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Draevyn

T he creak of wood and the soft sway of the ship woke Draevyn before the sunlight fully pierced his senses.

He blinked against the muted rays streaming through the small porthole, the familiar smell of salt and sea filling his nostrils.

His body ached, and his mind was sluggish, but the hum of the waves surrounding him was unmistakable.

A figure sat nearby, just out of his immediate focus. When the figure leaned forward, Samwell’s face came into view. His arms were crossed, but his gaze was sharp, watching him with a mix of concern and relief as his lips pressed in a tight line.

“Gods, it’s about damn time,” Sam muttered, a wry grin forming. “I wasn’t entirely convinced you weren’t dead.” He paused as his stare raked over him. “Thought you were going to sleep through the rest of the way home.”

“ What —” Draevyn’s voice cracked, and he struggled to sit up. Pain flared along his back and legs, remnants from the grindylows’ claws from when he escaped.

Memories of the cave, the climb up the cliff, and the fire swirled together, tangled with her face and voice.

“What happened? How—why am I here?”

Sam reached out to steady him as he swayed.

“Easy now. You’ve been out for days. Took us a hell of a time to patch you up.

” He leaned back, rubbing a hand over his jaw.

“We came to find you. Almost fucking left without you, too. If you hadn’t lit part of the ship on fire, we never would’ve looked back at the land. ”

You were out for days .

His stomach sank. “Came to find me? What do you mean, I’ve been out for days ?” He tried to swing his legs over the side of the cot, but Sam’s hand clamped firmly on his shoulder, forcing him back down. “We shouldn’t have left—she’s still?—”

“Who? That broad from Anchorage Cove?” Sam’s tone sharpened, his brows knitting together.

Draevyn’s lip curled back, nostrils flaring. “Don’t you fucking dare speak of her that way.”

Samwell threw his hands up in mock surrender. “She fucking kidnapped you, Drae.” His eyes narrowed as he leisurely lowered his hands. “Explain that later. Let me tell you what happened in Lephyrin first.”

Draevyn stopped struggling, his breath coming in shallow bursts as Sam continued.

“Your brother came to us. Said the king refused to send help. Forbade it actually…” Draevyn wasn’t surprised by that in the slightest. “We knew something was wrong, and that you clearly needed help. So we left. Atlas had spoken to Blackwood, and he said we would find our answer in southern waters.” Sam’s smirk faded as his voice lowered.

“You weren’t looking too good when we found you on that beach, Captain. ”

The realization slammed into him then. “You left her there!” His voice rose, rough and trembling with rage. He pushed Sam’s hand away and stood, ignoring the sharp pain that shot through his legs. “Why the hell did you pull me out of there? She’s still down there. With her !”

“What in all gods are you talking about?!” Sam shot back as he stood. “You were bleeding out and barely conscious when we found you. You were face down in the water! No one else was around, no sign of—” He hesitated, his expression hardening. “No sign of her.”

He turned away from Sam, his heart thudding painfully. The thought of her still there, trapped with her sister—her evil cunt of a sister—filled him with a soul consuming dread. “Turn the ship around,” he demanded.

Sam sighed heavily. “Drae, you’re lucky you still have both of your fucking eyes! What even happened to you? You need to get to a healer. You’re not in any shape to?—”

“ Turn it around! ” Draevyn spun on his heel, the fire in his chest threatening to erupt, but Sam stood his ground.

“We’re days out, nearly back to Lephyrin. Supplies are low, and the crew is worn thin. We can’t just turn back now.” Sam’s eyes softened slightly, though his tone remained firm. “Where even was she, if not on the beach with you?”

The ship seemed to tilt beneath him, though he knew it was only his head spinning with fury and panic. His fists clenched at his sides, his jaw tight. He needed to get back to her. Needed to fix this. “You said you spoke with Atlas and he told you to sail south?”

Sam gave a curt nod and gestured to the door with his chin. “Go ask him yourself.”

Draevyn’s eyes flared. “Atlas is here ?!” He didn’t wait for Sam’s answer before he shoved past him, out the door, and up the stairs of the ship.

Draevyn’s steps carried him to the deck, each one heavy with frustration and the burning need to find Esmyra and save her from what Syrena threatened to do.

As his boots thudded against the wooden planks, he caught sight of Atlas at the bow. His brother stood there, leaning on the rail, gazing out at the expanse of the sea. The wind toyed with his hair, and though his posture seemed calm, the tension in his shoulders was evident.

“Atlas.” His voice carried sharply across the deck. His brother turned slowly, his eyes flaring at the sight of him.

“Drae,” Atlas began as he met him halfway, and when the distance closed, he threw his arms around Draevyn. “You’re alive. You look like hell, but you’re here. Alive .” Atlas gripped his shoulders as if to make sure he was real .

