CHAPTER TWO
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NIKOLAI LANTSOV FELT LOST—and not just because Morana stole his compass.

Leaning against the rigging of his ship, he wondered how a simple visit to Ketterdam had promptly thrown his head off its hinges. He had been ready to threaten—and or—charm the crew of criminals he'd hired to bring him Sankta Alina and then there she was:

His sister. Alive and snarky.

Alive.

That had been a hell of a surprise.

He would say it was impossible, if not for seeing her with his own eyes and speaking to her and hugging her to make sure she was truly there and not a hallucination—Saints knew he saw those a lot. Once more, the word impossible had been crossed out of his vocabulary.

It was not impossible his long lost sister, a sister that had died in the Fold, was alive and living her merry life as a criminal in the Barrel. It was improbable. And it was a reality.

Nikolai looked up at the starry sky of Novyi Zem, resisting the urge to push off the rigging and have his crew steer their ship back to Ketterdam so he could drag his sister with him and back to Ravka where he knew she could be safe.

But did he know that?

Kira, his sister, had looked him in the eyes and told him she was meant to die in the Fold. That their parents had sent her there like a lamb to slaughter. Because besides being a stain in the family as a rumored bastard child (like him) to the royal family; she was also Grisha and Lantsovs would die (apparently kill, was a better word) before having Grisha 'stain' their blood.

His jaw clenched at the thought and he took a deep breath. He didn't know what to think and he needed to focus on finding the Sun Summoner but all he could concentrate on was the fact that after years he had seen Kira again. And left her in Ketterdam where she was wanted by the law—what a great brother he was.

He needed a distraction. Nikolai pushed off the rigging and started pacing the main deck, walking through the crew assembling everything for them to set sail, as he whistled to himself and tried to think of something else.

Morana's face flashed in his mind and Nikolai couldn't help the small grin on his face. The girl was a great distraction, especially considering he had to get his compass back—that was definitely the only reason he wanted to see her again.

Definitely not because he'd found a friend in her, someone he saw from time to time in his journeys through the ocean. A friend with as many secrets as he had—perhaps more. Morana was a mystery of the True Sea and Nikolai loved every minute of the puzzle she was. She was—

"Tolya?! Tamar?!"

Nikolai frowned. Had he summoned her?

Morana's voice was carried by the wind up to the deck of the ship and Nikolai's eyebrows shot to his forehead. Like the song of a siren, her voice called him, beckoning him to follow.

Walking over the edge of the ship, Nikolai looked down at the dock to find Morana trying to back away from Tamar and Tolya, two strangers by her side.

She looked odd standing on land. The only time he'd seen her was during the few times they had to drop her off in harbors around the world because Morana refused to stay in a privateer's crew—which bothered Nikolai immensely and was probably the reason why she did it.

Morana was always jumping ship, always there when the Crimson Mirage blinded his crew and the pirates attacked, and nearly always there when he encountered other pirate ships. She had told him once she made it a point to convince the pirate captains to target his ships—and Nikolai, secretly, looked forward to every moment of their pillaging and plundering.

Only he hadn't seen her in a month or so now, far longer than what he was used to. And just as she flashed in his mind, he heard her voice. He was intent on believing he had summoned Morana.

Tolya threw his arm around her shoulders and grinned at her, "Don't even bother to run, Mora."

Morana rolled her eyes at Tolya. "Wouldn't dare."

"And just who are your friends?" asked Tamar and that's when Nikolai's attention snapped to the boy and girl looking at Morana with suspicious eyes.

"We were all going to charter out together—"

"Did they finally kick you out of the seas, darling?" asked Nikolai loudly, making everyone look up at him from the ground. Curiosity sparked in his head as he noticed the girl Morana was with resembled the Sun Summoner quite a lot—what was his lovely mystery pirate up to?

"You've got a new ship," replied Morana, ignoring his question as she eyed his ship with a scrunch of her nose, "If I'd known, I would've led my friends elsewhere."

"You have friends now, do you?"

Morana glared at him just as Alina Starkov, because Nikolai was sure it was her, cleared her throat. "We need to leave, immediately! I'll pay!" The girl handed something to Tamar, and added, "It's gold."

Tamar bit into it and shrugged. "That'll do."

"Money! Splendid! Welcome aboard!" Nikolai grinned broadly at them as they walked into the ship just as a group of First Army guards came barreling into the harbor. Nikolai grabbed the first hat on the first head he saw and placed it on his head, hiding from sight as he gave Tolya and Tamar a look—they'd take care of the men.

With that, he grabbed Morana's wrist and dragged her along with him to his cabin. Morana cursed under her breath as they made their way inside and Nikolai pulled her in for a hug. She pushed off his chest and Nikolai watched amused as she looked up at him with glaring eyes. "Let go of me, you brute!"

