Chapter 30: Captain Gold

I rolled my eyes at how much of a pervert Cienar was when I noticed that The Pirate King was looking at me. He looked at me like he didn't realize a girl was here. His lips then curled into a smile as his attention returned to Cienar. "What a pity. And here I thought the siren monarchy was respectable." Cienar hissed inhumanly at his insult, but the act didn't seem to phase Johnathan. "Though, I can't say I blame you. I sure have had my share of whoring around." As the chuckle of pungent men surrounded me, I suddenly had the urge to slam my head against the floor. 'Where are all the women in this story?!'

Johnathan then pulled a small piece of glass from his coat. It was in the shape of a circle and its color was just one shade lighter than his hair. "Don't worry. I'm not entirely disappointed you don't have any coin on you. A weird lot such as this is bound to be worth something." He held up the piece of glass in front of his face and looked through it, slowly scanning each of us with it. His eyes widened once he reached me. He moved it away from his view and then back again as if he was checking whether what he saw was correct. I wanted to know what he was seeing through that little piece of glass. Whatever it was, it was baffling. Once he had gotten a good enough look, he put the glass back in his coat and crept toward me. Each step was slow and threatening. "I see you're curious. This glass was made from the sands of The Celestial Kingdom. Through it, I can see the soul of any creature." My breath caught in my throat. "Oh no."

He leaned closer to me as an evil smile spread from ear to ear. "Oh yes." He put a hand on my cheek. "What is your name?" I hesitated on whether I should answer him. "...Silvera," I whispered. He raised an eyebrow at me. "How amusing. The two of us make gold and silver. Haha. Not like that unicorn soul you have is only worth something as minuscule as silver." Everyone gave him the same look I did. 'Did he say... unicorn?!'

He then yelled out, "We're set for life, men! Take her aboard!" The pirates cheered and began to drag me to the plank that connected our ships. I tried to struggle as the Captain moved to walk beside me. I had no idea what was going on but I wanted it to stop. Suddenly, Cienar used his power over water to slice through his ropes and wash away the pirates who restrained him. Cienar was about to send a wave over the Captain when he quickly grabbed me and put a gun to my head. 

The water stopped in the air in front of him as Cienar froze. The Capitan then chuckled as he jerked me closer to prevent my struggling. "Make one more move, and I'll be taking her soul the fun way." The water above us slowly receded and Cienar took a step back in defeat. The cool metal of the gun barrel being pressed harder against my head made me fear for my life, but I worried about my friends even more. I hoped that Johnathan would let them go after they took me aboard their ship even though I knew better than that. The Captain smirked in response to Cienar's retreat and threw me to some pirates who stood near the plank. They put a knife to my neck to restrain me and I gasped with fright.

The Captain turned to grab a fastened rope and cut the bottom with his blade. He then shot up into the air and swung onto the deck of his ship. "Prepare the cannons!" He shouted as he landed on his feet upon the railing. His men yelled "Arrrr!" in response and cleared off of our boat with me in their clutches. "No! Wait!" I struggled harder as they took me aboard despite the blade at my neck. I saw my friends' fear on their faces as they took me away and felt like I was being torn from a piece of my heart.

After being pulled on deck, I could see nothing but the mast of our boat as they continued to drag me. The pirates then pushed cannons into their holes along the railing and the Captain yelled, "Fire!" I screamed, "No!!" as I saw the pirates light the cannons and send fireballs down to our ship. Chunks of wood flew up in all directions as they continued to fire. I struggled even harder as my eyes burned with tears.

I couldn't see anything of the wreckage, but I knew if I did, It would shatter me into pieces. The men who carried me took me below the helm and down the stairs until we reached a room. They threw me inside and I heard the door lock behind me. I shakily stood up and attempted to open the door from behind. The handle wouldn't move. I was trapped.

The ropes around my wrists were tight and burning. I pressed my back against the door and let tears streak my cheeks as I slid down to the floorboards. 'My friends... They're gone...' I curled up in a ball and cried for hours. It was obvious that the ship had sailed far away from where they took me by the time I began to calm down.

The only reason I managed to get a hold of myself was because it hurt to cry for so long. I closed my stinging eyes to clear them from the tears. My vision was still foggy, but I could differentiate between shapes again. I moved to sit up and looked around me. I hadn't noticed what a nice room they had thrown me into. There was a desk in front of a large window at the back of the ship which was paned with a diamond pattern. There were fashionable curtains and carpets, and there was a large bed in the corner with silk sheets and a canopy over it. 'This must be the Captain's room.' I thought.

I struggled to stand with my hands tied but I was able to make it off the floor and hobble to a corner beside a bookshelf where I could sit more comfortably. I rested my head against the bookshelf and some straggling tears fell off of my face. 'I have no one... Everything is gone... Even The Book of Souls...'

Suddenly, I heard the lock on the door click. My spine straightened with tension at the sound. I began to shake as I saw the door open and the Captain step inside. He closed the door behind him and his brightly-colored eyes went to me. Fear ran cold through my body and I pressed my back as far as I could against the wall.

He took off his hat and tossed it on the bed before walking toward me. He then took the knife from his belt and pulled me to my feet by my arm. I closed my eyes tightly at the thought that the time to harvest my soul had come, but they opened a moment after to the feeling of my ropes being cut. The Capitan smiled at my surprise and held my chin with his hand. "Scared, sweetheart?"

I was still plenty afraid, but his cocky remark sparked a bit of anger within me. "You're going to k-kill me. Why shouldn't I be afraid?" His smile faded. "I was never planning on killing you. That was just a threat so your siren friend would let me take my bounty. Souls are best preserved in their packaging." I wasn't relieved at all by his response. "Does that mean you're going to trade me to a black market?" I feared the question, knowing I didn't want to hear the answer.

His smile returned and he leaned in closer to me. "Do you think I'm a demon?" I hesitated. "I'm not sure what you are." He laughed a little. "Right. I forget my race is a bit of a rarity nowadays. I am an elf." The realization struck me in surprise. Elves were creatures of high intellect, skills, and senses. Elves weren't as rare as unicorns, but humans were lucky if they ever got to see one. I wanted to laugh at the irony but I was too afraid. "...If not a black market, how do you plan to sell me?" Johnathan didn't mind my quick change of subject and happily answered. "There's no need to bring the demon deal into it. With the soul you have, numerous fools will be willing to pay anything to get their hands on you, no matter the place. Too bad for them that I find double-crossing so much fun and will end up taking both."

I didn't answer him. He was a liar and a scoundrel, but he scared me too much to yell in his face. I stepped away but my back hit against the wall, allowing him to get even closer and corner me in. He put his knife back in the place he kept it in his belt and put his hands on either side of the wall behind me.

"I still can't figure out how a human could have the soul of a unicorn. I can't begin to describe how much greed I feel over you now that I am the one who has it all to myself." I was brought from my fear by the return of my anger. I tried to push him away and hit him over and over. "No! I am no one's! I refuse to be an object again!" He then grabbed my wrists and slammed them into the wall. "Ah!" I gasped at his strength. Now he was so close I could hear his breath. "Listen to me, you little brat. I am the king of these seas and whatever I want I take. And right now, I want you."