Coalesce

3

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The sea whip was putting up a fight. It was not letting itself be harmed easily. Nesta just hoped that it would be able to escape. It'd give her more time. Though she didn't know if the time would help her. She'd already had over a week to come up with a plan, but her head was empty. She had no idea how to get them off the whaler. And she wasn't sure if the Saints would be willing to grant her another miracle.

They weren't. One of the harpoons thrown by the crewmen hit the ice dragon, draining hope from Nesta and filling the animal with anger.

It bucked, tail whipping back and forth, then reared up like a snake, hurling its body out of the water. For a moment, it hung suspended in the air: translucent winglike fins, gleaming scales, and wrathful red eyes. Beads of water flew from its mane and its massive jaws opened, revealing a pink tongue and rows of gleaming teeth. It came down on the nearest boat with a loud crash of splintering wood. The slender craft split in two, and men poured into the sea. The dragon's maw snapped closed over a sailor's legs and he vanished, screaming, beneath the waves. With furious strokes, the rest of the crewmen swam through the bloodstained water, making for the remaining longboat, where they were hauled over the side.

Nesta glanced around and saw that the mist was even thicker now. She had no idea what could be causing it. Perhaps some sort of magic connected to Rusalye?

Another harpoon found its target and the sea whip began to sing, a sound more lovely than anything. No, it wasn't a song. The animal was crying out, writhing and rolling in the waves, trying to get free of the harpoons lodged into it's body. The sound was too beautiful for such a terrible and devastating sight.

The dragon was slowing down, its movements growing sluggish as its cries wavered, mournful now, their music bleak and fading.

"Nets!" Came a shout from Sturmhond, but Nesta could not see where he was due to the thickness of the mist around them.

"Clear the mist," ordered the Darkling. "We're losing the longboat."

His Grisha called to each other, working on doing as they were told and soon the mist was gone. Nesta heard some thunks and when she turned around towards the sound a loud howl came from somewhere, like a wolf. Men swarmed over the rail onto the whaler's deck, pistols strapped to their chests, cutlasses in their hands, yowling and barking like a pack of wild dogs. The dark haired woman had never been so confused in her whole life. But it all started to make sense when she heard Sturmhond shout "to me, hounds!"

The men that had come aboard were fighting against her father's Grisha and Sturmhond had just announced them as his men. He was fighting against the Shadow Summoner. The crew that had sailed with them was fighting as well. Perhaps this had been his plan all along. Nesta waited no time and thrust herself into the action, fighting against the Grisha. Every person she fought had the same look on their faces, disbelief and betrayal. No one had expected her to ever move against her father.

The Ravkan woman saw Tolya pick Alina up over his shoulder and Tamar cut Mal's bounds, moving towards the ship that had joined the whaler. She ran towards them, intent on helping them escape.

Tolya was ready to jump over the side of the whaler when he fell to one knee, losing his grip on Alina. Ivan and an Inferni were standing above them. Nesta pushed her legs to move faster. Ivan's hand was outstretched, he was crushing the Shu boy's heart. The Inferni stepped towards Tamar and Mal, flint in hand and an arm already moving to conjure a flame. Before Nesta could throw up a wall to protect the two, the man stopped and gasped.