Chapter 62
Esmyra
The climb back to the deck was silent, but Esmyra didn’t feel a shred of guilt for what they’d done. And she knew Draevyn didn’t either.
She had demanded justice, and what he’d dealt to Varis was nothing less. She could still feel the echo of Draevyn’s fury in her bones, the heat of his vengeance burning on her behalf. It filled her with gratitude, feeling protected for the first time in her life when she had never needed it before.
Draevyn’s love wasn’t shown in the whispering of sweet words or stolen kisses hidden beneath sails, but in fire and blood.
When they stepped onto the deck, the crews straightened instantly, their eyes sharp with curiosity and unease. She met their gazes head-on, unflinching and shoulders squared.
Esmyra turned toward Atlas, who lingered behind Draevyn near the stairs.
“We’ll be joining forces with Lephyrin’s fleet to finish what we set out to do,” she continued, now speaking to the entirety of what remained of their men.
“I have accepted the new king’s apology and offering of peace, and I hope he accepts this as mine. Together, we’ll end this.”
The members of her crew grinned, voicing their need for their own vengeance as Atlas’s men exchanged wary glances.
Movement caught her eye then, shimmering just beneath the waves and floating wreckage.
Her brows furrowed as she stepped closer to the railing. Extending her hand, she called to the sea, and the water rushed upward in a spiraling column. Slowly, it carried the shape up to her as water droplets slid down its length like blood beneath Malya’s Moon.
Esmyra’s eyes narrowed as she reached for it, the water evaporating and leaving behind a spear. Its shaft was crafted of obsidian, its blade teal and gleaming, etched with runes. She recognized it immediately as Azarian’s after seeing it barely an hour ago, aimed at the man she loved.
Her hand trembled slightly as she stared at it, rage and resolve tightening her chest.
I’m going to drive this spear straight through his fucking skull. Her lips curled at her thoughts, and Kaelypso purred in delight within her.
“Jenli,” she started without taking her eyes off the spear.
Footsteps sounded as she took a few steps up to her. “Yes, Captain?”
“May I have the shard?”
Jenli reached into her pocket and pulled out the velsinyte shard, wrapped in a black cloth.
Draevyn took a step forward as they all watched. “What are you up to, Wildfire?”
In one swift motion, she twirled the weapon, placed the blade’s tip on the floorboards, and stomped down on it, snapping the tip clean off.
Curious whispers erupted among the crews.
Her hand reached out toward Jenli, and without a word, the woodland priestess placed the wrapped shard in her hand.
Esmyra unraveled the bottom half of the velsinyte shard that had once forced her own body to become her prison.
Even when she was careful not to touch the shard itself, her fingertips still prickled, sensing its presence beneath the thin cloth.
With every eye locked on her, she lifted it high and placed it where the spear’s blade had been.
She glanced at Draevyn. “A little help, handsome?”
His lips curved as whiskey eyes focused on the weapon she held, and then embers crackled across the joint where the shard met the spear. The heat seared, fused, and bound as the shaft attached itself to the piece of velsinyte.
When the fire dimmed, the spear was whole again. Now a deadly weapon to the gods.
Esmyra lifted it, her grip tightening as she felt the weight settle into her hand. The deck had gone silent as both crews stared.
She raised the weapon high, the blood-red light of the moon catching on the shard’s deadly edge. “This time, I’ll drive this straight through Syrena’s heart.”
The murmurs swelled, rough voices cutting through the air as plans were already being spoken. Plans of retribution, of storming the shores of Maerinys itself, and dragging her sister down from her throne.
Esmyra ached to let the hope and rage blind them to the truth, but the memory of what she saw from Syrena’s mind plagued her.
“No.” Her voice was so sharp, it snapped everyone to attention.
Heads turned, dozens of eyes fixed on her. Draevyn stood at her side, silent as his brows furrowed.
Esmyra raised her chin, gaze sweeping the gathered crews. “Storming their beaches isn’t an option. It’s suicide. I saw it.”
Confusion rippled through the ranks.
“What do you mean you saw it?” Draevyn asked.
“Vines of Villaem,” Jenli breathed. “The bond?”
Esmyra drew in a slow breath as she gave a single nod.
