chapter 21

Morwen

From her hiding spot Morwen had a clear view of the sea, she watched as a grey line dancing on the horizon slowly got bigger. as it got closer she could make out the form of a ship. the others must have noticed it too, she could hear their hollers and quick movements running along the deck.Morwen cursed under her breath and crouched down, using a tall pile of barrels as her shield.

She closed her eyes, splaying her hands across the wood to steady herself. If it was whoever the ship belonged to that was after them they were doomed. She was starting to think stealing a smugglers ship was a very bad idea.

The clinking of heavy chains echoed through the brisk morning air, the water below crashing against the side of the boat.

Morwen ducked her head, leaning against the hull. She wiped the sweat from her brow.

Morwen lowered herself to the floor and turned around, pressing her back against the barrels. She crossed her legs beneath her and stared at her feet. The sounds around her turned into background noise and the smell of sea spray engulfed her.

The sails on the other ship were fully rigged and ready to move, however the ship's prow began to dip suddenly. The black boards dipped into the dark water below, spraying up. The men at the oars scrambled out of the way as quickly as possible. The waves swelled around it as the dark ship rushed Forward.

The two ships were too close together for Morwen's comfort.

The deck shook as it struck the Black Moon. Water dripped down onto the deck. Cracks snaked down the mast, threatening to split in half. The railings groaned, the wood splintering under the pressure.

The wind stirred the black sails, revealing a white image of a bird of prey hovering above three circles.

Morwen recognized it immediately. Raven's Crow. The emblem was in the ledger, confirming her fears.

Silence filled the air. It was far too quiet for her liking.

Morwen shivered. There's something wrong here.

She reached for her sword hilt only to realise she had left it in Malachi's room, she had stormed out so fast she wasn't even wearing boots. she cursed under her breath.

The silence lasted for a moment, then was shattered by the sound of Cannon fire, the masts began to burn as large holes exploded across the deck. Wood fragments flew through the air around her. She winced, covering her ears.The sounds of battle thundered through the hull of the Black Moon. She could only guess what was happening above, and the thought made her sick.Metal clanked against metal. Screams and the clattering of weapons filled the air.

Suddenly someone yelled, followed by a loud THUD. Cries broke out throughout the deck and she could feel her stomach knotting up.

Morwen cringed. she forced herself to look. She barely noticed when the railing in front of her burst into flame. A man was thrown back, landing in the sea.

More men swung down on ropes and dropped aboard the ship.

Black, thick smoke stung her eyes, filling her nostrils and making her heart pound in her throat. The ship was being boarded! The sounds of fighting were louder than anything Morwen had heard before. 

Zack and Malachi would not survive against this many.

Smoke curled through the air. Ethereal grey ribbons wrapped around her body, choking her with each breath. She coughed several times as another burst of pain flared.

The smoke overpowered her.

Morwen pulled her shirt up over her mouth, but it did nothing to stop the coughing. The blood pounded in her head, she could feel it pulsing against her temple.

the smoke forced her out of her hiding spot. She stumbled forward, wiping the beads of sweat off her forehead. her dark braid was ruined. Strands of hair dangled in her face, damp with sweat and sea spray.

The force of the canon had broken the chains holding the Black Moon's decks and port anchors in place and had loosened the moorings.

A man emerged from below, his hands curled into tight fists and his dark hair lay flat against his pale face. Morwen glared at him as he stopped in front of her.

He smirked, brushing a lock of hair away from her face.

Morwen shook her head and tried to run. She took a step but was stopped by the sound of gunpowder firing. the crack of splintering wood rang in her ears. The ship began to tilt.

"Shit." She whimpered to herself as she found herself back up again,

Morwen found her footing and dashed towards the captains courters to retrieve her sword.

She pushed on until a man clad in black stepped out in front of her, a cruel smile playing on his lips as he raised the whip with a barbed tip and swirled it.

The weapon glinted and flashed in the sunlight.

Morwen's lip curled in disgust and annoyance. She stepped back, her eyes widening.

The whip cracked, a large gash appearing on the skin of her arm.

If she survived she would add it to the long list of scars she had accumulated recently. Her breathing grew laboured.

"M-malachi!" Morwen gasped in shock, pain vibrated along her spine. Her mind fluttered into oblivion.

She knew she should do something, attack the man in front of her and defend herself from what was certainly going to be her death.

She steeled herself to charge but her legs didn't seem to want to obey her and she found herself standing awkwardly where she was, trying to catch her breath.

She made another dash towards the door, her sword lay just behind it, close enough to grab and defend herself.

But the burning blade cut across her thigh and then made its mark on her arm. Her knees buckled, pain like lightning bolted up her spine.

A loud crash of cannon fire rang in her ears as it tore across the ship taking out her attackers. She didn't know why they were taking out there own men. finally she made it to her destination. She opened the door and was flung towards the table.

Morwen glanced over her shoulder, searching for her sword. It was still there, but when she tried to take it her hand burned in pain.

The fire had heated the metal, she wrapped a cloth around her hand before grabbing the blade once more and charging out the door.

The deck below her was bathed in the blood, she took it all in, Zack was leaning against a barrel struggling to breathe. He held his twin swords in each hand, he had several tears in his clothes and his arms were bloodied.

He had been closer to the blasts from the cannons than she was. Malachi looked equally as injured but he used the last of his strength to rush to Zack's aid, using his own body to block most of the impact.

Eira sat near a post, she held her pistol at ready.

Her eyes glowed a bright green as she released the trigger with a scream.

Eira shot another man from the rope as he swung towards the ship.

Morwen swung her sword like a bat, sending a man barreling to the ground with a sickening crunch.

"there's too many of them." She shouted.

A ball of energy shot through the air towards her.

