonic waves to destabilize flying enchantments for ship-to-ship combat. These new guns, however, were belt-fed live rounds the size of her forearm.
Lupita's smile dimmed at the comment. It was still radiant but fell enough to where it didn't reach her eyes, "Sorry, for your sake, I don’t think that’s a good idea, but-“
“C’mon, Lupitaaaa.” Bahur interrupted, dragging her name out in a way that made Anastasia add to the list of reasons why he may end up going missing one day, “Can’t tell me you came ova here lookin’ like that, and expect us not to get all pent up.”
Lupita gave Bahur a look that told him exactly what she thought of him and what he suggested. To Anastasia’s surprise, some of it must’ve gotten through because she watched his self-assured confidence falter. Lupita looked around the crowd of men, putting her smile back to full power, “Would any of you like to take me to Sam? Whoever does, I promise to put in a good word for you with the girls at Rocki’s.”
The mention of Rocki’s got a few pirates to come forward, but Bahur shot them a warning look, and they fell back in line. He sneered at Lupita, “Y’know, me and the lads’ve been sailin’ with the captain for a long while. We all earned our place on this crew, didn’t get no handouts.”
“Are you getting to a point, or do you just like to hear yourself talk?” Anastasia said, turning her attention back to Bahur.
“My point,” Bahur said, snapping his attention to Anastasia, “Is that it was bad enough we all worked hard to get here while you and yours to stroll in and outta here as ya please, but I’m startin to think you think you’re better than us cause your his little girl.”
Anastasia gave him a withered look but didn't immediately respond as she listened to the murmurs of the crew. Only a few men had gathered to form a loose circle around them, but the entire deck paid attention. While a select few agreed with Bahur, the majority were more concerned with the task at hand than his little show. Anastasia did find it concerning that it looked and sounded like the entire ship was bustling with activity, but as she heard a set of familiar footsteps come up from below deck, she put the thought to the side.
"I don't think I'm better than the crew," Anastasia said slowly as her attention fell back on Bahur.
"See!" Lupita said cheerily, trying to cut in and keep the peace, "So how about we-"
"I just think I'm better than a sleazy, lowlife who piggybacks off his brother's accomplishments."
A vacuum of silence encased the main deck as everyone stared at Anastasia. Lupita gave her a look of reproval but nodded after a second. Bahur opened and closed his mouth like a fish as he tried to find the words. He looked to the closest of the crew around them, but they quickly avoided eye contact and returned to work about the deck.
Bahur started to draw his sword and said, "You feather-hea-" Before Bahur could finish, Anastasia grabbed a fistful of his shirt as she grew to twelve feet. Bahur kicked his feet as he dangled in Anastasia's grip. "Lemme go! Lemme go!"
"Okay." Anastasia shrugged, floated a few feet so her back was against the starboard side, and threw him. Bahur screamed, and everyone watched as he sailed in a wide arc over their heads and off the ship's other side.
"Do you feel better?" Lupita asked as Anastasia walked back over.
Anastasia took in a deep breath, exhaling through her nostrils as she shrank back to a little over six feet. The tension in her shoulders eased, at least for the moment. "Yes."
Lupita gave Anastasia a sympathetic pat on the shoulder as someone behind her said, "It's good to see you haven't changed oui che."
Anastasia and Lupita turned as a smiling man approached them with his hands spread as if to offer a hug. Nino Faulkory was a rugged man with fox-like features, and unlike almost all other pirates Anastasia encountered, he always looked and smelled like he'd just walked out of a spa.
"Anastasia. Lupita. Pleasure as always."
"Hey, Nino!" Lupita gave him a quick wave.
"Nice to see you too, Nino," Anastasia said.
Nino glanced over to where Anastasia threw Bahur, then back to her, "Was he wearing a harness?"
Anastasia shrugged, genuinely not knowing, or caring, if Bahur did or not. "Probably."
Nino chuckled and said, "Don't suppose you're joining us for the hunt?"
Lupita shook her head, "No, we're not staying; we're just here to get Sam." Nino's easygoing smile curled into a discouraging frown. Lupita shared a look with Anastasia and asked, "What's wrong?"
