The following morning, Blood looked at a flock of screeching seagulls at the crack of dawn on the back of a sand-coloured destrier with his black hood pulled up. "We're close to the shores, those birds will show the way."

Kiera followed behind on Ghost with her hood up while she waited for the chilly air to heat up by the rising sun. "Who is this man we're about to meet? Some sort of mercenary?"

Blood clicked his tongue to order his horse to continue walking. "You could say that. He always does things for gold."

"How is he going to help us?" Kiera asked further, taking a sip from her leather canteen.

"He has a crew." Blood answered, "Without his help, we're outnumbered."

"Well, I hope your friend knows what he's doing."

Blood let out a little smirk, "Oh, he does." and then took a halt, scanning the horizon. Kiera caught up and then saw it too. The ocean stretched as far as the eye could see, across the entire horizon. Kiera could smell the salty water, too.

"Here we are." Blood said. He then pointed toward a group of palm trees surrounded by solid rocks on the beach. "We'll set up camp there and wait for Valmir."

"Okay. Sounds like a plan." Kiera said, scanning the horizon herself. "How do you know where they took them?"

Blood rode down the hill into the sandy beach as Kiera followed him. "They took them to Merc's Bay. It's governed by a notorious bandit leader named Frejya and has the only harbour in Volaria that allows you to kidnap people openly and without repercussions."

"Why doesn't the king just send his army down there?" Kiera asked, the sound of the crashing waves sending her into a more calming state.

As they reached the camping spot, Blood dismounted with a grunt. "He tried once, but the cove is surrounded by cliffs and rocks, impossible for an army to reach without exposing themselves to ambushes. He almost lost half of his men before even getting close to Merc's Bay, so he retreated, and left the cove alone. As long as they don't attack his men."

Kiera tied Ghost's reins on the trunk of a palm tree, and another wave of worry struck her heart. "And they took Elynn down there? What do you think they do to them?"

Blood sighed, unpacking the saddlebags off his horse. "Do you always ask so many questions?"

Slightly offended, Kiera held her hands on her hips and didn't know what to say. "I--don't know? Hey, I'm sorry for worrying about my friend, okay?" she said defensively, turning around and facing the rest of the long stretching shore, lowering her voice again. "I never asked for this."

The Hinos rolled his eyes and then turned to Kiera. "You know your friend better than I do. If she's smart, she will stay out of trouble." he then shifted his attention to making a fire. "Instead of worrying, we should be constructing a plan. First, we need to take a look for ourselves. Valmir isn't going to be here before midfall. Gives us some time to scout the area."

Kiera nodded, "You're right. Elynn is smart. Elves are smart."

Blood stood up as the fire ignited, spewing a gentle smoke with floating embers. "Look, when we save Aldrin and your friend, we can go our separate ways. You don't have the Guardian anymore. If we want to beat Hahvulon, we will need the armies of kings. Not treasure hunters." he walked back to his horse, "Are you coming?"

Kiera still had something on her mind, especially after what he had just said. "Hey, wait."

He turned back to her before mounting up. "Yes?"

"Back in Jiron, when I first touched that gem, my whole body felt odd, like a strange sense of familiarity. Almost like a childhood memory coming back to me."

Blood squinted his slit pupilled eyes. "That is possible, the Guardian has the ability to manipulate their holder."

"That's not it." Kiera added, "They knew my name, and they told me I am the key to humanity's survival. Was that manipulation too?"

Blood's eyes widened softly as he paused. "Are you sure?"

"I am." Kiera answered, determined, "Their voice sounded as clear as day inside my head. And when they transformed back in the ruins, they had the exact same voice. I would not forget something like this."

Blood began visually thinking before coming up with an answer. "For the first time in years, I am uncertain what to make of something. Let me reflect on this for a while, for now, let's go scout Merc's Bay."

"Lead the way," Kiera said, unhitching Ghost before jamming her foot in the stirrup and mounting him. The pair rode along the shores for about thirty minutes before seeing the cliffs in the distance.

"You've been quiet." Blood said while keeping his eyes on the shores ahead. "Something troubling your mind? I need you to be alert, we're treading dangerous territory."

"I just can't understand why I am so important to Neru. I'm a simple lowlife girl, no high blood, and I'm a thief." Kiera sighed.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Blood answered, "But the Guardian belongs to Hahvulon now. The only way we can get them back is by ripping them from his hands. So we will have to figure it out ourselves."

"Do you have a plan?" Kiera asked.

"I didn't until you told me about the Guardian thinking you were so important. As I said, once we save our friends, we will find out more about you." Blood said before taking a halt and locking his eyes on a rocky mountain ahead. "Beyond that lies Merc's Bay. We climb that mountain high enough to get a good view of the place."

"Alright." Kiera sighed. About an hour later, Kiera and Blood crouched on the side of the mountain, overlooking the entire cove. Blood looked through a spyglass. The bay was host to many shacks and wooden houses. Many of them were even built alongside the rocky walls of the mountain surrounding the bay, linked together with improvised stairs and bridges and towering foundations that didn't really look that safe. Yet the cove was bustling with activity. People mingled amongst each other, running stalls and trading goods. There were even armed guards patrolling everywhere.

"Can't see our friends yet." Blood mumbled, looking closer to the piers where three ships were anchored. One of them began departing. "One ship is leaving, but that bear sigil, it's a Blackbear ship."

"What's an Eryan ship doing all the way here at the farthest end of Volaria?" Kiera pondered.