Nikolai raised his arms in surrender, as they stood near the door to his cabin, and was pleasantly surprised when Morana did not step away from him, and instead stood there, glaring daggers at him, close enough he could smell the faint traces of salt and wildflowers in her hair.

"Why, pray, did you just drag me in here?" she asked and Nikolai grinned.

"I figured you, as much as I, did not want an encounter with Ravkan authorities," he said and Morana pursed her lips—which in her book meant admitting she knew he was right but would rather not admit to it.

"Well, they have no authority in Novyi Zem," she said with a shrug, "I'm not a criminal here."

"Only in the sea?"

"Always."

Nikolai let out a chuckle—he'd missed her. "I'm curious, Mora, you never seemed like the type to enjoy jurda fields."

"I heard Weddle has lovely touristic sightings," she replied with a shrug.

"It does. Did you see the Giant Mural of Liars? I heard your face is painted somewhere in there."

"Right next to yours, I'm sure. Unfortunately for me, I did not see it."

"So you've thought about my face, have you?" asked Nikolai, overjoyed to see the poorly conceived annoyance in her face—annoyance caused by the fact that she wanted to smile at him yet her pride refused it.

"Yes," she replied, "bruised and battered."

"And in this dream of yours, did you kiss the pain away?"

"Bold of you to assume it was a dream."

"So you have nightmares about me getting hurt, darling? I'm quite flattered."

Moran groaned in exasperation and let her head fall against his chest making Nikolai let out a laugh—though confusion sparked at him at her lack of commentary. Usually, she would reply something along the lines of, Flattened, you mean? Which was a horrible comeback but something she'd say (probably).

She straightened herself up again and rolled her eyes at him, stepping away from the closeness they'd been sharing since he dragged her into the cabin, and wandering around the room. She walked over to the liquor cabinet and poured herself a tumbler of rum.

"Make yourself at home," said Nikolai dryly and Morana's dark eyes met his.

"Home?" Nikolai didn't have a moment to process the way she'd said the word before Morana had downed the liquid inside her glass and changed a topic Nikolai didn't know needed changing. "You haven't got your ring anymore."

Frowning he raised his hand at her, showing her his ring. Morana rolled her eyes as she waltzed over to his desk, tilting her head at the maps on top.

"Not that one. The one you keep in your coat pocket," she said, her eyes meeting his again. "No matter which coats you have on, it's there. I know because I always try to take it. And you always remind yourself to ask for it back."

Nikolai knew exactly which ring she was talking about. It was a golden band he used to wear as a child before Kira had disappeared in the Fold—and was presumed to be dead. It was the ring he used to remind himself of her, and he had given it to her, now that he knew she was alive, as a way for her to remember him by.

He shrugged. "I don't quite know what you're referring to."

Morana's eyes narrowed, her red-painted lips pursing, "Gold. Crest worn out. Has an N on it. Looks small enough to barely fit on your pinky finger."

Nikolai shrugged once more. "Never seen it—"

The door to his cabin burst open and Nikolai turned to see Alina Starkov standing there, taking a moment to frown at the fact Morana was standing in the room, before turning to him, "We need to leave right now."

Nikolai let out a chuckle as he walked over to his desk, and sat down on the leather chair as he leaned back, "Let's be clear about two things." He raised one finger, "I don't take orders on my own ship." He raised another, "And we're already underway."

Morana sighed in contentment from his side as she peered over the window. Nikolai took one single glance at her face, flawlessly illuminated by the candles and the moon, because he knew he could stare at her all night—Morana had a gift for being a rather vexing siren; irresistible in her beauty and with a sharp tongue. He forced himself to turn back to Alina with a grin.

"I'm glad you've joined us. Now, maybe you'd be so kind as to give the room a little light." He raised an eyebrow at her as he stood up from his chair, placing his pistol on the table as he leaned forward. "After all you are Alina Starkov. A 20-million-kruge Saint. Dead or alive."

He heard Morana snort from behind him and sat back down, glancing up at her with a smirk. "Too much?"

"A tad dramatic," she replied with a roll of her eyes.

Nikolai let out a laugh as he turned back to Alina, who was glaring at him. "No point in denying it, Miss Starkov. You are the Sun Summoner."

"You're right," said Alina.

Then she raised her hands in the air, a blast of light licking every corner of the room and Nikolai couldn't help but whistle. "Impressive. And it's not often that I say that."

"Let us go," said Alina, "Or you'll be out 20 million kruge and a ship."

"It's not his best one, either way," replied Morana and Nikolai gaped at her. She shrugged. "It's a dream of mine to see you sink with your ship, Captain."

Alina cleared her throat and Nikolai turned lazily to her, nodding with a sigh. He stood up and walked over to the bottle of rum Morana had so graciously pulled out of his liquor cabinet, refilling her glass and pouring himself a drink.

"While I'm well aware you could consign us all to the watery deep, you should really consider how far from the docks we are," he said as he walked back to the desk, handing Morana her drink, "Besides, I'm not handing you over to the Fjerdans."

