For about a month, the two red-haired captains anchored together out at sea one hundred miles away from Hive Island. They dared not sail any closer, for already, the two crews had come across a few naval ships. It was clear the government was guarding the island.

During that month, the two crews sparred amongst themselves as they waited for their captains' orders. Already, news spread around the world that the Kirk and Flint Pirates had attacked a naval ship and were out at sea together but knew not what was going on other than a possible alliance.

The two Flint brothers were in Zach's quarters, talking about the problem they now faced with approaching Hive Island. So far, no plan had been formed. Although they had the sea serpent, Linda, on their side, they could not always rely on her. Already her looming shadow which always followed Zach's ship had disappeared.

Sat on the oak table between the two brothers was the sea crystal chest Kirk had stoled from the wealthy merchant on Harvest Island with the help of Jessica. He explained to his older brother what had happened that day. The lid was open, and hues of honey and gold glistened brightly and reflected off the walls of the dimly lit cabin.

Kirk propped his feet up against the round oak table as he waited for his brother to say something. The dry mud that had accumulated on his brown leather shoes crumbled onto the table like wet sand.

"Take your feet off the table!" Zach scowled towards his younger brother. "Didn't mother teach you any manners?"

Kirk slumped his feet off the table with a thud. "Mother never liked me. She always went on about you and your amazing adventures as a pirate of Blackbeard's crew. The second I mentioned wanting to be a pirate, she whacked me across the back of the head."

"Too right. You were an ill and weak child, Ruben. It wasn't that mother didn't want you to be a pirate. It's in our blood to be one; she was the famous Captain Bonny Flint. She didn't want to watch you die because she knew you weren't strong enough to be a pirate without getting yourself killed."

Kirk growled under his breath as his amber eyes lit with a dark flame. "Now look at me. My health is fine, and I'm stronger than ever. You and mother were worried over nothing."

Zach scowled at his younger brother. He was too cocky for his own good, thinking he could take the world on by himself. He needed to teach his brother a lesson. Not everything could be given to him in the palm of his hand.

"Having a cursed soul is not something to be proud of. It may have made you stronger, but even cursed souls have their weakness, and when the shackles come on..."

Out of nowhere, Zachary snapped a sea-crystal clasp onto his younger brother's wrist. Instantly, the colour drained from Kirk's face as his energy was sucked away from him. His breathing became heavy, and he soon started to sweat all over. His free weak hand attempted to claw at the shackle on his wrist until his energy was all gone and he fell upon the oak table, tired and unable to move.

"... your body becomes weakened, making you weaker than you were before your soul became cursed." Zach fell back against his chair and watched his brother, useless and incapable of movement. "You're far from strong. You need to be able to fight if you ever find yourself in the situation you're in now. You can't always rely on your cursed soul!"

"I get it!" Kirk choked. "I'm not bulletproof. Please, take it off!"

Zach took the clasp off, and his younger brother took in a deep breath as he replenished his strength with a quiet loathing in his amber eyes.

"Don't ever do that again!" Kirk growled and sent a loose screw from the wooden paneling of the ship flying towards his older brother.

In an instant, Zach had unsheathed his red-bladed cutlass from his sash, and he deflected the object, sending it flying across the room, a dark, sinister look in his bronze eyes.

Kirk could feel a powerful wrath emitting from his older brother, and he finally saw the man that was the feared Pirate Lord. Despite not having a cursed soul, Zach was a thousand times stronger than Kirk, if not more. His older brother was right; he was far from strong, but he could make himself stronger.

The moment reminded Kirk of the day when he first met Jessica, when she had repelled a bullet with her sword. Like father like daughter. They were the same, right down to the emotionless looks in their eyes when fighting their opponents.

Kirk laughed, a rumble that bubbled up from the back of his throat.

"What's so funny?" Zach sheathed his sword.

"You and Jessica are the same." Kirk reminisced to his older brother of the day he first met Little Red and their time together on Harvest Island.