"I don't know, but they don't have Aldrin or your friend." Blood answered, scanning the cove a little more.

Suddenly, Kiera saw a ship show up from behind the cliffs, rolling into the bay. "There's a ship coming in now. You see it?"

Blood averted his spyglass towards the ship and grunted, standing up after realising what it was. "I know that sigil. No, it can't be. I haven't seen that symbol since our extinction."

"What? Talk to me here." Kiera stood up as well, raising her voice impatiently.

"That thorned rose, Hahvulon is creating an army called the Touch of Shadows. If he takes them on board that ship and we lose them, we're never finding our friends again."

"Okay, so what do we do?" Kiera asked with quick words, her breath quickening as she looked toward the distant approaching ship.

Blood grunted, "We need to get back and wait for Valmir to arrive. I wish it didn't have to come to this, but everything rests on that pirate captain and his punctuality now. Let's go."

"Right behind you!" Kiera huffed, looking back one last time with frowned eyebrows before following the Hinos back down the mountain. Upon reaching its foot, they both unhitched their horse and jumped on them. "Come on, Ghost. Double time!" Kiera yelled as she whipped the reins, following Blood along the shoreline back to camp, feeling the wind brush through her hair and whistle past her ears.

"Is he going to be there?!" Kiera shouted, but Blood didn't reply as he was too focused on the path ahead. That ride back felt like the longest ride ever made for Kiera. All she could think about was what they would do with Elynn once she was out of reach. When the pair were getting close to their camp, they heard something in the distance. Explosions? Kiera knew she wasn't crazy when Blood raised his head, too.

"You hear that?" he asked, slowing down a bit.

"Sounds like explosions," Kiera mumbled, looking around. But it sounded like it came from the ocean. When Blood turned his gaze towards the sea, his eyes widened, and he inhaled sharply. Several ships could be seen crisscrossing in the far distance, along with the smoke of cannon fire, explaining the explosion sounds. Kiera's heart sunk to her boots.

Release the anchor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nidjCSfIz3w

"Don't tell me that's your friend." Kiera sighed.

"How...HOW?!" Blood hissed loudly, clenching his fists. His hiss mixed with a growl intimidated Kiera a bit. "How did they know?!" Blood yelled again, glaring at the naval battle. But it wasn't over yet. While Blood outed his frustration, Kiera noticed another pair of ships approach the shores at full sail. But they were fighting as well. "Blood, look!"

He turned towards the ships, one of them bearing black sails with a winged skull sigil and released a sigh of relief. "That's him, but his fleet is under attack. Get ready to board."

"What about the horses?" Kiera asked. He already dismounted and slapped the butt of his horse with full force to send it running away.

"We can look for them later. Do you want to save your friend or not?" Blood hissed, waving towards the ship.

"Are you kidding? Of course." Kiera scoffed, jumping off Ghost and giving him a slap as well, commanding him to bolt. The ship chasing Valmir fired its front cannon, shooting a hole through its sails.

"Grab my arm." Blood commanded, spreading and planting his feet into the sand.

"What?" Kiera was confused, but he insisted. "Just grab my arm!"

Kiera clasped down his steel gauntlet as the Hinos locked his eyes onto Valmir's ship and held his other arm forward, curling his fingers.

"Come on." he clenched his fangs, his eyes oozing with purple smoke. This magical smoke enshrouded his hands, arms, and whole body. Kiera noticed it spread to her arm as well, and then a flash. Both Blood and Kiera dissolved into smoke, and it soared towards the ship. When it landed on top of the deck, they appeared again, and Kiera fell forward onto the deck. Blood descended into a kneel. Kiera instantly inspected her shaking hands. For a split second, she lost consciousness, but she was on the ship instead of the shores this time.

"What just happened?" Kiera mumbled to herself. The explosions suddenly sounded way louder than before. When she looked up, tens of crew members surrounded her, carrying cannonballs, pulling ropes together, shouting commands at each other, carrying buckets, and more. Chaos reigned over this ship. "Close the holes!", "They're on board, full sail!" it reverberated. Finally, Kiera regained composure and turned to Blood, who looked at a man walking down the steps of the helm's deck. Blonde, wet hair, blonde stubble, and snow-white iris eyes. Two curved swords were fixed onto his belt, and the cloth scarfs and skirts underneath his leather waistcoat fluttered in the wind. He corrected his leather shoulder pads and smiled at Blood.

"Old friend. Told you I would come." His voice, for a pirate, seemed a lot more posh and sophisticated than Kiera thought it would.

"How did they know about you?" Blood asked, noticing a storm brewing in the distance.

Kiera flinched after another cannon fired from the stern chasers, holding onto the mast as the ship rocked over the waves.

"I do not know." Valmir responded, "But there's no time for squabbling, we have to save my fleet first. That girl know how to fight?" he looked at Kiera, who stepped forward and took her bow from her torso. "Yes. Tell me what to do." she said determined, clenching her hand around the handle of her bow.

"Good." Valmir nodded, then turned to his crew. "Alright lads, load the portside cannons and prepare to drop anchor!"

The crew did as Valmir commanded, working hard to load all the cannons at once. "Time to turn the tides! Valmir looked at Kiera. "As for you, just hold on for now."

"Got it." Kiera nodded firmly as the intensifying wind pushed the ship through the bulging sails, further into the sea. Though, one question soared through Kiera's mind. Why was he preparing the anchor? The chasing ship didn't give up, firing cannon after cannon from their front but unable to gain on Valmir. As his ship sailed towards the naval battle, a distant rumble in the skies grabbed Kiera's attention. "Oh great," she mumbled to herself. She felt her stomach turn as the waves grew more prominent.

