Kai
Chapter thirty-one
Sinister Shores
Seal’s Island. It feels good to be back.
Too many moons and sunrises have passed since I last stepped onto these docks.
There are only a few places that ever feel like home beyond the sea, but this island, this crooked, smoke-sweet stretch of coastline, holds a piece of my heart.
Just like Mira has Magda as her home, this is mine.
Seal’s Island holds many of my memories on land as a kid.
Running through its smoke-filled streets, stealing pastries from market carts, playing ball with the younger kids until the sun went down.
It’s the only place I ever really felt like a child.
Mira and I make our way toward one of the main pubs, walking down the gangplank with our fingers intertwined.
The night air wraps around us, thick with salt and smoke, fires burning along the shoreline, pipes curling sweetness into the breeze. It smells like old stories and safe harbors. I feel content here. Settled, almost. Especially with Mira by my side.
“After the war,” I start, and a drunk staggers past us, barrels clattering as he goes. Mira laughs.
“Yes?” she asks, tilting her head.
“What do you see for us?”
Her emerald eyes catch the lights and glitter like diamonds. “I haven’t thought that far,” she says, “but whatever happens, so long as we live through this, that’s what was meant to be.” She scans the lively town as we move deeper into it.
“Have you thought about life after all this?” she asks. I watch her every small movement, reading the way she shifts, the way her smile steadies.
“Yes.”
“And?” she presses.
“I see us ruling the seas together—taking down even the royals, if we get that far.” I grin. She bursts into a clear, delighted laugh.
“The royals? Kai, come on.” She nudges me, incredulous and amused.
“You don’t think we can take them down?” I say.
“No, I didn’t say that. But our battle is in the ocean, not on land. When we win the war at sea, we have won it all. Don’t you think so?”
“I think we can have it all.”
She smiles and nods her head.
My attention drifts from our conversation the closer we get to the town.
Something feels off. The shadows shift too quickly when I’m not looking.
Mira says I have a sixth sense, that I can feel things before they happen, and maybe she’s right.
Even in this moment, with her laughter in my ear and the warm glow of tavern lights ahead, I feel myself bracing.
I don’t know what for, but I’ve learned to trust the quiet before the storm.
We step into the pub, and my mind flashes back to the first time we were in one together.
The way she glared at me, calling me a bastard like she meant it.
It’s hard to believe how far we’ve come.
From enemies chasing the same map to sailing the seas side by side, facing the kind of danger most wouldn’t survive.
Even back then, when I claimed I couldn’t stand her and swore I didn’t care, I always hoped she was just a step behind me. Even if I didn’t understand why. I think some part of me wanted her close.
I order two rums from the bartender. Around us, our crew makes their rounds, some catching up with old friends.
Most of my side of the crew were born here.
Others are already slipping off with women they clearly came here to find.
I used to be one of them, searching for the same escape right here in this pub.
But since Mira boarded my ship, not a single thought like that has crossed my mind, especially after what I just did with her, to her, on The Leviathan.
“We're close, you know?” Mira says softly. I glance at her, squinting. “To her,” she adds. She means Taika.
“Yes,” I say, colder than I mean to. There’s not much else to say.
I know what needs to be done, and Mira won’t like it.
But this isn’t about Taika. It’s about Mira.
If the sirens want the witch, they can have her.
Mira always comes first. Always. Getting her to the fountain is all that matters.
Not saving some selfish, power-hungry witch, even if we share the same blood.
I take a long swig of rum and set the cup down. “Don’t worry,” I say, sensing the unease rolling off her. My hand finds her thigh, grounding us both.
“It’s hard not to, Kai,” she says, voice low. “You haven’t said much. I just… I don’t want to lead us somewhere I might lose you.” Her words land like an anchor in my chest.
“You won’t ever lose me, treasure.” She smiles, placing her hand over mine, her thumb brushing softly across my skin. “It would take a lot more than some old witch to take me away from you.”
Before she can answer, the doors to the pub crash open. A group of pirates storms in, knocking over tables, sending drinks flying, throwing fists without reason. A brawl erupts in the corner, and my hand instinctively goes to my sword.
“There she is,” one of them snarls, locking eyes with Mira.
I’m on my feet in an instant, stepping in front of her and drawing my blade. “What the fuck do you want?” I growl, ready to strike.
The leader steps forward, tall, and broad with slicked-back silver hair, sporting a glass eye and a pegleg.
He smiles, and silver teeth catch the lantern light.
“Isn’t it obvious?” he says, voice deep and scratchy.
“We came for the Soul. The one they say will rule the sea. We’ve got business with her. ”
I shift slightly, keeping Mira behind me and feeling the steady rhythm of her breath. “You must be mistaken.” He laughs, an ugly, grating sound that churns my stomach. “Make it easy on yourself and hand her over. If she ain’t who I say she is, why get your blade out over some dumb broad, aye?”
That’s it. My blood surges hot beneath my skin. Every foul inch of him is a challenge. I can feel the magic simmering at my fingertips, waiting to be unleashed. One more word, and I’ll make sure those silver teeth of his hit the fucking floor.
I raise my sword to cut off his head, but he’s already there, like he knew my move before I did.
Steel crashes against steel, his blade catching mine with precision that feels inhuman.
The two men flanking him leap into the fight, blades drawn, but my crew is right behind me.
Swords meet swords. Fists fly. The pub turns into a storm.
