Ash didn't know what alerted him—a creak, a shadow, a blur in the corner of his eyes—but the young man dropped to his knees. He wasn't fast enough. Blood splattered, the fireplace poker slicing a deep cut through his shoulder.

Hissing through his teeth, he grabbed the mercenary's arm before he could retreat. "That," the young man ground out through clenched teeth, "hurt." And, with a hard yank that made the mercenary fall forward, the young man rammed his elbow into the other man's chin.

The mercenary dropped to the floor like a sack of flour, blood flowing from his nose. The fire poke skidded across the floor. A weapon. She didn't know what she'd do with it, but she couldn't pass up the chance to have one. She wrapped her hand around it.

And instantly dropped it, yelping from the sharp burn across her palm. She flipped her hand around. A nasty red mark stared up at her. The metal hadn't been warm, yet it had seared her skin just the same. How was that possible?

She didn't have long to puzzle out the oddity. The poker slipped out of her view. The first mercenary, still conscious, unlike his comrade, backed away, the poker in his hand. He wielded it like a blade that he pointed between the young man and the lysian.

"Stay back! I'll be sure I don't miss," the mercenary threatened.

The lysian growled, and the mercenary kept the poker trained on it.

"Look. Garman here has already tried to tear off some limbs, and your friend has left me in a rather sour mood, so I suggest you drop that cursed piece of metal before you lack the ability to hold it." The young man's cheerful tone had returned, but it carried a threatening edge made scarier by the vicious grin on his face and the crimson liquid leaking through the fingers pressed against his wound.

The mercenary licked his lips and took a step back. His arms trembled as if the poker suddenly weighed him down. "You'll kill me," he said. "I might as well take one of you freaks with me if I'm to go."

Frantic eyes danced between all three of the others in the room, Terror included, before resting a little longer on Ash. She still sat on the floor. The world moved too fast around her, refusing to give her a moment to think or act. Which was likely why it took too long to register what the man's gaze meant.

The mercenary lunged, poker poised so the sharp end aimed straight for her throat. A shadow of movement streaked past her and slammed into him before she had time to scream. He flew through the air and crashed against the wall. He dropped to the ground, his groans barely audible over the barrels he scattered. When he tried to rise on wobbling legs, a barrel toppled directly onto him. The mercenary collapsed back to the floor, eyes fluttering closed.

And now the lysian stood less than five feet from her, snarling at the man even as it trained its gaze on her. Fiery red eyes studied her with far too much intelligence for the animalistic face.

Something loud suddenly pierced the room, and the lysian recoiled with a sneer twisting its lips. After a moment, Ash realized the source of the sound: her. She'd finally remembered how to make a noise, and it was to shriek.

There was a sigh. "Yes, Garman saves your life, so what do you do? Scream at the poor guy."

Ignoring the young man, Ash scrambled back. She collided with wood, and a barrel toppled over.

"Great gales." Grumbling fouler words, the young man made his way across the room and crouched in front of Ash, blocking her view of the Terror. "I know Garman looks big and scary, but trust me, he won't hurt you. I've got him under control."

The lysian growled.

The young man shot the beast a long-suffering side-eye. "Okay, he has himself under control as well, but in case he doesn't, I do. So, no more screaming, all right?"

Her scream died away as she gaped, incredulous. She gulped and scooted further away from the man. The wall of containers behind her didn't let her get far. "You have a pet lysian and you—"

He winced when her words elicited another growl. "Garman isn't my pet, but that isn't important right now. We need—"

"Caspian, Garman, you down here?"

The young man perked up at the new voice. "Looks like they took care of the rest of the trash. In here, Haylan!"

Considering the unnerving young man before her—Caspian, based on the name given by the other voice—and the lysian following him, Ash wasn't sure what she expected of this Haylan person, but it wasn't the scrawny boy that walked in. At least, she thought he was just a boy. He was shorter than her and thin, but his smooth face had an odd way of seeming young yet older at the same time. More human than a Scion's, but she still found it uncanny.

He didn't look like he belonged here, regardless of his age, and that almost unsettled her more than the other two in the room.

"I see you guys left a mess behind you." Haylan frowned at Caspian's shoulder before glancing Ash's way. Confusion overtook the worry on his face. "And who is this?"

Caspian grinned and hooked a thumb over his shoulder at her. "I happened to find who we're looking for. Looks like Lorica's tip was right."

Ash squeezed her fists so that her nails dug into her palm to focus her thoughts. The shock of pain from the wound left by the poker made her stop instantly. Still, it helped dispel the fear freezing her in place. Refusing to look at the Terror, she stared directly at Caspian.

"Who are you, and why were you looking for me?" A terrible thought occurred to her then. Only one person knew where she was, one who had threatened Sabin should anything happen to her. She tensed, not sure what she'd do if they answered how she feared, but knowing she'd have to do something. "Did... Did Roan send you?"

