Callum stared at Lanelle and waited for something to bring clarity to her words. Surely, she didn't truly mean she wanted to help him spy on their captor?

But she kept staring up at him, waiting for his decision.

"Why would you do that?" he asked.

Now she chose to drop her gaze. She busied herself with refilling the bottle of mead as she spoke, voice quiet so as to not carry to the pirate in the room. "I want off this ship. I want..." She swallowed. "I want away from those here. It's hard to have the will to escape on your own, though, so I suppose you could say I want an ally. It's more than that. More to you, I'm sure. Things have changed since the Scion arrived, and I'd bet the star I will Slumber in that you know something of why. Whatever I learn, I want you to explain. Besides..." She glanced back at him with a small smile. "You risked Pinn's wrath when you helped me, so you must be at least a decent person."

Callum studied her. She'd been on the ship before him, that much he knew, but how much longer? He'd already had enough of the ship in his short amount of time here. If she knew the atmosphere of the ship without Roan along, it had to be a decent amount of time. A sol, perhaps?

If he were her, he would be desperate for an ally as well.

"How?" he asked. "Do you plan to stick around until they're ready for refills, because I don't think that would be safe." He pried open the water barrel as he spoke, and once it was open, he filled his bucket.

"I'll have to explain later. Yoseph will make good on his threat if you're caught prattling again. I'll find you up top, alright?"

No, it wasn't alright. He couldn't watch the young woman march straight into the mouth of a wolf. But she turned and, balancing the tray and drinks with both hands, left. If he tried to stop her, he'd draw the eye of the nearby pirate.

Biting back a curse, he lugged his cleaning bucket back to the top deck.

The pirates were wrapping up tasks, allowing them to relax and switch over to a few simple games to pass the time. Normally Callum enjoyed this time, as the pirates' spirits lifted, but if they weren't absorbed in hard labor, they were more likely to notice if he acted oddly.

He searched the deck as he headed toward the spot he'd left behind before. Finding Lanelle occupied him enough that he didn't even resent the bits of nicova still darkening the wood. Her dark hair vanished into Wolfbane's quarters as soon as he spotted her.

He allowed himself a moment to dwell on the potentially horrible situation he'd watched her walk into before kneeling and getting to work. As he scrubbed at the deck, he counted the seconds to her reappearance.

A shadow fell over him as he reached two-hundred-and-twelve. The tension in his shoulders eased, and he leaned back to meet Lanelle's gaze.

She fiddled with the end of her hair and, as soon as he noticed her, quickly glanced at her boots. "Apologies for bothering you, but do you have another rag? The captain wasn't pleased with my lateness."

She spoke softly, like one would expect a docile captive, but also loudly enough that the pirates closest would hear her. His heart panged. How long had she'd gone practicing this act? She was the only other captive he'd seen, so before him, she'd have been alone.

The soft smile he gave her came effortlessly. "Yes, actually, I do. Here."

She still didn't look at him as she took the wet rag and kneeled. They scrubbed in silence. It wasn't until the pirates had put some distance between themselves and the cleaners that she finally spoke.

"They're saying something about artifacts."

Callum's head snapped up so far that he felt a shock of pain. Given their interest in him, he'd wondered if the pirates were collecting artifacts, or at the very least, specific ones. Was this meeting to discuss whichever one they were searching for now?

"Wait." He glanced around them, though he didn't know what he searched for. "How do you know what they're talking about?"

Her head tilted in his direction, and he flinched. The dark pools were gone, and familiar slit-pupiled blue eyes gazed out at him. A white glow lightened the color, but he couldn't mistake Yuru's eyes.

Lanelle placed a hand over her heart before returning her focus to scrubbing the deck. Her answer came in a hushed whisper. "My magic. With a touch, I can link myself to another and hear their thoughts, though if it's anything more than what's on the surface, the person may notice me. Thankfully, I only need the surface to eavesdrop."

Callum didn't want to think Lanelle would ever try to use this magic against him, but he couldn't help his relief knowing that she couldn't.

"What are they saying about the artifact?" he asked.

She peered at him. "You know something about this, don't you?"

Callum pressed his lips into a firm line. What was more important was that Lanelle didn't seem to know anything about the artifacts. Did she still believe the empowered Scions to be gods? If so, he needed to be careful how he answered her. Thankfully, he had time to decide that.

"Later. They saying anything else?"

A moment passed in which Callum thought she might push him, but then she stared at the deck with a strange blankness. Her eyes flew wide. "We're going to Maewyll."

Although he hadn't been sure what to expect, Callum definitely hadn't expected to hear about the floating island of clouds. It was home to a magical race of beings known as the Nimfeli. He knew little about them, but so did everyone else. The Nimfeli stuck to themselves in the sky, isolated from humans and Scions alike. He'd heard that they occasionally stopped near human settlements, but that didn't mean they allowed random guests onto their island, especially not pirates.

He believed it possible that the cloud-dwellers would have one of the artifacts. Their seclusion meant that the Dreamer could place an artifact in their lands to keep it separate from the others, and their magic meant the Scions were less likely to invade in their search.

Having been so lost in his thoughts, it took Callum a moment to notice Lanelle's scrunched expression. "Is everything alright?" he asked.