Morwen covered her head and braced herself as the familiar flash of light enveloped them. She buried her face into her hand as the blinding light enveloped them.

Another blast of energy hit them, Morwen squinted and looked out over the sea in front of her.

It was just as she feared, a fog was beginning to crawl across the water in thick grey ribbons. A figure appeared, in red gown that seemed to glow like fire. A shroud completely covering her face, a black crow marked her chest.

From underneath the fabric, a wide grin appeared.

"I think you have something that belongs to me." Queen Asteria said, walking along the deck. The hem of her skirt didn't even drag.

"actually..." morwen began, gasping for breath. "it's technically ours now."

She chuckled softly, shaking her head. Queen Asteria calmly flicked a wrist.

The barrier protecting them snapped and fizzled out. Morwen stumbled back with the release of her powers.

The cold took hold.

The fog churned with their fear and as it pressed down on the Black moon a terrible weight fell on Morwen's heart.

The queen waved her hand again, and the group fell unconscious.

Morwen blinked, fighting to stay awake. "Fuck you" she managed to get out the words with venom in her voice, her arms and legs ached. She let out a weak groan.

The queen nodded. "your friends were brave. And your brother, its too bad he was so loyal. He is not even your blood after all."Morwen grit her teeth.

Asteria examined the smugglers ship, glancing down at her old wooden planks, she ran her hands over the faded coat of arms that she used to rule the seas.

she knelt down beside the body of one of her men, drawing a line in his blood with her sharp nails. she inhaled deeply and drew up his blood with her sorcery forming it into a long red sword, she raised her arm preparing to strike.morwen's eyes widened in shock she shook her head and fought to run to her dying brother. But her body wouldn't move, her throat ran dry and tears welled in her eyes. The sound of ringing bells filled her ears as zack coughed up more blood, staining his face and clothes.

Morwen gritted her teeth together, her fingers digging into the wood at her sides. Pain surged through her as she watched his final moment.

Morwen's chest rose and fell, she tilted her head and saw blackness creeping around her vision.

Asteria waved her hand towards Morwen, sending another wave of dizziness crashing down on her, leaving her barely aware of her surroundings.

The world swirled and blurred around her as the queen made her way towards the young woman.

Morwen watched as she approached, feeling herself rising up out of her body. her mind flew out of the back of her skull, her eyes rolling, turning backwards.

Her stomach clenched tight, contracting painfully, and her insides flipped.

I'm dying, she thought, I'm dying.

She clutched her middle with both hands as she fell to her knees.

She was so close, she saw the cracks in the mask, in the dark void of the eye holes as her body collapsed and crumpled into itself. She expected to die, so she was surprised when she looked around and found she was safe in another realm.The world rippled around her. she could see the image of a sun setting and the shadows it threw against the dark stone cliff wall. There was a path. Far below it was the sea. A white stag walked along the shore. He had a thick coat and his rack was huge. His antlers were broad and heavy. The antlers branched into multiple points at the top and small, curving points along the sides.The lower two points, on either side, were the longest. They were the size of swords.

Around the stag were many figures.

Their forms flickered, then turned to face her and took solid shape.

They wore hooded black robes.

The stag laid down on the sand and stretched out on the beach, yawning. The hooded figures turned their attention to him. one of them, the smallest, took a dagger and then began to climb onto the creature's back.

The creature rose suddenly to its feet as if sensing something coming. It turned to face the sea. The sky turned as dark as blood, then darkened further, becoming black.

Fire bloomed across the surface of the ocean as if ignited.

The stag jumped, turning towards Morwen "Save yourself!" he said.

Her vision blurred and her eyes stung from smoke, Queen Asteria's figure grew more and more distorted, but she had one last grasp on consciousness. Morwen leaned back with a surge of panic, her vision swayed. the n suddenly with every last ounce of strength she had left Morwen shot her energy towards Asteria. She screamed in surprise as the blast sent her skidding back, breaking her focus.

A large amount of power escaped from within Morwen, exploding outward. An ear-splitting wail filled the air, a deep rumble echoed throughout the entire ship, and then suddenly,

BOOM.

Morwen flew back, slamming into the dark waters below.

The sea heaved in the turbulence of the explosion. the Black moon dropped out from under her and her sight went black.

She could only pray she wasn't dead, drowned at the bottom of the sea.

Her hands groped along in the dark water, searching for something to hang on to. she pushed forward against the water trying to break the surface. Her lungs felt tight. her hair floated out behind her.

her body shook as with anger, she looked back up to see the burning ship above her. a stray piece of wood smacked her in the forehead, and she quickly recovered. the salty waves beat at her. Morwen faught the tumbling debris all around her in the cold.

she wanted to scream, Zack was gone and Malachi, she didn't know if that evil witched had killed him too, and the feeling was burning inside her chest.

and then.

Something wrapped around her leg and pulled. Panic struck and morwen kicked and tried to push off whatever it was.

Morwen winced. she tried again and hit something hard and thick. she moved towards it again and felt her shoulder bump up against something heavy.

What could possibly be this close beneath the surface of the water? She was positive they were in the middle of the ocean.

Morwen felt the pressure build. She squeezed her eyes shut.

She didn't have enough air left to try to break free again, but after a few moments, the pressure in her ears eased.

she was being pulled away from the wreckage. she opened her mouth to scream and the air that rushed in was warm. The heat boiled her lungs and ripped through her throat.

The sensation was burning, burning her lungs, burning her skin.

It wasn't right.

Morwen thrashed about helplessly in the water.

Her head pounded, and her vision blurred and blackened.

After a few moments her breath hitched and breathing returned slowly.

She was determined to survive so she could ram a sword through Asterias cold dead heart.