Every second Zach's stoic face relaxed into a cheerful grin, a grin that resembled Jessica's.

Zach had taught his daughter how to use the sword when he last saw her. He was happy to hear that his daughter still practiced, and from what Kirk had told him, she had made up some of her own spirit attacks.

He couldn't be prouder of her. However, the mention of Azalea had him worried sick, his stomach churning unpleasantly. He still didn't know why Hive Island was now secretly in the government's control. The island used to be an kingdom independent from the government. If they joined the United Islands, wouldn't such news have been in the papers?

Zach always read the newspapers. Information could be used as a weapon, another lesson he had taught his daughter, but nowhere had he read that Hive Island was now a part of the government. This thought made him feel even more unpleasant than he had been. What was the government doing on Hive Island?

He needed to find answers and work out what was going on, then he could help his daughter. He had to be at Halfway Point by the summer solstice. That was a month from now, but his daughter came first. He had no other choice than to ask his brother.

"I need to ask two favours of you."

Kirk looked uncertain with his older brother's request. "It depends on the situations."

"Bring Azalea back to me on Hive Island."

Kirk couldn't help but smile. He missed Jessica a lot and looked forward to their next meeting. She was always fun to be around.

"Of course, I'll bring Little Red back to you." He raked his hand through his crimson hair, knocking his goggles off in the process. "And the second favour?"

Kirk leaned over to pick up his orange goggles, a gift his brother once gave to him a long time ago and had been unable to part with ever since. It had been like a family tradition; he had given Jessica a pair of goggles the day he left her on Harvest Island. The thought made him smile even more knowing she was a blood relative.

"I need to go to Hive Island and find out what happened there. What forced my daughter to flee her homeland? I believe the woman in this locket will give me the answers to my questions."

Zach rummaged through his pockets until he found his honey gold locket with the bee engraving. He flicked it open to reveal a picture of his daughter and a woman with raven hair.

"Before you meet with me on Hive Island and after retrieving Azalea, I need you to go to Halfway Point." Zach snapped the locket shut. "The Pirate King has called forth the Brethren Court on the summer solstice. I need you to go in my place."

"Eh?" Kirk's mouth hung wide open, completely speechless.

His eyes were distant as he stared at nothing in particular. Zach looked behind him and back at his little brother, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Ruben?" Zach questioned. "I need you to take this seriously."

Kirk finally came back to reality and gulped. "I don't think I'm capable of such a favour. I'm still only a rookie pirate in comparison to the likes of someone like you and the Brethren Court. I'll make a fool of myself."

Zach smirked, "You're the only person I trust with my position. It's not as bad as you think it is. I'll make sure you know what you have to do and say at the meeting before you head off. Bart's a Pirate Lord as well, so I will have him go with you and... " Zach thought for a moment as he rubbed his temples. "... and Sam."

"I understand why Bart would come with me, being a Pirate Lord an all, but why Samantha Bellamy? She's just one of your cabin crew. Nothin' special about her."

"I don't choose random people to be a part of my crew. Sam is unique and not to be taken lightly. Like yourself, she's is a cursed soul. She can manipulate ice." Zach smiled knowingly. "Ten years ago, I met a seven-year-old boy on Sunrise Island who had extensive knowledge of cursed souls, and he had multiple cursed souls. To my surprise, he always wore a sea crystal bracelet until he needed to use his powers. He had taught himself to tolerate the touch of sea crystals so that he could still fight unhindered. My point is that when Sam joined my crew two years ago, I taught her to tolerate sea crystals so that she could still fight. She can last a week before she collapses from exhaustion. She will teach you. You have until the summer solstice to learn - the call of the Brethren court always brings forth our enemies from all around the world. You need to watch your back."

