unedited | rewritten: 7/19 | total word count: 2708

Inhale.

What was there that I wasn't ready for in Carlisle?

Exhale.

What was it about joining the Undeady Beauty pirate crew that had me never considering the fact that one day I would be taken hostage by a strange and crazy clan?

Inhale.

What was it about the cloth wrapped around my eyes that had me reminding myself to breathe?

I heard a voice speaking the strange language of the Kulan clan appear at my feet. His feet raised, almost like he was arguing with someone, but I didn't hear another voice.

To me he sounded alone.

How long have I been missing? Surely they would have noticed by now, wouldn't they?

The sound of footsteps approaching had me looking in the direction I could swear it was coming from. I didn't need them to come and save me. I would get free and when I did, I was going to kill the person responsible for my kidnapping. It seemed that my no wasn't taken very seriously.

For that, it was unforgivable.

The sudden exposure of light had me flinching back. My jaw harden as I nearly bit my tongue. The blindfold was gone, taking away the dimness that I had before. At some point the complete darkness, the reminder of an abyss and deadly sea monsters that caused this to happen, lightened.

Pain pricked at my eyes as they adjusted and it didn't take me long to notice the fifteen-year-old boy knelt before me. His brown eyes were wary, though he held a sad expression. My heart ached at the sight, yet my anger stopped me from the weight that would have followed.

It was his clan that was responsible for this.

"We will be getting you ready for the ceremony at noon." He moved a hand as if to show the sun raising before stopping his hand in the middle. "When the sun is high."

I looked from him and found three others there as well. Two boys, both looking younger then him. And one man. Old and frail. There were no women to be seen.

It was something that I had noticed since the moment they attacked us and then invited us back, as if they hadn't stolen a crew members. I didn't know what this would mean for me if I couldn't get away before the ceremony.

But I knew one thing. I would kill anyone who dared try and force this on me the second I got the chance.

"Please, do not fight us." His words had me looking back at me. "I can see it in your eyes that you want to. If you do, we will be forced to hurt you."

You already are, but those words didn't escape me.

The boy spoke better than any of the others I heard in his clan. he also didn't address himself in third person. Did that mean he wasn't a native?

No. I doubt this clan would let anyone who isn't already part of their clan survive. Or leave freely.

"Should that make me afraid? I didn't agree to this."

My stomach clenched as I dug my nails into my palms.

I wanted to shout and scream. I wanted to fight and make them pay, but I couldn't. Not yet. I wouldn't make it anywhere and so the frustration had to stay bottled up.

It was more then just them my frustration was directed at. But at the pirates who took me from my home. At the saylors who carelessly chased me. And the officials that wanted to see me hang until my last breath.

I needed to release the frustration before I did something I regretted. But now wasn't the time to let it come out and play. Not yet.

Only when I spill his blood for thinking my no was some joke that he could easily dismiss.

"No, it shouldn't. Ethecatl wants this and he is..." The boy paused. I tried to see in his eyes if it was because he didn't know a word to describe it or if it was for something else. "He is the head of Kulan and we follow his rules. Much like you follow your captain rules."

His words did nothing for the anger in me. Nothing to calm me down. It was a storm that I could barely hold back.

With each passing second I knew I was slowly losing the little control I had.

Did I ever have control?

"My captain wouldn't force something..." I stopped cold, knowing that the others didn't speak kindly of our captain.

They all said the same and that I hadn't had the chance yet to see what he was truly like. But I knew there was still much to be desired when it came to a captain. Ours just happened to not fit the bill of what we expected. And without a shadow of a doubt, I could imagine him doing something to this in a similar manner.

At the very least, there was Saul, who seemed to reign Captain Velwyn in.

"It doesn't make it right," I stated, coldly.

"Our ways are different from what you are used to." It was as if he could explain this being wrong away. "You will come to understand, like the ones before." He turned partly, waving the three waiting forward. "If you don't, you'll join the others."

"Just where are the others?"