"The Scion..." She frowned. "He's acting strange. He—oh no." She squeezed her eyes shut, but not before he saw the white shine brighter.

"Lanelle, what is it?" He scooted closer to her. The Dreamer blessed them, because the pirates had remained consumed in their own activities the entire time. He wasn't sure what excuse they'd come up with if they noticed now, though.

"I don't know how, but he knows they're being watched. I need to release my hold, but..."

Panic took hold of her. Svenril had taught him well what emotionally charged magic did. Lanelle needed to let go of the magic but couldn't.

A door above them burst open.

"Lanelle! Where is she? I bet you it's that blasted girl?"

Yuru. He'd connected the dots. Lanelle's breath caught, and her eyes flew open. They remained the same as the animalistic man's eyes.

Callum could end this with just one touch, but he couldn't remove the cursed gloves, and they made sure that he wore clothes that covered every bit of his skin. Well, every bit except his head.

"Lanelle, trust me." It was all he said before he dropped his rag and slid over toward her. He cupped her jaw with one hand, urging her to lean her head back. Either trusting him or too panicked, she went along with his movement. Then he leaned forward, and his forehead touched hers.

The magic pulsed through him in a delicious wave. It was enough to distract him from his closeness to this near-stranger, but once he became aware of her, it wasn't embarrassment he felt.

It was a twist within his heart.

He'd canceled out magic once in a very similar fashion to this. It hadn't been intentional then, but it had been just as close and only a tad more intimate. A broken girl, a moonlit beach, and a chasm of lies between them.

When he pulled away, dark eyes followed his movement. If he wasn't mistaken, the brown skin of her cheeks had darkened. Yuru was upon them before he could be sure.

"What do you think you're doing?" Claws bit into Callum's shoulder as Yuru took hold of his shoulder and hauled him up. The pirate sneered. The slit-pupil blue eyes on him looked nothing like they had on Lanelle. "Think you can have my pet doing your dirty work?"

Callum wrinkled his nose. "Your what?"

Ignoring the question, Yuru spun and slammed Callum against the closest mast. Callum cried out as pain ran up his spine.

"Fox, you forget why you rushed out here." Roan had appeared from the room, and he leaned against the quarterdeck's railing. Wolfbane loomed behind the Scion with a scowl darkening his features.

Yuru's jaw twitched. After snarling once more in Callum's face, Yuru looked over his shoulder. "Lanelle, show me your eyes." When she hesitated, he snapped, "Now!"

She slowly lifted them. Callum worried guilt would write itself across her face, but instead he found a strange sorrow there.

"Don't hurt him," she said, the hint of a plea in her voice. "I offered to help him clean because he helped me earlier."

Yuru tilted his head, and the pointed ears atop his bushy hair twitched. Roan had called him 'fox', and even if Callum didn't understand why, the motion had a certain canine quality to it.

"You may want to speak with Pinn if you wish to know details," Roan said casually as he rested his chin in his propped-up hand. "I caught quite the situation earlier, one that involved your 'pet.'"

Yuru's fangs flashed as his lips pulled back. "Captain, with your permission, may I have a moment before we resume the meeting?"

"Gellar, with Yuru. If anything must be done, take care of it," Wolfbane ordered.

A man with near bone-white skin and even whiter hair stood from a game of cards. He tossed them down, and those who had been playing with him groaned. Geller, as Callum had learned in his days upon the ship, administered punishment upon the crew members. His thin stature made him seem harmless, but whatever magic he wielded inflicted scream-inducing pain.

Sighing, Yuru released Callum. He stalked off to the lower deck, and Geller followed on his heels.

Callum pressed a hand against his bleeding scratches as he watched them vanish. Once they were gone, he swung his attention to the quarterdeck. Wolfbane no longer stood there, but Roan remained. Their eyes met. Callum waited. If any of them thought hard enough, it would be clear why he'd been so close to Lanelle.

And Roan knew. Callum might have hated the Scion, but he knew Roan wasn't an idiot. All it would take was one order, and the pirates would swoop in at the chance to deliver some punishment to the captive still strong enough to stand tall.

But he only smirked and, with an amused huff, swept back into the captain's quarters.

Callum dropped his head back against the mast and cursed.

"Did we... I mean, are we safe?" Lanelle's voice shook. He needed to speak with her when they could find a private moment away from the now-alert pirates. Or maybe multiple moments, since not only did he promise to explain, but he now burned to know what was going on between her and the fox-like man.

He sighed. "I don't know," he answered honestly.

If Roan knew that Lanelle and Callum had spied on the meeting but had done nothing about it, that meant one of two things. Either he planned to punish them later, perhaps when they'd dropped their guard, or he believed that their spying didn't matter because no amount of information would help them.

Callum had a horrible feeling it was the latter.

*****

We are getting hints about where the story goes next!  I'll admit, the Nimfeli came about after a few lore bits had already been given out, so if they don't entire fit in with what we already know... Second draft fixes, everyone!  Also, Lanelle is fun.  Callum was in desperate need of an ally on the ship.  Maybe now he can make it through what's to come without losing his marbles 😬

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!