Nino led Lupita and Anastasia below deck to the portion of the ship sectioned off for sleeping quarters for the crew. As they walked down the cold metal corridor, the sense of foreboding that Anastasia’s exiled to the farthest reaches of her mind stalked forward until it was undeniable. She felt something touch her and glanced down to see Lupita extending her pinky to wrap around hers. It was a
Another budding concern for Anastasia was the fact they’d seen no one in this portion of the ship, which confirmed her suspicions that it was an all-hands-on-deck situation. That alone wouldn’t have bothered her, as her father could’ve called the order for many reasons. Still, Anastasia had a strong inkling that if she were to check all the other ships in the fleet, they’d be under the same orders.
Nino turned a corner, and they followed to see a man leaning against a large iron door that looked like it belonged in a bank vault than to a bedroom. He gave them a subtle nod in greeting, “Uchoyo’s.”
“Aly.” Lupita and Anastasia said in unison.
Aly Naseer was the spitting image of Bahur, with a lean muscular frame and his cloud hair cut short on his head. The only discernible difference between them is that Aly has a tattooed sleeve on his right arm, while Bahur's sleeve is on the left.
“How is he?” Anastasia asked.
Aly sucked his teeth as stood, “Been better, got to the last quarter of what we needed him for before he stopped. Captain almost got him to finish, but then he lost it and attacked him. Been hold up in here ever since,” He jerked a thumb back toward the door.
Anastasia’s eye twitched, and she stepped forward only for Nino to put himself between them, “This was for his safety as much as ours. Nobody’s touched him besides what it took to get him in here, and Captain only let me or Aly guard him until you got back.” Anastasia studied Nino for a second, then nodded. Nino let out a short sigh of relief before adding, “I’ve been trying to get him to eat, but he mostly throws it back at me.”
Anastasia looked back to Aly and demanded, “Open it.”
Aly nodded, unphased by the threat in Anastasia’s tone. He unlocked the door but paused before opening it, looking back between the two women, “Where’s Rion?”
Nino’s brow furrowed as he didn’t understand why he’d asked the question at first but understood when he saw the sullen look on Anastasia and Lupita’s faces, he understood.
Aly exhaled through his nostrils, his hardened exterior softening momentarily. His only response was, “Sorry to hear that,” Aly finished opening the door, and a pungent smell wafted out of the entry.
Lupita’s hands covered her mouth as she gasped upon seeing the status of the room. They had to use the light from the hall to see inside, as all the lights in the room lay in shattered pieces on the floor alongside destroyed plates, torn books, and stray pieces of Samir’s game board. As Nino had said, there was evidence of food being stuck and scraped off the wall, some filling over a dozen divets made into the metal.
Samir sat huddled in the corner, an empty gameboard in front of him as he rocked back and forth while muttering, “Deception. Death. Betrayal.” Over and over under his breath, while holding a single game piece clutched between both hands.
Lupita ran forward, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace. Anastasia heard a sob, but she wasn't sure if that was Samir, Lupita, or herself. Guilt flooded Anastasia’s heart, brought to a boil by the flames of her burning rage. Matthius’ parting words echoed through her mind, nearly making her sneer in contempt. After all, how could she not be hard on herself when this was all her fault.
Angry footsteps echoed in the hall, "Where is she?!" Nino and Aly turned their heads just as Bahur forced himself through the doorway, sword in hand. "I'm going to make that bitch pay for throwing me."
With Samir still in her arms, Lupita glared at Bahur with such a burning intensity that it stopped all his momentum, "Take another step, and I'm going to have Anna rip you in half so I can shoot it out of a cannon."
Bahur wavered, his brain almost producing a good idea only for his overinflated sense of self-worth got the better of him, "I'd like to see her tr-" He was cut off by Anastasia's hand, shooting back, and grabbed him by the throat. With her eyes still on Lupita and Samir, Anastasia squeezed, hearing the sword clatter to the floor as Bahur desperately tried to claw himself free.