Despite her best effort to sound fierce, her voice shook. Some of the amusement in Caspian's eyes faded, and his expression softened.

"No. Our captain will explain everything to you, but we're here to help you."

He may have said more, but if he did, it was lost on her. That single word choice made the world drop out from under her. Captain. It wouldn't mean much, as all ship captains earned that title, but too many other small things stuck out. The clothing choices of all she had seen for one. Raggy, as if they had been foraged. Or stolen. With little means or reason to take care of it and look presentable for society. And Nightwrath. Ash had originally thought of the greater spirit, but had it been a moniker?

There was a single group of seafarers who would wear such garb, have such a talent for violence, and obey the commands of a captain who had been given a moniker that the world knew them by.

Pirates. These people were pirates.

No, her luck couldn't be this horrid. First a manipulative Scion, then a trafficking ship whose owner happened to hear about her abilities and planned to hand her over, and now a pirate ship that may or may not be headed by a greater spirit. It just wasn't possible.

They'd come to help her? Insanity. At best, they'd heard that she could get them gold and wanted to nab her so that Sabin didn't get the reward for her. Pirates weren't good people. They'd destroyed plenty of seaside villages in Eloina, kidnapped citizens, committed unspeakable acts. They were selfish, cruel, thieving degenerates.

And Ash was done being passed lower and lower into the bowels of society.

Caspian was mid-sentence when Ash lunged. Her fists found solid strikes, first to his chin and then to his chest, but the pirate barely faltered.

"Hey, I just said we are here to help you! You crazy woman, will you stop—no, Garman, you will not!"

One hand clasped Ash's shoulder and shoved her away, though not fully out of range, while Caspian reached behind himself with the other to hold back the lysian that had started to approach, lips pulled back in a silent threat.

Ash didn't stop her hand in time. It collided with the beast's muzzle.

The entire room froze as the lysian's blazing eyes seemed to glow with anger. Caspian sighed something that sounded like "Dreamer help her," and then the lysian roared.

Ash screamed, fighting to wrench herself free, while the lysian struggled to charge forward. Caspian held them both where they were with firm grips. She slapped at him, needing to be as far away as possible from the Terror, but it didn't get her anywhere farther from the lysian's snapping jaws.

"Garman, will you just—you know Lorica will—can you stop slapping me? Blast it all. Haylan, overcharge them."

If he replied, Ash was too busy trying to free herself to hear. This pirate had a wound seeping blood, yet he didn't budge holding her still. Only the Terror gave him any problems, but she got the feeling the lysian was trying to get to Ash without harming Caspian, otherwise she'd be as good as eaten.

"Yes, I know, but if you don't, I'll have to deal with these sandheads, and you won't like my method."

The lysian leapt forward, its claws swiping inches from Ash's face. She screeched, the magic near bursting from her skin in defense.

"Haylan!" Caspian snapped.

"Fine, all right, I will... Just, one moment... Don't let Garman bite me, please."

"I will do what I—"

Another hand fell on Ash's free shoulder, and the world exploded into spiraling blue sparkles. Her magic. It spun and wove, fabricating her practice glamours, from the familiar faces of those in Lumena Village to the aching image of Odella. The glamours blended together as they swirled around her. Unlike the most recent times the magic had acted outside of her control, it didn't hurt her. Instead, it flowed freely from her, like a faucet she couldn't turn off, somehow both soothing and draining at the same time.

There was a single source where she felt the surge more strongly than in other places. The new hand on her shoulder was gentle, but it felt glued to her by whatever caused this reaction from her magic.

Until suddenly it wasn't. The hand vanished, and its absence left a gaping hole through which all the energy that had been powering her vanished through. The blue particles winked out of existence. A wave of exhaustion crashed over her, and she swayed on her feet.

Caspian watched her. His hand had shifted to prop her up rather than keep her still. Haylan had both arms outstretched, one palm toward the lysian and the other one toward her, dark eyes worried as they flicked between them.

The lysian, like her, seemed unsteady on its feet. It held on to its snarl, though just barely, and its eyes fluttered closed over dulled red pupils.

Caspian had told Haylan to do something to them. Over... Over... The word was too far away. A fog blanketed Ash's mind. Fatigue weighed on her eyes, and when she closed them, she had to battle them back open.

The lysian hit the floor with a thump. She watched its body fall. The ship pitched, and suddenly its form grew larger. No, she was falling.

She was faintly aware of arms wrapping around her, stopping her fall, before she succumbed to exhaustion.

*****

People who read Midnight (the very first iteration of this), familiar names are popping up!  And man, have I missed these guys.  Ash seems to be jumping over to a new group, and here's hoping they're much better than Roan or Sabin's crew.  Now to wonder why they were looking for her 😬 And some things they do seem a little... unusual.  What's that about?

Let me know your thoughts on the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment! I also have a discord open to anyone who wants to join, and we have a section there to discuss the book :D Let me know if you want to join!