Save the Sea (Saved by Pirates #3)(10)
“Pirate?” I ask.
“My family name. My ancestors were some of the very first pirates, and I have forty ships that my family run. I left the king after he decided killing my child was the best way to control me. I want revenge for my little boy, and my army of ships will bring an army to his door and help me do just that,” he explains to me.
“I am sorry the king took your son’s life. He seems to think killing is the way to control everyone, and it is not. He will pay for every life stolen, I swear,” I say firmly. Master Pirate nods, his eyes on me like he is looking into my soul to determine if I’m telling the truth. When he finds whatever he is looking for, he smiles slowly.
“I believe the king should have killed you when he had the chance, because he has clearly created his greatest enemy,” Master Pirate says, and I smirk. I look up at his mark, curious what the arrow means, what his power is.
“What is your gift?” I ask.
“We don’t know this girl, just heard rumours, and we are to trust her with everything? All of our secrets? She could be working with the king, or the princes–her lovers–could be!” the final master shouts, slamming his pale hand on the table. I lock eyes with green ones that match the green plant-shaped mark on his forehead. He seems to be about my age, with blonde hair, a body built from rigorous training, and an outraged expression. I’m sure he doesn’t trust anyone, and I imagine he has lost much to make him this way.
“If we as changed ones don’t trust each other, who can we trust?” I ask, and he tilts his head to the side.
“We are meant to trust each other simply because a god kissed us at birth, cursing us? Because we have all been cursed to be hunted? To have those we loved hunted? To know we are never safe?” he rapidly questions me, his angry eyes never leaving mine.
“You believe your mark to be a curse?” I ask quietly. I understand the sentiment, it is something I used to believe when I was on Onaya. I thought it was curse because of what our ancestors did, because it kept me locked in the house, hidden away. The mark is not a curse, I know that now. It’s a gift, a gift that gives as much as it takes.
“Everyone I have ever loved is dead because of this mark, what else would you call it?” he snaps.
“That’s enough Master Gold,” Master Light says, and I raise my hand.
“He is right to speak what he feels. There is no point to this meeting if we all lie to each other. We are trying to make a new world, and it shouldn’t be started with lies,” I respond. Master Light raises his eyebrows at me with an impressed expression, and I turn to look at the other masters.
“I once believed my mark to be a curse, but only because this world and the king makes it so. Yet, we have power. We are blessed by a god, and we can make the world a better place. You can trust me because we have a common goal that everyone on this mountain shares,” I say, and Master Gold doesn’t say anything, letting me speak. “We all want the king dead, for the changed ones to be free, and to change this world for the better. I will fight for that with or without your help, but your help could be the difference between victory and defeat.”
“You speak a good bargain, yet, share no plan on how to win,” Master Gold replies, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with me.
“I made a deal with the sea god, and the deal tells us all we need to know to win this war,” I say, and they are all silent.
“Tell us the deal," Master Light finally responds, and I recite it for them. They all look around at each other, and Master Pirate quickly writes down my words on a notepad.
“You have met the sea god?” Master Light is again the first to ask after another long silence.
“Yes, he saved me when I fell off a cliff at the king’s palace. He looked after me, spoke to me about things. I was offered more than one deal, but that is the deal I accepted,” I say.
“He saved you when you fell into the sea?” Master Pirate questions me.
“Yes,” I reply simply. “The sea god needs me alive to win this for him, and he is always watching us, always wanting his children to survive.”
“None of us will survive while the king lives.”
“The sea god created the monster of the king we have. It was an accident, I believe. He never meant to make the king the bitter monster he is now. Even gods make mistakes, and their children must be the ones to fix it,” I tell them, and there’s an eerie silence to the room as they take in my words.
“Then this deal, how can it help us figure out our next move?” Master Hid asks.
“We need a crown, a god-blessed crown that is the twin of the one the king wears. It boosts powers, and that is what makes the king so very formidable. It is what enabled him to steal the gifts from his changed one, the queen. The king stole both crowns from the sea god, and I believe the deal tells us he hid it with the mermaids,” I say, knowing deep down I’m right. ‘Where life lives in the sea,’ can only be the mermaids, who are more likely to kill us than help us.
“So, we get this crown, and then you will kill him as we use our army to destroy his?” Master Light muses. “It could work, but we will need time to prepare.”
“That’s the plan, but I need to find the crown first. The king hid it with the mermaids for a reason. They won’t just give it to us, and I know nothing of mermaids, or how to fight them,” I reply.