Kirk gave in and nodded in understanding. He had no say against his brother, and he knew Zach's crew would follow his orders. He had no choice but to welcome Bart and Sam onto his ship, as much as he didn't like the idea. At least being at the Pirate King's council was one way of gaining a reputation as a pirate. Plus, it was always good being in Blackbeard's good graces.

"Then it's settled." The two brothers shook hands in agreement.

"You still have the problem of passing all the naval ships that are surrounding the seas of Hive Island," Kirk reminded.

"That is a problem." Zach steepled his hands in front of his lips as he leaned forward against the table and thought deeply to himself. "We can't always rely on Linda. She's disappeared, anyway." He reached out to the small sea crystal box and played with some of the honey gold items within it. Disgusted by the sight of it, he slammed the lid shut. "If only there were a way to hide my ship from the enemy!"

Meanwhile, stood outside the captain's quarters were the two first mates, Bart Roberts and Cain Reed, both of them with their ears pressed up against the wooden door in an attempt to eavesdrop on their captains.

Cain felt annoyed that his captain had not mentioned he was a Flint. Some of the most feared pirates to sail the seas of Aqua were the Flints. So why would Kirk hide something like that? It bothered him that his captain would keep such vital information from him.

"You shouldn't be annoyed with your captain." A cloud of smoke puffed out from Bart's mouth, and he took a drag from his cigar. "You try competing with a brother like Captain Zachary Flint. Ruben only wants to make his own name out at sea without the Flint legacy shadowing over him."

Cain flinched at the name Ruben; he wasn't accustomed to it. His captain was always known as Kirk to him, not Ruben. However, the older pirate had a point.

"I suppose that's true." Cain walked away from the cabin door, having given up on trying to listen in on his captain. "Still, a heads up would have been nice."

Cain sat down on the wooden railing, his legs hanging over the edge, kicking playfully like a child on a swing as he thought to himself. He thought back to the first day he met Kirk. It was over a year ago at Doombar's Cove, a tavern at Halfway Point.

The two of them found themselves in the midst of a pub brawl fighting between themselves. Cain couldn't even remember what they were fighting over anymore, but before they knew it, the two of them were laughing over the thing they were fighting over. It was the start of a friendship and the start of Kirk's pirate crew. He'd always been by his side.

But now as he sat on the railing of Flint's ship, he felt useless and unimportant in comparison. All he was good for was cutting down his enemies with his daggers. He had no other talent that was helpful to Kirk. He wanted to be better, to be stronger and more useful to his captain. He would do anything to help his captain succeed in completing his dreams, even if it meant selling his soul to the devil.

"I can help you!" a cool whisper said to him over the ocean breeze.

Cain frowned as he looked around him. Nobody was near him except Bart, who was still at the door of his captain's quarters. To his amazement, Bart looked frozen and had turned a whispery black and white colour. As Cain looked over the deck, everyone was moving at an incredibly slow pace and were the same whispery black and white colour as Bart.

"Don't be afraid; I've temporarily placed your soul into my astral field. Only a selected few people in the world are capable of accessing their astral fields." The cool whisper returned, freaking Cain out. "You can speak to me as you please and time will have hardly passed in the real world. Not even a second will have gone by."

Cain shook his head as he looked back down at the ocean below him. He must have been hearing and seeing things.

"I'm as real as you are," the whisper spoke out.

This time, it was evident that it was the voice of a woman. A soft-spoken woman like a siren, luring him to his death. Already, Cain was fascinated by her as he looked around for her.

Where was she?

"Over here." The whisper was playing with him.

Cain jumped down onto the deck and noticed a white, wispy energy dancing around him. "Who are you?"

"I have many names, but you may know me as Morgana."

Cain stiffened and stepped back from the dancing energy. "As in the Sea Witch?"

"The one and only."

The white energy formed into the shape of a woman with long, cascading white hair which seemed to reflect light, a revealing white dress, dark, inky blue skin, bright green lips, and soft purple eyes. Cain had never seen anything like it before in his life, but she was incredibly beautiful and somewhat familiar to him.