"You're not?" said Alina with a frown.

Nikolai scoffed. "Saints, no." He paused. "Sorry, is it offensive to say that in the presence of a living Saint?"

"There're no Saints in the sea, scourge," Morana told him condescendingly, and after so many years they've known each other she kept up her promise of not calling him Sturmhond. She got creative with nicknames with time—something must've been bothering her, because Scourge wasn't one of her best.

"Apparently there's one," replied Nikolai as he gave a pointed look at Alina.

"Okay," said Alina's... friend? He took a seat in the chairs in front of his desk. "What do you want with us then?"

Nikolai glanced over at him with a frown. "With you? Nothing. Honestly, I'm not even sure who you are. But the Sun Summoner... Well, you have to know you're quite valuable."

The friend spoke up again, "You just said you wouldn't turn her in for a bounty, pirate."

"Privateer," corrected Morana, and Nikolai didn't have to look up at her to know she was grimacing—she found it dishonorable for him to be called a pirate. A true pirate doesn't have a license, she usually said, and a true privateer is usually a prick, so it fits you quite well.

"Oh," was the Sun Summoner's lackey's reply.

"And what I said was I wouldn't hand her into the Fjerdans. I said nothing of the Kerch or Shu." He looked up at Alina. "I paid a small fortune to empty the dock and make sure you got on my ship—"

"Did you hire her to trick us?" asked Alina, glancing up at Morana. The latter scoffed.

"Hire me? Like I'm some mercenary?" She clicked her tongue. "I act out of my own accord, Miss Starkov. And I was being honest when I said if I'd known it was his ship I would've led you elsewhere."

"So you could keep the profit all to yourself?" asked Alina.

"So, I could try and help a Saint," replied Morana. Liar. Nikolai scoffed mentally when Alina nodded as if she'd actually believed a word out of Morana's mouth. "And frankly, I think the world is severely undervaluing you," she added. Now that was more like it.

"You're right. They are." Alina set her hands on his desk and leaned forward. "Because you'll be able to ask the King of Ravka for twice as much."

Nikolai tried miserably not to show his amusement. "You know the King?"

"I'm the Sun Summoner."

"By all accounts, the First Army have now turned their sights on Grisha," Nikolai told her as he leaned forward, all the humor gone from his voice. "Thanks to what you and your conspirator did in the Fold."

Morana walked away from where she had been standing next to him and went to pour herself another drink. Nikolai frowned slightly as Alina spoke, "The Darkling and I were not partners. You may believe otherwise, but once I tear down the Fold and reunite Ravka, the world will see I am not his ally—" Morana downed her third drink and went to pour another one, "—Help us and you'll be rewarded."

"To tear down the Fold?" asked Nikolai, scoffing as he stood up. He yanked the bottle from Morana's grasp and shoved it back into the cabinet. Morana glared at him and Nikolai ignored her as he turned to Alina. "And how do you plan on doing that exactly?"

The Sun Summoner stood up straighter. "By hunting Morozova's Sea Whip."

"Alina," warned the sidekick.

Nikolai ignored him as he huffed out an incredulous breath, taking Morana's glass from her hands, preventing her from drinking her fourth drink of the night by sipping on it himself. "I suppose if the Stag existed, the Sea Whip and the Firebird might as well."

"They're myths," Morana intersected and Nikolai raised an eyebrow her way.

"So is the Crimson Mirage and you've seen it with your own eyes."

"That's different—" She turned to Alina, "Did you actually find the Stag?"

Alina nodded. "I couldn't destroy the Fold with one amplifier, but two... Unburdened by General Kirigan, under my own power... Will you help us or not?"

Nikolai shared a look with Morana, and turned to look at Alina, "There's adventure, danger, money?" He gulped down the rest of his drink before grinning broadly. "Now you're speaking my language."

Finding out his dead sister was alive might've put him slightly out of place, but there was no doubt in mind he'd found a distraction. Not only had the Sun Summoner waltzed into his ship voluntarily and without much of a fuss, but Morana had joined her and something told him this time she wanted to stay.

Now, just what Morana wanted with the Sun Summoner he didn't know. But he would make it his mission to find out—right after he got his stolen compass back from her dainty little pirate hands.

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author's note:

for anyone who hasn't read Saints,
(the other book in this
alternate universe of sorts)
this story has a spoiler for it,
and that is that kira is nikolai's sister,
it's not a major spoiler seeing
as it wasn't actually hidden
from the readers and you
would've spotted it either way,
but whatever

you can read this one
without reading Saints,
but my advice is that you do
(not because of some plot point,
but just because I'm really proud of it
and it's good and complete
(waiting for season three).

so yes, nikolai has a sister
he thought she died.
she's younger.
lives in ketterdam with the crows.
that's all the context you need.

hope you liked this chapter
i feel it's not my best but it'll do