I keep my focus on the silver-toothed bastard.
His grin doesn’t falter. He’s fast, too fast. And then, just like that, he vanishes.
Gone. As if the shadows have swallowed him whole.
I spin, scanning the pub, blade still raised. Only my men stand beside me now. Mira is behind me, weapons drawn, ready for anything. “They possess some sort of magic, Cap’n.” Jay appears at my side, already stepping in front of Mira like he vowed to do.
We wait. But nothing comes. Just the stench of smoke and blood and something unnatural. If they’re ghosts, there’ll be no flesh to pierce and no blood to spill. And yet, I’ve heard the stories of spirits taking over the living, puppeteering them from within. Nyx.
Whoever sent them now knows exactly where we are. Which means this island, the place I’ve always called home away from the sea, is no longer safe. Not for Mira. They weren’t just passing through, they were waiting for her. They knew I’d come home.
“We should go, Kai,” Mira says quietly behind me. “We got what we came for.” I can feel her rapid heartbeat. Whatever those things are, she felt them in her bones, just as I did. But Mira always keeps a cool, confident exterior.
“Let’s go.” I grab her hand without hesitation and pull her through the crowd, Jay right on our heels. “Get the crew,” I order. “We need to leave. Now.”
Jay nods, scanning the pub. “Understood, Cap’n. This island… It doesn’t feel like it used to.” I shoot him a knowing look, and he disappears into the crowd to gather the others.
He’s right. Everything about this place feels off. Twisted. Almost sinister. I can’t place it exactly, but I know one thing with absolute certainty. Whatever just touched down here, whatever’s watching us now, I won’t let it anywhere near her.
“Kai,” Mira says, unease lacing her voice. Her green eyes flick toward the horizon, glowing with worry beneath the moonlight. I follow her gaze. The ocean is unnaturally still. The moon casts its silver glow over the water, and that’s when I see them, their heads breaking the surface, watching us.
“The sirens,” she whispers. “They’re calling to me.”
I don’t know if this is a trap or something worse. “I’ll go with you.” She shakes her head, calm but firm.
“You will not. They could drown you. Not all of them know about us. Let me go alone. You need to stay here.”
I reach out, gripping her chin just enough to turn her face to mine. “That wasn’t me asking,” I say, leaving no room for argument. She blinks, caught off guard, but she doesn’t fight me. Doesn’t say a word.
Then she turns away, stepping into the freezing water. I follow, close behind. The moment her boots touch the sea, something shifts. Her body relaxes. Her heartbeat slows. It’s as if the ocean itself reached out to calm her heart.
Only the light of the moon and the distant flames flickering along the beach illuminate the shore. I can barely make out the shapes in the water, but I can feel them. The sea is as black as night.
“They aren’t singing,” Mira says. “I don’t think they’re here to kill. I think they want to speak with me. If you follow, don’t go too far. If things turn, I might not be able to find you in the black waters.” She’s right, there’s no song. They came in peace, rare for sirens.
“They’ll come to you if they want to speak,” I tell her, hoping she’ll listen. We step deeper into the water. Fog creeping in, curling across the surface, making it harder to see.
The water around us begins to glow, a soft blue pulsing from beneath the surface. Then they appear, sirens, silent as ghosts, moving through the black like shadows. One swims forward. I recognize her as the same one from the night Smith betrayed us.
“Mira and the Pirate Lord,” she says, her voice cold and lifeless. “You are not safe here.” She came to warn us. “This island is infected. Possessed. Mira cannot stay.” She moves closer, her webbed hand reaching for Mira. “Take her and go, boy.”
“His name is Kai,” Mira says firmly. The siren’s expression shifts, her head tilts, eyes narrowing.
“My apologies. Kai.” She apologized? Mira has that kind of power now? To make even the most stubborn of species bend at her word?
“What happened to the island?” Mira asks.
“That is not for you to know,” the siren replies, dark eyes glinting under the moonlight. “It is not safe. You must go. Now.” Mira steps forward. The siren blocks her path, voice sharper now. “Go no farther. The waters aren’t safe either…”
“It's dark magic,” I tell the siren.
She grins, slow and sharp. “Hmm. Smart boy. Smart Kai. But you are not strong enough to be near it, not yet. You must have found out who you’ve come from.”
I say nothing. She swims closer, dipping beneath the surface, then rises again, eyes narrowing, amused. “Do you still wish to complete the task I gave you?”
I open my mouth, but Mira steps in. “He won’t be making any promises.”
The siren snaps her gaze to Mira, the water stilling around her.
“Do you know what will happen once we are rid of her?” she hisses.
“Do you understand what will be unlocked for him? He will possess all of her power and more. He is the heir to magic. The holder of it. You hold him back, girl, and it is you who will suffer. He could die. You could die.” Heir of magic?
The only thing I’d ever inherited was my ship and crew. Not this.
“I’ll get you the witch,” I say, the words like stone in my mouth. I feel Mira’s fury before I see it. She turns, livid, trudging through the black water, walking away without a word. “Mira,” I call after her.
The siren speaks. “It’s what’s best. If you want to reach the fountain, this is what she commanded. Bring us the witch, and she will take you to it.” Mira stops and turns around.
“She?” Mira’s voice cracks like a whip.
“Your mother,” the siren replies with a gleam of cruel delight. “She’s alive. And she will take you to the fountain. Personally.”
The siren turns with a single motion and vanishes into the depths.