Life among the Nightwrath Pirates became routine quickly. Everyone had a role on the ship, and that included Ash. She moved with the others as they ate, cleaned the deck, tended to the supplies, ran checks on all the rigging, helped prepare the food. The crew alternated jobs as well, trying to ensure everyone knew how to do everything so that people could rest as needed without putting the cogs of the crew at risk.

It was hard work, but methodical and easy to follow. By the third day, she could keep up with most of the others. Well, they could chat while they did their part while it took her full focus, but still.

Swordplay, however, did not come so easily.

A surprise yelp drew the attention of a nearby group lounging against the stairs. Ash's wooden sword launched from her grasp and clattered on the deck a few feet away. Linden stood in front of her, his own weapon poised as if to strike at her chest, a knowing smile on his face.

Frowning—or pouting, if Ash was honest with herself—she rubbed at her wrist. "Ow."

"That makes the fourth time today," he said.

"Which is down from the eight times of your first day," Willow added encouragingly. She sat on a crate she'd pushed over to observe the training session. The siblings alternated who sparred with Ash so that they could have fresh eyes watching her technique from different angles.

"We also aren't at the end of the day, though," Ash pointed out, even if she really wanted to take the small win Willow offered. Ash thought she was improving, but between the blisters forming on her hand, the aches in joints she'd never even realized she was using, and her spinning mind, she really wasn't sure.

Linden scooped her wooden practice sword off the ground and handed it to her hilt first. "Don't be so hard on yourself. You have no sword experience, eh? Willow and I have practiced for years."

Ash took the sword back despite the way her hand protested the motion. She'd learned that the siblings hadn't given Roan an entirely false backstory. They really had grown up learning to hunt Terrors. Even though she didn't know how, she had a feeling it led to their current cursed state, but she followed the unspoken rule about not asking. If they wanted her to know, they'd open up to her.

A sudden tap against her sword jolted her attention back to the present. Linden smiled at her. "Let's try again, but this time, remember to keep your wrist straight."

They made it through another fifteen minutes, alternating between working on her stances and practicing maneuvers in slow motion, before Willow decided they'd done enough for that day. "We have perhaps another hour or two before we reach the Cove. It's better to spend that time resting than using the last reserves of our energy."

'Our.' Neither Willow nor Linden looked as if they'd done anything strenuous except for sitting out in the sun, while Ash felt sweat spilling from her pits and fire burning on her cheeks. Willow smiled at her. "Come. Let's rest in the dining area. You need something to drink, anyway. And maybe some food."

A cool drink sounded amazing, as did being below deck and away from the sun. Ash followed Willow and Linden. As the hatch closed behind them, dulling their light, the shadows of Ash's own thoughts seemed to grow.

What was she doing here?

Her father had taught her and Odella some self-defense when they were young, but he'd hoped she would never have to use it. She could still feel the phantom weight of the wooden sword against her aching palm. Violence wasn't in her nature, yet she'd had to fight to survive so many times in the past quarter-lune, and now she trained intentionally for that.

She knew why she did this. Callum, captive at sea because of her, as well as potentially the key to saving her sister.

But had Caspian been right? She hated to think about it. To give credit to his derisive remark. So much had happened, though. From her journey to Volant to the kidnapping to this. If she had stayed at the Haven, she would have found stability, she would have reunited with her family, worries would have felt distant while those prepared sought out a solution.

She would stop feeling so different from the Ash that first left Lumena Village. Was this the same way Odella had felt? Like life was slowly stripping bits of who she was and remolding them?

"Here."

Ash jolted out of her thoughts. Willow slid a wooden mug toward her, the warm brown drink within sloshing along the sides.

"And I got you this." Linden sat beside Ash. He had two strips of cloth with cream smeared across them. "This ointment will help soothe your hands."

He wrapped the cloth around her palms, and a cool relief instantly settled in. "Thank you," she said. Careful not to disrupt the bandages, she took a drink from the mug. A spicy liquid slid down her throat, bringing with it a slight burn despite being cold. One of the diluted alcohols then.