"On my go, release the anchor and hold fast!" Valmir shouted, spinning the helm with great force.

Kiera crouched down, barely holding on. She noticed Blood was close to her, holding on to the railings as well. "What the bloody hell is going to do?!"

"I don't know, don't ask me!" Blood grunted, feeling the first drops of rain on his scales.

"Steadyyy!" Valmir looked towards the chasing ship.

"We're taking too much damage, captain!" one of the crew members shouted.

"RELEASE!"

The anchor dropped into the water, and as soon as it hit the bottom of the ocean, the speeding ship lifted its bow off the surface, sending everyone to the floor, despite holding on, and turned its side to the chasing ship in a matter of seconds.

"Fire the cannons! Fireeee!" Valmir yelled, almost screamed. Then, simultaneously, the crew members fired almost every cannon on portside, sending ten, twenty, no, at least thirty heavy cannonballs into the enemy ship's hull, obliterating them. Their mast cracked in half and crashed down on top of the enemy sailors and the ship's hull flooded with water.

"HAHAHAAA! Reel in anchor! Now we're saving our brethren. Well done lads!" Valmir cheered excitingly.

"You are fucking crazy, Valmir." Blood exclaimed, picking himself up while the crew began raising the anchor again. Kiera stood up as well, banged up from the fall.

"What in Mora's hell was that?" Kiera sighed, her leather corset and white cloth undergarments soaked with water. A flash of lightning followed by rumbling thunder lit up the skies. "Your friend is mad!"

"Tell me about it!" Blood replied with a smirk, looking at the other ships Valmir began sailing towards, then turned to his friend captain. "We have to hurry, that ship can leave the cove any moment!"

"Patience lad!" Valmir said, holding onto the helm's wheel. "You have your friends, I have mine. Worry not, that vessel will not get out of that bay in one piece. You have my word."

"Good." Blood nodded and reached his back to unhook his steel double-headed battle axe, holding it unphased with one hand. Kiera looked at him, confused, wondering how he could walk around with such a giant weapon and act like it weighed nothing. She then continued to focus on the naval battle ahead. Thunder and the loud crashing of waves partially masked the explosions of all the cannons as Valmir approached one of the enemy ships engaging his fleet. By then, it began raining buckets.

"Everyone brace yourselves and get ready to board!" Valmir shouted. At that point, Kiera realised the pirate captain planned to ram into the fast-approaching enemy vessel.

"Fuck sake.." Kiera muttered, her face and hair drenched with water as she held onto her bow and to the steel railing with the other hand, crouching down.

"Braaaace!" Valmir said, finally bracing himself too as his ship closed onto the enemy's side. What followed was an ear-deafening, cracking sound as the steel bow of the ship burrowed into the side of the enemy vessel. Kiera held on better this time, learning from the anchor incident earlier, and managed to stay put as Valmir's men began leaping towards the other ship and swinging on ropes.

"Attaaaaack!" Valmir screamed, raising his curved sword and running down the stairs. The cling-clang of clashing swords quickly followed. This was it. The moment of truth. The cannon fire almost blended in with the thunder at this point as Kiera took an arrow from her back quiver and nocked it, pulled the string and aimed it towards someone across on the other ship. However, it was hard to distinguish friend from foe.

"Damnit!" Kiera panted in adrenaline, flinching every time a cannon was fired around her. The cannon explosions sounded louder and louder, as well as the screams of dying men until she could do nothing else but dart her eyes around with dilated pupils. Kiera didn't notice a bunch of enemies boarding Valmir's ship as well until someone suddenly bashed into her, sending her to the ground. Winded and completely disoriented, Kiera instinctively scratched the man's face as she tried to reach for her dagger, but she laid on her back, thus also on her blade. The man sent his face across her cheek before wrapping his hands around her neck, squeezing so hard she felt her final breath pinch out of her. Other than releasing desperate squeaks and failed grunts, she felt helpless and light-headed for the first time, and the only thing she saw was the sight of the man's bloodlust expression. She then saw stars forming in her vision, and right before she felt herself softly slip away, the tip of a bloody sword pierced through his neck, sending splatters of blood all across her face. His grip loosened, and she instantly gasped for air. When the blade retracted, he fell limp on her body. Behind him stood Valmir, covered in blood, offering his hand. "Get up, girl! We've got fightin' to do!"

Kiera coughed and rubbed her neck before taking his hand, helping him pull her up. She then noticed the flames around her, flinching again when another lightning and thunder hit. "If you cannot fight, climb down the hatch towards the crew's quarters!" Valmir yelled through the ear-deafening sounds.

Kiera looked at him as if she saw a ghost and nodded. "Y-yes." Valmir left to continue fighting while she stumbled towards the hatch in the deck, falling to her knees again when a cannonball hit Valmir's ship, forcing a yelp out of her. She opened the hatch and crawled in, stumbling down the ladder and closing the hatch above her. She thought it would be quieter there, but instead, she was greeted by sailors yelling at each other to seal holes, carrying crates and cannonballs. They ignored her as she meekly squeezed through them, feeling the walls close in, and having difficulties breathing. Panting and shaking heavily, every ounce of her body told her to hide. She lost control of her whole body before crawling underneath a bunk bed, pressing her hands on her ears and whimpering. She just wanted it to be over. She just wanted it to be over. Please let it be over.