The air shifted, reminding me of the cold atmosphere; of the fear and uncertainty I had in prison. A shiver ran through me as his eyes appeared to be darker then before as they met mine. His young appearance did not match the look he held.

"They have become one with the ash."

A frown formed as I looked at the very ground that ash coated. Did that mean anyone who refused or resisted, died? Or did he mean something else?

Did they agree to it by some sick twisted miracle?

I was pulled to my feet with no more being said. I stared at the opening, as they began their work. Eventually they would have to take a break and that would be my only chance.

And if they didn't leave before the ceremony, I would have to figure something else out. Or hope my worthless captain decided he couldn't afford to lose another crew member and still wanted that revenge he vowed on.

The run seeped through the fabric above our heads, showering it in a light glow and showing more of the tent. Along the edges I could see it being held up by gray metal sticks.

As it grew brighter, the four working on me began to speed up. I watched, able to see very clearly just what they were doing.

One was mixing what smelled like paint; while another used it to draw markings on my arm. If I wasn't being held against my will, I would have enjoyed the different designs.

One was a tree, full of leaves painted red; another a bell, a rope knotted through the loop painted in blue; a third a serpent, with a long thin body painted in black; and one that looked like a mutation of a person with a normal head, but body of something else.

He was making them connect as he continued up my arm and towards my face.

One of the boys was holding up a dark green and red dress. Adjusting it slightly in some places and fixing any holes that could be spotted. Holes that looked like something had pierced the fabric.

How did they get these supplies?

It didn't seem like the clan left the island and if the crew was right, few ships ever came across it. So, how did they get clothing? Or even wood when there was nothing there?

This island made no sense.

The last boy, the one who talked, was doing something to my hair. Every so often I could feel him take strands before placing something.

I finally broke the long stretch of silence. "What does this ceremony involve?"

Unlike the others, he paused in his work. To the rest, I might have as well stayed silent.

"An elder will start the ceremony as you stand in front of the great Quetzalcoatl. Our beloved God will then grant you permission and it will start. The elder will present an hour-long prayer, before Ethecatl will gift you. Next comes the meal and finally the mating."

His fingers ran through the hair he had yet to put up as he continued his job. The ceremony sounded like it would take hours on hours to finish.

"What if your God doesn't approve?"

How could their God speak to them?

"You do not believe?" His were a question but I knew without looking that it was more of a statement from his end. "The ones before you didn't. They had their own beliefs, but Ethecatl is okay with that. It is Quetzalcoatl who you need to convince."

My nails bit harder into my palms.

"How many before me?"

"Five."

So many and he still wasn't happy.

"Were they all from your clan?" Or were they taken against their will as well?

"Ethecatl is not a bad Kulan. He is just trying to make sure that our clan can continue to survive as it has. It seems he only believes it can be with you."

I pressed my lips into a tight line at him somehow not seeing that it did make Ethecatl bad. Just how many had he forced without their permission? Was the island so easily found that it didn't matter what became of them?

He had to be stopped.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" I mumbled, not receiving a reply.

The sun soon started to warm up the tent, sweat slowly building. I watched them, while trying to come up with a way to escape. I had to do it before the ceremony but as none of them left, my options slowly started to get dimmer and dimmer.

My time was quickly running out.

The pain was cold as he started to work on my face. His fingers traced from my ear, to my chin, and to the other side. I pulled away, but find someone forcing me back.

When he finished, he left with the one that helped prepare the pain. Even with two of them gone, I still had to wait for the rest to follow. Long didn't pass before the dress was finished.

I pushed and stepped away, but desperate their youth both were strong. One held me while the other worked to get the dress on. I bite and thrashed against them, but in the end, somehow I found the fabric wrapped tightly around me.

Covering the clothing I already wore.

That was the only good thing it seemed. That I was hadn't been stripped naked. That I still had something that belonged to me; something I controlled.

He mumbled in his strange language, shaking his head before walking away. Three gone and now it was just me and the boy who spoke.

Could I get him see how wrong this was?