She pulled it away. "Shouldn't I keep a clear head?"

Linden scoffed. "Please don't tell me this has made you tipsy the other times you've drunk it. It should take at least five of these to touch even the lightest of lightweights, and that'd be all in one go."

Ash took another sip to bide time and hide her blush. She didn't want to admit she'd done her best to stick to what water she could convince the kitchen staff to put into her waterskin. As much as she continued to give her trust to the Nightwrath Pirates, she didn't want to loose her wits around them. She never forgot how badly her prior experiences had gone.

How ironic that her trust would only become so fractured when she finally met people who seemed truly good. Though hadn't she thought the same of Roan? Her grip on her mug tightened, and she was grateful when Linden brought out dice for them to pass the time.

A couple of hours passed before a bell rang from the top deck.

Willow lit up. "You'll want to see this, Ash. Varno Cove is a strange place for sure."

Linden peered at his sister and then down at her hand, which covered the dice she'd just rolled. "Why do I have a feeling you're using this as a convenient excuse?"

"I have no idea what you mean, brother dearest." Willow batted innocent eyes at him.

Ash watched the exchange with a heavy heart. She'd grown fond of the siblings over the past few days, but their easy banter and close bond continued to remind her of Odella. Every inside joke and knowing look picked at a scab that could never cover the full wound left by her twin's absence.

Linden continued to toss out accusations as the group made their way to the top deck, all which Willow cheerfully ignored. They found many other pirates atop the ship. While a handful worked on prep, others leaned against the rail and spoke with each other. Willow led Ash to a free space and pointed.

"There."

Even without Willow's guidance, Ash would have found what drew everyone's attention. A wall of earth rose in front of them. Unlike most islands Ash had seen, this one didn't have a beach that led inland, but instead steep cliff faces kept everyone away. They were close enough now that she spotted the start of green fields and trees atop the cliffs.

"Are we supposed to scale those?" She cradled her hands to her chest. She'd never climbed anything harder than a tree, and though the ointment had eased the pain significantly, she couldn't imagine the ache there would allow for easy scaling.

"No. Do you see right... there!" Willow placed a hand on Ash's shoulder, tugging lightly to direct her. Along with pointing, she got Ash to look at the spot she wanted.

It hadn't been obvious because she had to lean further forward to see it, but there was a sliver of space where the island didn't touch. One piece of it jutted out into the ocean, and the portion of the island on the other side stopped at a dead drop. What lay between looked hollow, though she couldn't tell for sure from their distance.

A cove, then, just as the name implied, but sheltered as if by a fortress on all sides by cliffs and with a very precise entry point. One that would be very easy to protect. If sentinels guarded along the island, they'd spot anyone trying to infiltrate by climbing. No wonder it hadn't been discovered and destroyed by patrolling ships.

"You have to know the right direction at each time of each day," Willow said. "If you don't ride the currents exactly as you must, you'll crash into the cliffs. I've heard many stories of shipwrecks here. Lorica knows the way, though!" she hurriedly added when Ash's awe drained into horror.

Linden snickered. Ash felt a swoop in her stomach when he ruffled her hair. "You worry so easily. Be sure to hide that while you're on the island, though. Those savages will eat you for supper."

Sighing, Willow scrubbed her hand across her face. "You say she worries too easily, and then you say something that will scare her."

"What? It's advice that she needs!"

"He's right," Ash cut in. She smiled at them, hoping it hid the nerves Linden's words had stirred. He'd spoken the truth, and she appreciated the reminder, just like she appreciated the easiness in which these two had offered her their friendship. She could still feel the pressure from Linden's hand upon her head, and if she thought about it, the push of Willow's hand against her shoulder.

These two were so casual with their friendly touches. She liked it. Maybe that was why she was smiling despite the dire subject.