Back outside, Blood stood on the enemy ship's deck and swung his axe with a loud hissing grunt, beheading someone instantly. He was attacked by two others, tanking a sword slash bouncing off his chest armour before grabbing them by the collar and throwing them against the other, wrapping a second hand around his axe and swinging it overhead before bringing it down again with all of his might, accompanied by an intimidating roar. The force of his axe sent blood splatters so high up they reached his forehead. He then saw the enemy captain on the helm of his ship, fighting off Valmir's men. He growled, squinted his eyes and began marching towards him. Eventually, someone tried to attack him, but he brushed them off like they were ants. He stomped up the stairs, and when the captain killed all three of Valmir's crew members, he turned to Blood, smirking and holding his sword in front of him. But that smirk quickly turned to shock when he saw his true nature.

"You're Hinos?" he took a step back, but Blood didn't stop. He grabbed the captain's sword arm with a determined and bloodied gaze and pinned him against the railing.

"Who are you? Who are you working for?" if looks could kill, Blood would've killed this man.

"I don't understand...you're Hinos...why are you fighting us?" the captain asked, glancing beneath him in fear, only seeing the ocean waves crashing against his ship. Blood wasn't taking any of his stalling and grabbed the man's ear, pulling so hard it nearly ripped off. The man screamed.

"WHO ARE YOU WORKING FOR?" Blood roared.

"The Touch of Shadows!" the captain whined, "We're working for a man named Urvel!"

"How did you know about Valmir's arriving fleet?" Blood asked more.

"I don't know, I swear to you! Urvel received that information from someone outside. A pirate!"

Blood growled and threw the man overboard before turning back towards the fight. It looked like Valmir's crew won as they killed off the last remaining enemies, while others fled by jumping overboard into the sea. The other enemy ships turned and sailed away, too. But he couldn't see Valmir. He hooked his axe on his back strap again.

"Where is Valmir?" he yelled at some crew members, but they shrugged and looked around. Blood walked down the stairs and glanced at every sailor. "Where is your captain?" Still, none could give him an answer. Suddenly, Valmir's posh voice sounded behind him.

"Hahahaaa! Are you seeing that? They're fleeing!" Blood turned around and pushed his forearm against Valmir's throat, pinning him against the door of the captain's quarters. "After all these years you betray me?" he hissed. Valmir eyed Blood intensively, stretching his neck uncomfortably. "What do you mean?" he asked with clenched teeth.

"You know what I am talking about. The captain I just killed told me the only reason they knew about your help is because a pirate told him." he pushed even harder onto Valmir's throat, forcing a grunt out of him. "No one else but you knew of our plan."

Valmir forced a soft, squeaky chuckle through his windpipe. "You seem to forget I have a whole fleet of captains working for me, Blood. Who's to say they didn't betray me, too?"

"Ship leaving the cove!" one of the crew members shouted.

Blood turned his head slightly. "We will talk about this later." and let go of Valmir's throat.

"Do you Hinos always have such temper?" Valmir rubbed his neck, "Alright lads, onto the Alyssum! We have one last ship to intercept! And repair those bloody holes!"

He walked past Blood, but not before saying one last thing. "Question my loyalty as your friend again, and next time you need help, you can kiss my arse." He, Blood, and the rest of the crew crossed to Valmir's ship again.

"Batten down the hatches and full sail! We need to gain on that ship!" The pirate captain shouted, reaching the helm and spinning it to turn the ship towards the vessel far ahead. Blood looked around, confused. "Has anyone seen a girl with a bow?"

One of the sailors approached Blood. "Aye, I was down the crew's quarters when I saw her. She seemed pretty shaken."

Blood sighed and went down the hatch into the ship's deck. "Kiera?" He went to every bed, looking behind it, underneath it, until he finally saw her, sitting on a bed, clasping down the wooden bed support of the bed above, staring in front of her with glazed-over eyes.

"Kiera? Are you okay?" Blood asked carefully. She looked at him in fear with shifty movements.

"Fuck." he mumbled, coming closer slowly. "We've won the battle. We are now chasing the ship of your friend, Elynn. Soon, they will be freed."

"I'm s-sorry, I couldn't..." Kiera stuttered, blinking rapidly, the blood of the man that tried to kill her still on her face. He stopped a sailor when he tried to walk past. "You, grab a bucket of water for her." he nodded and walked further as Blood approached, sitting on the bed across from her. The narrowness of the corridor didn't make it matter much.

"I killed before to protect myself..." Kiera muttered, "But somehow those blaring cannons, the screams, the fire..." she stared in front of her as if recollecting all those images, "It was all too much." She then looked up towards Blood. The glazed over look in her eyes was gone. "I'm sorry for letting you down. It won't happen again."

"I remember my first time too. It was thousands of years ago, but I still remember it like it was yesterday." he then stood up, his steel armour clinging. "I wish we could talk more, but Valmir can engage Hahvulon's fleeing ship any moment. You don't have to come if you're not ready."

But Kiera took a deep breath and stood up, taking her bow from the ground and clenching her fist around it. "I'm saving Elynn."

Blood smirked and nodded. "Good. Let's go then." The pair went back up through the hatch outside, greeted by pouring rain and loud crashing waves. Blood immediately scanned around for the ship, and they were closer than he thought. Valmir stood behind the helm, screaming orders at his men. He stumbled up the stairs, needing a lot of focus to keep his balance on the heavily rocking ship.

