Through Smoke and Ashes

Eight||Aye Aye Captain

My chest felt tighter with every passing moment. It was becoming a struggle to breathe properly. I snuck a few glances at my hands as I went to pick up my glass of water or utensils. They were slightly calloused and full of dirt but other than that there were no other markings, no indication of an injury.

My mind was racing at an extreme pace over the possibilities of how I managed to survive the Rin poison that I had missed what the Captain had said. His palm slammed the table, rattling the dishes set upon the unsteady wooden table. My eyes shot to his.

"Do I have your attention now, girl?" He sneered from across the table. I was thankful to be a few feet away from his reach. Nodding my head, I faltered over a few words before shaking out a yes.

He settled himself back into a comfortable position before carrying on with his inquiries. "Now, what are you doing on this island, girl?"

I knew my hands were shaking, so I planted them under my legs and took a breath before staring the captain in his cold, beady eyes. "I could ask you the same thing." My voice was stronger than I had expected to be. Maybe I could get through this retched dinner after all.

His eyes narrowed, zeroing in on me. If only I knew what he was thinking, but by the face he was making I'm assuming he wasn't impressed. "What does it look like, girl? Are we having a civil tea party with those foul beasts?"

It took me a moment before realizing he wanted an answer. I shook my head no.

He leaned back in his seat, a piece of meat staked onto the end of his fork. I couldn't help but remember the man he recently killed, how the blood pooled around his unmoving body. The meat on my plate had a red center, I pressed my fork onto it and blood seeped out. I put my fork down, I couldn't. Not after what I saw. My stomach was unsettled, but I haven't eaten for two days.

"Why haven't you killed me yet?" I nearly slapped myself for being such an idiot.

His laugh came deep from inside his chest. It didn't sound right coming from such a man who could so easily take away another's life. "Is the suspense not killer enough for you?"

My throat tightened and my eyes stung. I could feel tears building behind my eyes as they stung like salt had been put into them. My throat became tight and it was harder to breath. Swallowing was hard enough on its own, now it was impossible. The thought of showing this man that I was weak made my tears dry up. In fact, I was enraged that I was the one who was in fear and not him.

The man's face fell and his hands began to shake out of the blue. It was like he saw something that shook him to the core. Being unsure of what had caught his attention, I turned my head to the side as if there would be something behind me. But there wasn't.

"Demon!" His voice was strained as his eyes alit with a new horror I had never seen on his face before.

I felt a cold burning sensation in the pit of my pocket and I knew it was coming from the stone. Burning a bright, amber light that would ravage through any enemy. The bonds that kept the magic from flowing through my veins were slowly being broken apart as the stone pulsated its dominance and control into my broiling blood. However, as the stone's power pushed through the barriers, so did something else, but it pushed against the stone's pursuit. My body was fighting with itself, like an allergic reaction. Two sides of me fighting for dominance, a battle raging between the devils and gods, and my body was the battlefield.

I hadn't realized I closed my eyes against the assault, but when I opened them to glance at the captain his shuddering had ended as mine aroused and he stared into my eyes with a fixated fascination of curiosity and horror. His face distracted my mind from the pain and the stone sizzled to a simmering burn and the force within me backed off into the recesses of my body, waiting to strike again.