My answer came before I had the chance to open my mouth and spoke. The flap was opened and in walked the one responsible for everything. My blood boiled and I would have lunged had the boy not stopped me.

"What bring Ethecatl to see his mate before the ceremony?"

The air was filled with sparks, a clear uneasy and something else lining it. Even with how he spoke of his clan leader, did he have a hatred of the Kulan.

Ethecatl stood, dressed in fine clothing I never would have expected the island to have. The rich red and green flowing down in fabrics. It looked as if he belonged anywhere but there.

"Ethecatl wanted to see Ethecatl mate. It is a joyess day for us and Ethecatl wanted a moment alone."

"I'll kill you." I bared my teeth, a wild animal at that moment. "I swear to Davy Jones' I will kill you."

Ethecatl looked unaffected by my threat. "Bring my mate now. The ceremony will begin the second she gets there."

"It's not noon yet." Surprise coated the boys words and from the darken look on Ethecatl face, it seemed the clan leader didn't much care. "Yes, Ethecatl."

Now. I had to do it now. Would it be so hard to get free? To kill him before finding my crew?

Weren't they aware of the danger that I was in? Did it matter to them.

I was the one who got Rambrect killed. It was my fault.

Had I not decided to continue... Had I stayed with the group... Had I never joined them, he would still be alive.

It was my fault and they must blame me for it. And I couldn't fault them for that.

Ethecatl didn't leave right away. Instead he approached me, very slowly. He was weighing something that I couldn't decipher. I tried to lunge at him again, not caring that I didn't have a weapon and it would be two against one.

But the boys hands dug into my holds, holding me back. A restraint that stopped things from getting worse.

Ethecatl raised a hand, his thumb lightly touching my chin. He brought it up, slowly stopping at my lips before touching them.

I lunged, biting as hard as I could. I'll make him see the mistake he made thinking that I wouldn't fight back. That I would just continue.

Blood filled my mouth and it wasn't until something smashed into my face that I let out. Feeling an object in my mouth and a burning desire to puke, I spit out what I had. A finger fell onto the floor.

Satisfaction filled me as I looked at the man it belonged to. Pure anger filled his face that he was able to control. He had good control but somehow I doubted that would make him want to continue with the ceremony.

He grabbed thrown clothing, pressing it to his hand. "Ethecatl picked a good mate. Quetzalcoatl will accept this one."

He turned, as I watched with a burning anger. "I won't do this!" I shouted after him. "I'll kill you the second I get the chance, Ethecatl. And I don't, my crew. The crew you stole me from wont sit around ideally while you do as you please!"

Ethecatl paused a the flap before he cast a look. "Your crew is ash and is no longer a concern. You are no longer mateless."

The ground was hard and as he stepped out I could feel my body shaking. I didn't want this. I didn't want this.

But was there any hope? Could I find a way out? Did he do something to the others?

Of course, I could. I was Rachel Schmidt. Smuggler. Pirate.

And as George liked to say, the luckiest person alive and blessed by Davy Jones' from all the amount of times I was able to escape something other's couldn't.

I refused the boys help us, as i stared at the finger. Disgust that it was in my mouth filled me. The seconds changed and I knew minutes had passed.

It wasn't long enough. I needed longer. A lot longer.

The ground swayed under me as I stood, a pain shooting through my head. A remainder that someone had hit me. But with what?

Before I could focus on it, a noise outside grabbed my attention.

They were shouting in that same mysterious language. Something was happening. Something more then the dreaded wedding. Are they finally coming then?

I couldn't believe that they would fall to him. Not so easily.

"What are they shouting?"

The boy stepped around me to examine my head. He clicked his tongue.

"Another ship and small boats has appeared." He stared, making no move to touch it, even as he shook his head. "You will need something for the wound."

He looked at the front.

"You can go see what is happening." Now, if I can get him to go, would be a good time to leave. "If there's another ship, it might mean trouble."

"Ethecatl will fix it. We need to get you fixed up and taken to the ceremony."