"Make sure not to fire your cannons! We can't afford Aldrin and Elynn to be hit." Blood yelled, clasping on the railing.

"I know, Blood. I told the other captains to surround them so we can board without damaging it! Now please leave me be I need to focus."

"Right. Just get it done." Blood commanded before walking down again onto the main deck, shielding his face from the stinging rain while looking at the fleeing vessel. "Something's not right," he muttered to himself. He then turned towards the working crew members, inspecting them. Some were just carrying out Valmir's orders, pulling ropes and maintaining the hull's integrity, and then he noticed it. Some whispered among each other and acted shiftily. His concern grew even bigger when he met eyes with one of them, staring at him as if he were the enemy. One sentence rang around in his mind over and over again. Never trust a pirate. His paranoid trance made him flinch when Kiera showed up next to him.

"We really picked the worst day to get on a ship didn't we?" Kiera said with a raised voice, holding onto the edge railings for dear life.

"We did." Blood said, eyeing sailor after sailor, lost in thoughts.

"Everything okay?" Kiera asked, clearly noticing something was wrong.

"Stay close to me." Blood commanded while he began his walk towards the pirate captain. Kiera followed but was confused. He walked up the stairs again, halting next to Valmir, overlooking the main deck.

"You weren't born a pirate, I know that. So you must have noticed by now something is wrong with your men." Blood growled.

"Can someone tell me what's on?" Kiera yelled. Blood saw all of Valmir's crew members begin looking at him and the captain. The Hinos wasn't waiting around to get killed and unhooked his battle axe. "Kiera, now is the time to use that bow of yours!"

Valmir knew what Blood meant because he noticed it too. Even worse, if his crew defected, the whole fleet probably did as well. In a fraction of a second, the tides had turned completely, and it was Valmir, Blood, and Kiera against an entire fleet of the Touch of Shadows.

The Touch of Shadows https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUSbQG3KVx0

Kiera dashed forward to overlook the deck and nocked an arrow when the entire crew started charging toward the three, screaming with swords in their hands. Kiera drew her string and sent an arrow straight into a man's shoulder, sending him tumbling down the stairs again. Blood and Valmir each took a staircase. The high ground was vital at that point. As the sailors ran up the stairs, Blood used his one free hand to send a magical shockwave, sending a group of five down to the ground before swinging his axe to cleave the enemies replacing their position. "Keep firing, Kiera!" he groaned. Kiera already had another arrow ready and sent it into a crew member's heart, killing him nearly instantly. She nocked a third arrow, but a massive wave made her and many others lose balance, and she fell to the ground, clinging onto her bow.

"You fucking cunts!" Valmir screamed, clashing his two swords with his own men on top of the stairs. This wasn't going to work. There were too many. Kiera cluttered back up, her face dripping as she looked at the helm and got an idea.

"Hold them off! I have an idea!" Kiera yelled, wrapping her bow around her torso again and grabbing the ship's wheel.

"Kiera no! Just keep using your bow!" Blood said, starting to be overwhelmed by the sailors.

"Too late!" Kiera muttered to herself, locking her eyes on the ship ahead. The ship Elynn and Aldrin were imprisoned on.

"When I say NOW, hold on!" Kiera screamed.

"What are you doing girl?!" Valmir growled, kicking a man in the face, only to notice the sailors started climbing the mast.

"NOW!" she yelled, and despite disagreeing with her, Blood and Valmir held on as she spun the wheel to the left as fast as possible with a loud grunt. The ship's sudden turn sent almost every sailor down to the ground except those on the mast. Surprised by Kiera's plan, Blood and Valmir used the opportunity to kill as many of them as possible while they were down. Unfortunately, her plan had already crumbled when she saw the other surrounding ships firing...mortars?

"Oh no..." she said to herself, wide-eyed. "EVERYONE GET DOWN!" she screamed.

"What?" Blood quickly turned to Kiera.

"MORTARS!" she screamed again, pointing towards the other ships. The crew began jumping off the ship as if they had known way before. Blood sprinted towards a rowboat stored on the main deck with one swift movement while Valmir screamed in frustration. Kiera, however, had a different plan. She ran for a coil of rope, grabbed it, and while running towards the front of the ship, she attached a hook to it.

"Come on, come on, come on!" she panted when the first mortars rained down upon the ship, piercing through the ship, sending a blast so strong it sent her off the ship. But not before she had the chance to fling the hooked rope towards the prisoner ship. Without knowing whether it hooked, she fell into the raging water, clinging onto the rope for dear life. The brief silence underwater felt eerie until she resurfaced, filled with relief when she saw the hook stuck onto the back of the ship and began pulling herself through the water. Still unable to breathe because of the waves plunging into her face, she used all her might to climb up the rope, whining and grunting as she felt exhaustion kick in. A lightning-struck when she was out of the water entirely by then, unnoticeably climbing the ship's rear. She knew getting on top of the deck was suicide, so she pulled herself next to the back windows. If she had to guess, it was the captain's quarters. She swung towards the reinforced wooden rear of the ship and wrapped her hands around wooden beams, letting go of the rope. She looked at Valmir's sinking vessel and hoped Blood and Valmir got out alive as well. While having her whole arm wrapped around the wooden beam, she peered inside the room. There was no one, and it was more like a storage room. Carefully, she climbed in by going in one leg at a time. Absolutely drenched, she crouched down to make as little noise as possible. There were voices outside the door of the storage. The creaks and the storm outside helped mask her noise. She took her dagger from its sheath from the back of her belt, and with a soft zing of the metal, she sauntered to the door, only to notice an approaching voice. As swift as she could, Kiera hid behind a bunch of crates when the door opened.