“The bond pulled me into my sister’s mind, and I saw through her eyes.
She’s already gathered her armies. Endless ships are waiting in Maerinys’s harbors.
Sirens by the thousands. Sea-born troops armed and ready.
” Her fingers flexed around the shaft of her spear.
A heavy silence fell. Some faces paled while others hardened in anger. Atlas’s jaw clenched as Jak swore under his breath.
“They outnumber us at least a hundred to one,” she continued. “And I’m sure Syrena is counting on my anger to drive us blind into her trap.” Esmyra’s eyes swept the deck. “If we go the way she expects, none of us will leave alive.”
“Kaelypso’s tits,” Riven muttered, eyes blankly staring down at his boots.
“Watch your mouth,” Draevyn warned.
Riven’s face paled as Ren snickered from beside him. “Shit, I’m sorry.” He reached up and scratched the back of his neck. “Definitely didn’t mean to refer to the captain’s tits.”
“Fucking Irah,” Draevyn muttered as he rubbed his temples.
“Joking aside,” she started, placing her hands on her hips. “Tits, indeed.”
“So, what do you suppose we do, Esmi?” Jak looked to the moon.
Draevyn’s hand fell to her shoulder. “We’re running out of time.”
Esmyra offered him a smile. “I have a plan. But I don’t think you’re going to like it.”
His hand dropped to his side in defeat as he grumbled, “What else is new?”
Then, Esmyra brought two fingers to her lips, letting out a sharp whistle that cut through the air.
The sea answered as she sent out a pulse of magic, rippling out in every direction, vibrating the planks of the ship beneath them. The water stilled unnaturally, an eerie silence swallowing the waves before it erupted with a violent blast.
Levaia rose up from the depths, her vast body coiled upward. Water cascaded from the jeweled scales that shimmered like a thousand stars as silver eyes locked onto Esmyra.
The crew staggered back, some gasping, some fumbling for their weapons instinctively before freezing at the sight.
“Don’t be afraid,” Esmyra said. “If it wasn’t clear from before, Levaia is no enemy. And possibly our greatest asset aside from Draevyn and myself.” She reached out as the serpent lowered her head, and she brushed her hand against her scales.
Levaia rumbled, a sound like thunder caught deep in her chest.
Jak’s jaw hung so low it was a miracle it didn’t fall to the floor. “That’s the beast from the trench, isn’t it?”
Esmyra grinned. “Aye.”
“And now she has a name?” Ren cut in.
“Levaia.”
“Levaia,” nearly everyone echoed, sounding out the foreign word.
Esmyra stepped toward them, Levaia’s head hovering over her near the railing. “Aye. The legends of Kaelypso’s beast of the depths are true, and she’s loyal to me.”
“Me,” Kaelypso corrected.
“Both of us.” Esmyra suppressed rolling her eyes
Draevyn stepped forward. “We can use her again. That serpent at the head of our fleet could tear Syrena’s defenses apart when we storm the beach.”
Murmurs of agreement erupted from the crew.
But Esmyra’s jaw tightened, trying to drown out the noise. Her gaze flicked to Levaia, then back to him.
“Not us,” she said. “Me.”
The crew collectively inhaled, all eyes whipping to Draevyn.
His expression darkened instantly, like storm clouds blotting out flames as they thrashed in his eyes. “No. Absolutely fucking not.”
Well, I told you that you wouldn’t like it, she thought.
Her chin lifted, defiant. “It’s the only way. All of Syrena’s resources are on their shores.”
“Do you hear yourself?” He closed the distance between them, his hand gripping her arm. “You think we’re all unable to defeat them together, so why would you think going in alone would be any better?”
She ripped her arm from his grasp as she stared up at him down the bridge of her nose. “I will be taking the beaches and creating a distraction while the rest of you sail to the cave’s isle and go into Maerinys the back way. The wards should be down since the kingdom has risen.”
Draevyn aggressively ran a hand through his hair, his chest heaving. “For the love of fuck, Esmyra!”
“It’s the only way,” she whispered, trying to plead with her eyes.
She turned to Atlas then, knowing what she was about to say would only make Draevyn even more furious, but if it gave her plan an advantage, she had to risk it. “Syrena has Elowynne. I saw her in the castle dungeons.” Gesturing to his brother with her chin, she added, “Drae knows the way.”