"What do you want with me?" He stammered backing away from her.

"You want to help your captain, but you don't feel strong enough," Morgana cooed. "I can help you. I know what the Flint brothers need. They need a way to hide their ship. I can give you a gift that can help. The choice is yours and only yours, but in return, I require half of your soul."

"My soul?"

Morgana nodded. "I'll give you time to think it over."

Meanwhile, Bart continued to listen in on his captain, managing to overhear the odd word now and then. He even heard his name mentioned a couple of times, which intrigued him.

When out of nowhere, Cain came crashing into him, knocking his cigar out from his mouth when he was hit in the stomach and knocked over onto the deck. He frowned, looking up at the deranged looking first mate of the Kirk Pirates.

He lit a fresh cigar as he watched Cain. The blonde pirate was in a crazed state of mind as he frantically looked around him.

Was he mad with cabin fever?

The cigar once again fell from his lips when Cain fell to the deck in a fit. His eyes clouded over and his veins darkened beneath the surface of his sickly pale skin. What was happening to him? Without further thinking, Bart immediately slammed his fists against the captain's quarters, yelling at him to come out.

"Cap'n!" Bart shouted.

After a couple more slams, the door burst open.

"What's wrong?" Zach questioned.

Zach worked it out for himself when he immediately sensed an unpleasant feeling in the air, and a frown formed across his brow as his gazed down on his little brother's first mate. A crowd had gathered around, attempting to help him.

However, he could no longer be saved. Cain had made his choice, and there was nothing Zach could do but watch on with a deep scowl on his face.

Unlike everyone else, Zach had the ability to enter his and others astral fields - a talent which took years of practice and deep concentration. He could see the astral form of Morgana floating above Cain's shaking body. A shining light escaped from his parted mouth as she sucked a part of his soul from him, like a succubus preying on a sleeping man, and replaced it with a dark unnatural energy.

His younger brother immediately ran over to his first mate's side and called for the doctor of the ship.

Nobody could see Morgana other than Zachary Flint or whoever she invited into the astral field. She slowly looked up slyly, smirking as she licked her grass green lips, and walked towards Zach, her hips swinging from side to side in an entrancing manner.

"Hello, Zach. We meet again." He shivered when he felt the touch of her hand across his cheek, and she affectionately stroked him. "Don't look so distasteful. You should be grateful. Now, you have a way to hide your ship from the navy."

"Begone, Morgana!" Zach seethed through his teeth and clutched onto his cutlass in warning. She might be a powerful witch, but some of his attacks still worked on her.

"Your soul will be mine one day!" She softly laughed before vanishing. "That is a promise."

He hated her and what she did to people for her own selfish reasons. Zach approached Cain, who was slowly coming to. He rubbed his head, blinking around him rapidly.

"Do you remember what happened to you?" Zach strode towards him, sheathing his sword.

Cain thought back to the incident but ended up shaking his head. "The last thing I remember was talking to Bart. What happened to me?"

"You've become a cursed soul," Zach said bluntly, and he marched off to his quarters, a deep scowl on his face.

Of course, Cain would not remember. Nobody ever did remember the choice they made or how their soul became cursed. To them, it was just something that happened spontaneously, but he and Levi knew differently. They knew the truth, and there was much more to it than taking half a soul.

Kirk's amber eyes trailed after his older brother as he walked back to his quarters and slammed the door behind him. He wondered what that was about. Not much made his older brother angry but something about cursed souls had Zach cursing through his teeth.

Kirk heaved a sigh and rubbed his eyes. He would deal with his older brother later. His priority was his first mate. If his brother was right, then Cain was now a cursed soul just like himself.

Kirk couldn't help but smile. To have another cursed soul on his ship would make his crew more powerful. He couldn't be happier. However, when he turned to look back at his first mate, he was nowhere to be found.

"Cain, where'd you go?"