"Someone else want a bottle of rum?" a woman's voice asked. Because of the heavy rocking of the ship, no one would question a door slowly closing. When her back was turned to Kiera, she slowly closed the door with one smooth movement. Being a former thief, that's what Kiera was good at, almost moving like a cat, making no noise at all. The door closed, and she then pounced at the woman, wrapping her arm around her face to muffle her screams before plunging her dagger into her neck. The woman's body went limp, and Kiera laid her down softly to avoid a thump. There were two other voices in the room, and one of them called out for the woman.

"Hey, Liara, you drinking all the rum by yourself out there?" a man asked, followed by a chuckle from the other. But obviously, there was no response.

"Liara?"

Kiera had to make a decision now. She unwrapped her bow and nocked an arrow, pulling the door and instantly drawing her bow towards the other two, who gasped and flinched.

"One scream and both of you are dead." Kiera's voice shook, the string of her bow squeaking under the drawn tension.

"With that bow? One of us, sure." the black-bearded man asked, raising his arms softly.

"I don't need my bow to kill the other," Kiera said as she carefully stepped aside to reveal Liara's lifeless body through the doorway. They looked at her in shock and anger.

"You'll pay for that." the other man clenched his teeth.

"Where is Elynn?" Kiera asked, her fingers getting tired from keeping the bowstring tense.

"The elf?" the bearded man smirked. "Even if I knew, why would I tell you? Your only way off this ship is by a rowboat on deck. Or are you planning to kill the whole crew?"

"I've faced worse odds before." Kiera glared at him, releasing her arrow straight through his chest. The other man then pounced at her before she could grab her knife, locking her arms with him as he pulled her against the wall, causing a shelf to break. Kiera stumped her knee into his stomach with a loud groan and then grabbed the cloth of his shoulders, sweeping him off his feet before landing on top of him. While she held her forearm against his neck, she grabbed her dagger again and plunged it into his hand, planting it into the ground. Right before he screamed, she held her hand over his mouth.

"Shhhh...just tell me where Elynn is. And I'll make it quick." Kiera said, pinning down his other arm.

"You think you can stop this?" he grunted, "Us humans belong to the Hinos now. Defiance only leads to death. In time, you will also see that. You've seen it first h-" he couldn't even finish his sentence when Kiera pierced her dagger through his neck. His eyes widened, and he sputtered out blood before releasing his final breath.

"It's fine. I'll comb out this entire ship if I have to." Kiera muttered, getting off the lifeless body and brushing the blade of her dagger across the fabric of her breeches to clean it, before sliding it back into the sheathe on the back of her belt. She sauntered to the next door, which was slightly ajar. It allowed her to peek into a narrow corridor dimly lit by a lantern swinging on the ceiling with the ship's movement. Realizing how dangerous this situation was, she grabbed the hilt of her dagger and carefully opened the squeaking door. Threading quietly through the corridor, she heard thumps and muffled voices above her head. The hall took a turn to the right, to which she peeked first before coming around it. It was a lot darker there. It led to another door, which opened before Kiera could even react. Her heart skipped a beat as she instinctively hugged the wall, hoping the darkness enshrouded her, and by some miracle, it did. A man in simple leather armour and a sword sheathed on his belt came in and closed the door behind him, clearing his throat. He suddenly halted when he took a step further, squinting his tired eyes. His hand went for his sword, but Kiera pounced out of the darkness, pinning him against the wall with her dagger against his throat, drawing blood. His eyes opened wide, and his lips quivered.

"Please...don't," he whispered shakily. He looked about the same age as her, but Kiera didn't care. All she wanted was to save Elynn and get out of here.

"The Elven girl, where is she?" Kiera glared at him.

By All Means https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFz5n8pCkOU

"They just brought her upstairs; THERES SOMEONE HERE!" he suddenly screamed, leaving Kiera no choice but to swipe her blade across his neck, leaving him to bleed to death. The door slammed open, and then her whole body rushed with adrenaline when she could count five heads in the doorway. They tried to rush her, trampling over the still sputtering and bleeding man, but she had enough time to grab her bow, nock an arrow, pull the string and send an arrow straight into someone's upper chest. He grunted and staggered back, forcing everyone to fall back in fear and hide behind the wall next to the door. With blood splatters on her face, Kiera nocked another arrow and drew her string, stepping back even more. "Come out and try me. Maybe it will work this time," Kiera growled, staring at the door intensely with a slightly raised upper lip.

"You have nowhere to go, girl." one of them said behind cover. "You can't take us all on."

"Oh yeah? Watch me." Kiera said, her voice shaking a little, eyeing the doorway as if it could run away.

"Give up now, and we'll convince boss not to kill you." they said.

"You drive a hard bargain." Kiera answered, relaxing the tensed up string of her bow for just a bit. "All I want is my friend. And no one else gets hurt."

"We can't do that, girl. Boss would never allow it. Just drop your bow. Are you really going to stand there until we die of boredom?"

What Kiera then saw through the doorway was unreal to her. In the room ahead was a staircase, and someone walked down with a sword in his hand. Raven coloured hair, pale, shaven face, dark blue eyes. It was Aldrin? In the same red studded leather sleeveless chest, too, but more bloodied this time. The people behind the doorway noticed him. "Fuck!"