"What are you hunting out here?" Anastasia asked in a frighteningly calm voice.
Nino and Aly exchanged a look. Aly shook his head, and while looking at him, Nino said, "The Nyovu."
Aly glared at Nino, who resumed looking at his nails as Anastasia dropped Bahur and stormed out of the room. Bahur gasped for air, struggling to get to his feet. He gave Aly a pleading look, but there was no sympathy in Aly's cold gaze, "I told you not to pick fights with people that can kill you."
Anastasia slammed the door of the captain's cabin open. "The Nyovu?!"
Her father loomed over his desk, his piercing blue eye staring intently at a holographic display. It showed everything in the surrounding area. The images of the fleet were highlighted in green, while the bigger images of the Banda were in bright yellow.
"Trying to kill one of the Zodiac is already impossible, but you had to choose this one? You know what it meant to him and us." Anastasia was about to continue her tirade when her father looked up, and his stern, focused expression evaporated into relief as he rounded the table and pulled her in for a hug.
"When Sam stopped following orders and refused to work, I'd feared the worst." He said in a soft, warm tone that was at odds with the imposing one-eyed bull of a physique. Her father put massive hands on her shoulders and looked down at her, studying her face, "How're the others? Are Lupita and Rion alright?"
Anastasia bit back a wellspring of tears from falling as she shrugged off his hold. "Lupita's fine." She looked away from him, unable to speak more or hold his stare.
Her father frowned deeply but nodded, "I'm sorry, I know you've always seen those four as your family. I-"
"I don't want your sympathy!" Anastasia snapped, “I want you to tell me why you lied to me! To us! If I’d known you’d wanted the Nyovu, I never would’ve asked Sam to help you.”
Her father studied her face for a long time. Anastasia almost faltered with the look of disappointment in his eye but held firm. “Even if it meant seeing him again?”
Anastasia opened her mouth to respond but stopped, not trusting what she might say.
“For someone supposed to be beyond the grave, he continues to drive a wedge between us.” Her father turned and stepped back to his desk, clasping his hands behind his back. His attention went back to the display as he spoke, “His tenacity to be a thorn in the side of those more powerful than him is something to be admired.”
“The only one driving a wedge between us is you,” Anastasia shouted, “Chasing a lost treasure is one thing, but this? You’re going to get people killed because you’re trying to pick a fight with a ghost.”
“My men would lay down their lives for any chance to show that bastard Boye that the Iega belongs to the Yana.” Her father said harshly. “All I’m here to do is secure our power in the days to come, nothing more.”
“Do you really think I’d believe this has nothing to do with him?” Anastasia said, matching his tone.
Anastasia heard him release a deep sigh and watched his massive shoulders slump. “I suppose after Sam reacted how he did, I should’ve known you’d do the same. I’d hoped after all this time his…” He turned back to face Anastasia, his face filled with conflicting emotions as he searched for the right words, “Influence over you would’ve died out.”
He strode forward to face her again, reaching to touch her face. “My sweet child, the longer you hold onto the past, the harder it will be to embrace the future. The winds are shifting, and there’s a storm on the horizon. The Iega is once again going to change, and I’m going to make sure that it’s us that is on top.”
Anastasia was stunned at the razor edge in her father's voice. There was an almost manic gleam in his eye that would’ve made her flinch had he not been touching her. Not only that, when he said us, Anastasia couldn’t help but hear me.
Before she could speak, her feathers ruffled, and a sharp pain rang Anastasia’s head like a bell. Her father caught her before she fell to her knees and nearly fell himself as a massive shockwave violently shook the ship. A deafening boom of thunder passed over them seconds later as alarms across the ship blared to life.
Picking herself up, Anastasia and her father turned to look at the hologram. For a moment, nothing looked different. Then it zoomed out.
Anastasia’s eyes went wide as a new image entered into view. It was a titanic miles-long monstrosity outlined in scarlet red light and made the fleet of Cirrus class ships look like green grains of rice.
Her father walked over to the desk, a sinister smile spreading across his face as lightning flashed in his navy blue cloud-like hair, “Let the hunt begin.”