“Then back to the caves we go,” Atlas said, leaning against the mast.
“No!” Draevyn boomed, his voice echoing across the water. “I fucking refuse to let you use yourself as a sacrifice!”
Her hand twitched on the shaft of her spear, but her face remained calm, even as her heart slammed against her ribs. “It isn’t a sacrifice. It’s a strategy. Levaia and I will create a distraction on the beach and buy you all time to sneak into the kingdom and castle.”
His skin flushed red, eyes wide.
“I’ll meet you there, baby,” she whispered. “And then we’ll end this together as we planned.”
Sparks ignited and crackled along his shoulders, spilling into the air. “And what if you get hurt? If you’re weakened, Syrena could gain an advantage through the bond.”
Esmyra could’ve sworn smoke curled out from his nostrils as he tried to calm himself.
“What then?” he challenged, voice low.
Levaia’s head lowered behind her, hovering just above her as she straightened her spine, staring into Draevyn’s furious eyes. “I’ll kill her before she gets the chance.”
“It’s settled then,” Atlas said, pushing off the mast, and she could’ve sworn she saw fire lick at Draevyn’s fingertips as he turned to face his brother.
“The caves are only a few miles east of here. We’ll sail there and get through them as quickly as possible to get into Maerinys.
Then we’ll kill this bitch once and for all and rescue Elowynne. ”
Esmyra’s gaze swept over her crew before giving a curt nod. “Aye.”
The word rang like the final toll of a bell.
Esmyra and Draevyn stood in a standoff of storm and flame, until finally, he gave her the barest of nods.
She inhaled sharply, letting her power surge in answer.
It rushed out of her like a breaking tide, her pirate guise unravelling in a blink as leathers and cloth shredded into flecks of light as if burned away by silver fire. What replaced it made the crew stagger back with wide eyes.
Kaelypso’s form took hold, and scales rose from nothing over her skin, layering one over the other until they became plates of brilliant armor.
It shimmered with deep blues and greens that shifted like light through the water, glimmering every time she moved.
Shoulder plates arched upward like fins while bracers wrapped her forearms that appeared as if they had grown from coral and pearl.
And then a crown formed atop her head, made of sharp, curling fins that framed her face, letting her silver hair spill out in waves.
Esmyra stood tall as a goddess clothed in the ocean’s wrath.
Levaia rumbled low in her throat, bowing her massive head in recognition and submission.
And then, eyes gleaming, Draevyn fell to his knees before her. His head bowed low, fists to the deck as his whole body bent in reverence.
I’ll follow you to the edge of our world and beyond, he had said.
One by one, her crew followed. Every man stared as though they had seen the sea itself rise in human form as they kneeled.
Her breath caught at the sight.
When they finally all rose to stand, Esmyra raised the spear high above her head, its velsinyte shard glinting wickedly at the tip.
“Tonight the Blood Moon bears witness to us,” she started.
“Syrena believes her armies will crush us beneath their endless ranks, but she forgets one thing…” She slammed the bottom of the spear down onto the deck with a ringing crack.
“We’re pirates. We are not the hunted. We are the fucking storm! ”
A frenzied roar erupted from the crew as feet stomped on the deck, fists raised as voices joined in a single deafening cry of agreement.
Esmyra slowly turned to Draevyn as the excitement exploded around them. The world fell quiet in her head, and with a small, wicked smile, she asked, “And what say you, Draevyn Rowe?”
His whiskey eyes fell to her lips, lust creeping in them before flashing her a grin. “Aye.”
One powerful arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her against him as his heat seared through her armor. The other hand came up, cupping the back of her neck before he pressed his lips to hers.
The kiss was fierce, the kind that made the world drop away. It was a declaration. A warrior’s blessing and a lover’s vow. Together, they would destroy the forces who had kept them apart for several lifetimes.
Her spear trembled in her grip, the sea answering the rush of her heart as waves crashed against the ship’s sides.
The crew howled again, roaring louder as they watched.
When Draevyn finally pulled back, he didn’t let her go. His forehead pressed to hers before he whispered, “I’ll see you on the other side, Wildfire.”