Kiera and Aldrin made eye contact, both baffled seeing each other but in agreement about what was about to come next without having to say anything. They ran towards Aldrin, and before Kiera switched to her blade, she shot her arrow into one of them, pouncing forward while skillfully throwing her bow around her chest and grabbing her dagger instead. Someone blocked her way, swinging his sword towards her. She threw herself back to dodge it and then sent her blade into his chest as a counter-attack, pushing him back into the room and falling on top of him. Aldrin's clashing sword sounds filled the room as Kiera turned to the other, but too late, he grabbed her by her arm and slung her across the floor, nearly snapping her arm, forcing a yelp out of her. She crawled back as the man held his sword overhead before bringing the tip down towards her head, which she dodged just in time, cutting off a few strands of her wet hair. She then swept her feet, making him crash onto the floor, quickly getting up and turning the tides. But she couldn't finish him as another man pounced at her from the side. The ship sailed over a big wave, throwing him off target as she easily dodged him, as nimble as she was. She threw her dagger into the man's chest and then went for the fallen sailor's sword, stabbing him in the back multiple times. And again. And again, her loud grunts sounded more and more maniacal, her face covered in so much blood.

"Kiera!" Aldrin yelped, struggling on the staircase with someone on top of him, swords clashing against each other. She kept the bloody sword and sprinted towards him, screaming before plunging it straight into the side of Aldrin's attacker, almost pinning him to the wall. There were no attackers left, but they both heard commotion stirring above. Aldrin could have a good look at Kiera, panting with wide eyes, and felt uncomfortable.

"Bloody hell, Kiera. Your face. I don't know where Elynn is. They locked us up but then took her away, leaving only me. I escaped." he stared, almost in fear.

"It's fine." Kiera panted, looking at the rows of cannons stationed behind all the hatches. "I have an idea. Point some of those cannons to the ground. Quick, before more of them are coming."

Aldrin then knew what Kiera wanted to do. "But what about Elynn? Your friend?"

"This is the only way!" Kiera growled and grunted while rolling a heavy cannon and pointing the muzzle to the ground. Aldrin did so too. Aldrin was able to get a second in before more people ran down the stairs.

"Light them now!" Kiera screamed, nocking an arrow into her bow and shooting the people running downstairs. Aldrin struck flint and steel on the detonator ropes, then took cover, covering his ears. Kiera did so, too.

"No!" one of the attackers shouted as the cannons blasted through the hull with ear-deafening explosions. Water came gushing through like waterfalls. The ship began shaking and rocking heavily to one side, throwing Aldrin and Kiera off their feet. The ship's wall halted Kiera's roll as she saw one of the cannons roll towards her. "No no no!" she exclaimed in panic as it bashed against her, pushing all the air out of her lungs, squeezing her against the wall. All she could do was weakly push and whine, calling out to Aldrin. But she couldn't see him anywhere. Then, before she knew it, the chamber filled with water above her head. The heavy weight of the cannon pushing against her didn't even allow her to take a deep breath. She flailed her arms underwater while hearing nothing but the muffled rush of water filling her ears, desperately pushing onto the cannon. The lack of air she inhaled before going under already sent her into desperate need of it. The pressure on her ears was increasing as well. Was the ship already sinking that deep into the ocean?

Luckily, the cannon weighed a bit less underwater. She finally managed to dislodge herself from it, panickly swimming towards what she hoped would be the exit. It got darker and darker, and her vision was already blurry underwater. Seeing a lack of light, Kiera thought it was over. Memories began soaring through her mind, of her brother Aidan, her mother, Elynn...everyone she cared about as her chest convulsed, trying to force her to take desperate breaths. All she felt in the darkness was a wall, and more wall, and more wall. She yelled underwater in panic, sending bubbles to the surface. The bubbles!

She let out another puff of air and tried to feel where they went. She swam and followed their trajectory, only to stumble on what was probably the ceiling. She really needed air by then, every inch of her body screamed at her to breathe, but she knew that once she did, it was over. She felt around with her newfound strength until she finally found a hole. She pushed herself through and eventually left the ship, seeing a blurry ray of light above. She swam, slowly feeling life drain away from her body. She felt so light-headed, to the point where her muscles started to tingle and lose strength. Don't pass out. Don't pass out. That final thought repeated in her mind, and right before she reached the surface, her vision faded to black.

Kiera lost consciousness.

She opened her eyes, surrounded by complete darkness. Above and below, too. She wasn't underwater anymore. She could breathe. But didn't even feel out of breath. "Hello?" she asked, but there was an eerie silence. So silent, she could hear her own blood rushing past her ears inside her body. Then it struck her. "Am I dead?"

A small, golden orb of light in the distance emitted a soothing, calling tone. With the light reflecting into her amber eyes, Kiera slowly walked towards it. "Hello?" she called out again, her voice echoed a million times as if there was no end to this place. She looked down and saw her reflection. Most importantly, her bright amber eyes lit up according to the light ahead. When she looked up again, a man sat in a chair faced away from her, looking into the orb. His silhouette seemed to have a series of small horns on top of his head. She carefully walked up to him, keeping her distance. When she stepped around into his view, he wore a mask. It was similar to that of Hahvulon, but instead of gold, it was a pale white.

"Welcome." a deep, muffled and masculine voice sounded behind the mask.

"Where am I? Am I dead? I have so many questions." Kiera asked with a shaky voice. "Last thing I know is that I...I drowned."