As the ship closed in on the island, the activity increased. Lorica appeared at some point, and she shouted a few orders while she worked the wheel. Ash couldn't tell what happened, but some changes must have occurred between the water in the ship, because Lorica suddenly issued fewer orders, and crewmates settled in to watch the looming island approach.

Two ships could have fit through the pass, and the Nightwrath's boat sailed close through the middle, but Ash's stomach still tightened as the foreboding shadow fell over them. The ship swayed uneasily beneath her, and small waves crashed against the side.

Ash didn't realize she had a white-knuckled grip on the railing until Willow squeezed lightly on her arm and smiled gently. "It's fine. If we haven't crashed already, we've made it through."

But Ash didn't breathe easily until they made it out from between the two cliffs. It opened into what she could only describe as a crater. Outward appearances had been deceiving. Despite the massive walls, there wasn't much within. A strip of land led to a forested area, and flat plains expanded across the cliffs. Mostly, though, everything within the enclosed area was water.

"Everything about this place is strange," Ash decided.

Willow chuckled. "I always used to say that it looks like a giant reached down and scooped out the innards of the island."

It was a graphic image, and Ash hadn't heard any myths of the giants for many sols, but she found it fitting with the oddness before her.

The residents who used this cove had erected a small village near the sea. Its port spanned the entire width of the village, multiple docks sticking out like the prongs on a trident to house the resting ships. Varno Cove could use more docks, by the looks of it. Only two remained, and the Nightwraths took one of them.

When Ash brought this up, Linden quirked his brows at her. "Does this really surprise you? It's the central point of all illegal trade throughout Somniox. One time we had to dock at sea and ride our dinghy to shore."

"Crew, attention to me!" Lorica strode down from the quarter deck, and with her command, all of the crew on deck turned to her. There were a couple below, but they would be the ones staying behind. Lorica's dark eyes scanned the group before she nodded to herself. "As a quick reminder. Do not wander places alone, do not let any of the scum here taunt you into starting a fight, and do not steal."

"Unless you can do it without getting caught," Linden murmured under his breath.

Willow shot her brother a dry look, and he grinned.

"Additionally, remember that we are here to look for information. Do not draw attention to yourself. You know my other plans, so if you cannot discover anything, we'll be fine. Your safety always comes first. Is everything understood?"

"Aye, captain!"

"Then go!" Lorica called. "And don't forget to fulfill any other tasks you were given while we were here."

Like Willow and Linden, who'd been told to sell some of the rare trinkets they'd collected on their travels. Ash, however, hadn't been given any directive except to watch for people she may recognize. She bit her lip. "I suppose I'll just go with you?"

Before either of them could answer, Lorica called over, "Ash, could you come here for a moment? Willow, Linden, you can go on."

Willow smiled apologetically. "I guess not. Sorry."

Ash tried her best to hide her disappointment as she waved farewell to the only two on the crew she truly felt comfortable with. She watched them for a moment before trudging over to Lorica. "Yes?" she said.

"As you know, part of why we are having you, despite your inexperience, go into Varno Cove is to scout for any familiar faces. You have received some training, yes, but not enough. It is more likely to help delay your death, not save you." Lorica spoke practically, as if the matter of life or death was a daily prospect. "It is wisest to expose you to the highest populace of the island, but I also want to ensure your safety. I'm sending you with the person who can both act as a satisfactory guard and knows his way around the more populated areas."

His. Ash felt a coil begin in her stomach. It was impossible. There were multiple men on the ship. She'd not kept track of who had been paired or who had already left, but surely it couldn't be—

"Caspian should be waiting for you at the dock to depart."

Ash mentally cursed.

*****

Hmmm, they're also at Varno Cove now.  Wonder if any other people are there >:3 For now, though, Ash has a more immediate problem to deal with: her best friend forevers, Caspian! :D But look at that, she's slowly making friends overall.  Guard up, sure, but still, making friends xD Let's see how much guard she needs in the cove, though :D

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!