The man barely moved. It seemed as if he kept looking toward the light. "Yes. You are dead. This plane is where every lost soul comes to before moving on to the next realm."

Kiera gasped softly, and her eyes turned watery. She placed a shaking hand on her chest and felt her quickened heartbeat. "Why do I still feel everything? My heart, my thoughts, my feelings? It's all still there."

"As I mentioned, this place only serves as a path. Soon, your soul will ascend, and your feelings will be gone. All you will be left with are memories."

Kiera started sobbing, looking around. "I didn't want to die yet."

"Maybe you weren't meant to." the man said. Kiera turned around with a confused look on her face. "What?"

He finally stood up and carefully walked towards the orb of light. "Death is fated. How everyone dies is written in stone by the Gods." he then slightly turned his head towards her. "You, however, are still here. Usually, by now, you would have been gone to the realm beyond already." his sentence ended with him turning his body towards her entirely, revealing his long, black robes, draping on the wet floor.

"Everyone who comes here is awaited by a passed loved one or a relative as a way to be introduced to the afterlife. In comfort. Yet, I have no memory of you."

"Are you Hinos?" Kiera asked carefully, glancing at the horns on top of his scaly head.

"Yes," he answered, beginning a brief silence. Kiera couldn't see what he was doing behind that mask, but he suddenly stepped forward, scaring her a little bit. "Could it be?" he whispered between his breath. The figure came closer, keeping a relatively calm posture, so Kiera let him. He raised his gloved hand and caressed her chin, tilting it upwards. Kiera could've sworn she saw an amber glow between the narrow eye holes of his mask. He released her chin and recoiled, releasing a shocked exhale.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Kiera said, confused.

The man reached for his mask and slowly removed it, revealing his forest-green scaled, lizard-like face. His slit pupil eyes were the same amber colour as Kiera's, having the same faint glow to them as well. With the orb of gold lighting up their silhouettes in the background, they looked into each other's eyes.

"You're a Hinos descendant." he said, shaking his head softly, "I wasn't sure at first. But I can see it now, deep in your eyes."

Kiera looked at him as if he was mad, taking a step back. "Just wait, I don't understand. I don't understand any of this. What am I really doing here? Is this some sick trick to torture me?" her sadness turned to anger.

"Just hear me out. You don't have to believe me," he said as Kiera turned her back to him. "I know it all sounds mad. But my name is Xherulon, and I am a former Master of Scion. I died thousands of years ago during the war against the humans."

Hearing the words Master of Scion, Kiera turned to him again, her eyes burning fury as if she was ready to pounce at him. But he just continued.

"When Xhiak betrayed all of us, I wasn't even guarding the Rose at that time. His plan to eradicate all of your kind spelled the end for us, and I wasn't there. You know where I was?" his voice began shaking as he took a firm step forward. "I broke the Eight Tenets, and decided I did not want to partake in a pointless war against the people that were only looking for land to settle and grow. I secluded myself, away from everything, with the woman I loved."

"So what? What does that have to do with me?" Kiera asked, a tear rolling down her cheek.

"She was a human." his shoulders sagged, "I fell in love with my enemy. My dear Amelia...she never deserved all of this pain...and misery..." he said in a soft, pained tone. "Her eyes were like fire, a never-ending flame, her skin as pale as crystal snow, and her hands were so soft, smooth and silky. She was perfect." Tears rolled down Xherulon's cheek as he stared before him, recalling all his memories. "The flu Xhiak created killed me, too. I have never been able to see my own child. And those eyes of yours? They are just like Amelia's. Does that mean after all these years..."

Kiera was speechless, and just like him, tears streamed down her face. "Are you saying I am a Hinos?"

"At least half-blood. A whole generation of Hinos children, and you didn't know?" Xherulon asked.

"My father doesn't have amber eyes. He...has been abusive. None of them ever told me." Kiera mumbled, sniffling.

Xherulon stepped forward and gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "It has become clear to me why the Gods have brought you here. You won't die yet. This is their gift to you, clearly fate has another death in store for you. But not today. Not until you fulfill the will of Ara, and Mora, whatever that is. I have a feeling you have a much bigger role to play in the realm below. The air here is tense, the Gods are uneasy. Whatever it is that is happening down there, even they are scared of it."

Kiera's breath quickened as she started sobbing. "I don't know what to do."

"What is your name?"

"Kiera." she whimpered.

"Kiera." he strengthened the grip on her shoulders. "You must seek the truth about your origin. It will help you with your journey, as is made clear since the Gods willed us to meet. It is important, you are important. And if it's really true, you are my blood. That also means you have Scion's blood running through your veins."

He then noticed his hands started flaking off of Kiera's shoulders. "I believe it is time."

"No, wait. I still have so many questions!" Kiera quickly said, grasping his forearm, but it phased right through as it dissolved into hundreds of tiny flakes floating in the air.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Kiera, blood of my blood. Now go forth, fulfill your destiny, as the Gods have desired. I am certain we will meet again one day." he then dissipated into millions of flaking pieces, disappearing in the wind. So did the ground around her.

"No, wait! Xherulon!" Kiera yelled, but then a flash of light blinded her, and she lost consciousness again.

And from that point, everything changed. I stared death right in the eye. No one knows what it does to you until they experience it for themselves. I questioned my entire existence. My whole life was a lie. My whole family became strangers. But among all this pain, there was one glow of light I was yet able to cling to...