Draevyn laughed despite himself, the tension in his chest loosening for the first time in what felt like an eternity. “How are you even here? You hate the sea.”

Atlas smirked, stepping back, but keeping a firm hand on his shoulder. “I wasn’t about to sit back and do nothing. I went against the king’s orders and came to find you.”

Draevyn’s eyes widened.

“Our father refused to act when I pieced together something wasn’t right, and when he wouldn’t supply any answers, I looked elsewhere. Said it was a fool’s errand, that you were already gone, or worse. But I couldn’t accept that.” Atlas’s gaze raked over him. “You’re my brother. I had to try.”

A lump formed in Draevyn’s throat, and he shook his head. “I assumed everyone would think I was a lost cause.”

“Not me,” his brother said firmly. “Not ever.”

Draevyn looked out at the horizon, the endless blue stretching in all directions. “How close are we?” he asked.

“Nearly there,” Atlas answered. “We’ve been tracking back steadily since we pulled you off that beach.”

Draevyn’s jaw tightened. “I don’t even know where to begin to explain this, but we need to go back.”

Atlas’s eyes flared beneath furrowing brows. “What? Why?”

“We found it.” Draevyn swallowed before taking in a breath. “We found Maerinys, and we can’t waste any time. She’s still there.”

His brother’s expression darkened. “I know you’re not speaking of the woman who managed to trap and capture you, Draevyn.”

He’d never seen Atlas get angry with him so quickly. Typically, he would always be the one to calm Draevyn down or try to turn the situation into a joke to lighten the mood. Atlas was the laughter to Draevyn’s brooding—but something in him had changed.

Draevyn huffed through his nostrils, his hands balling into fists at his sides. “Her name is Esmyra. I don’t expect you to understand, but?—”

“But?!” Atlas cut him off, shock and something resembling hurt flashing in his stare. “Let her rot in that cave. She planned to fucking kill you.”

“But she didn’t!” Draevyn raised his voice, and he felt the eyes of his crew lingering from all angles of the ship. “Things changed. Maerinys is real. She’s not trapped in a cave, she’s trapped in the kingdom beneath the waves.”

Atlas shook his head rapidly. “I’m not following. It sank a thousand years ago.”

Draevyn took a step toward him, lowering his voice into a hushed whisper. “And it survived . The entire civilization, Atlas. And the acting queen plans to raise it.”

Atlas threw his head back and laughed— laughed at Draevyn’s words. “I think you may have swallowed too much seawater, brother.”

Draevyn’s jaw ticked, the veins in his neck throbbing as he lifted his finger to point in his brother’s face. “It’s the godsdamn truth . Esmyra is still there, in danger, and you let them drag me away!”

“I didn’t let them do anything,” Atlas shot back. His voice hardened. “Her crew assumed both of you were dead. When we saw you, we deemed it a miracle. I wasn’t about to waste resources or risk lives for some bloody fucking pirate when we found who we came here for.”

The words struck him like a blow, and for a moment, he couldn’t speak, his breath ragged and uneven. “She’s not dead,” he growled. “She’s trapped. With her sister, who is essentially a fucking sea witch, and she’s about to become much worse.”

“Sea witch?” Atlas scoffed, his jaw tightening. “And what would you have had me do, Drae?”

The wind carried the silence between them as Draevyn searched for the words. “Something terrible is going to happen to her. Mark my words, if we don’t do something soon, Maerinys will be raised from the depths, and what will come with it will be beyond anything we’ve ever faced.”

Atlas’s expression softened, though his voice remained steady. “Tell me everything. What happened in that cave, and what’s waiting for us if we go back? ”

The weight of it all pressed down on Draevyn, but he forced himself to speak. He explained everything to Atlas as quickly as he could, of waking up on Esmyra’s ship, falling through the cave, fighting the krechuums together, finding Maerinys, and the crypt held within.

Atlas blew out a low whistle. “Definitely too much seawater.”

Flames danced in Draevyn’s eyes, and he was surprised when Atlas took a step back.

“The last thing I remember, Syrena told me she isn’t just trying to raise the kingdom.

She’s trying to take Esmyra’s power. To bind her soul back to her old bones and rip them from her once everything she needs is completed, starting with bringing Maerinys to the surface.

” His voice wavered, but he pushed on. “She’s playing a long game, manipulating everyone around her—including me. ”

His brother’s eyes narrowed. “Including you?”

Anger flared within him. “She…she used a siren’s song to make me believe she was her .” The shame burned in his chest as he lifted his stare to meet Atlas’s. “Syrena played tricks on my mind, making me think she was Esmyra.”

“So?” Atlas looked more confused now than ever.

“I kissed her, and when I realized the truth, it was too late. Esmyra saw everything. And now she—” He stopped, his voice breaking.

His brother’s jaw popped open. “You—You care for her…don’t you?”

Draevyn nodded silently, his throat tight. The memory of her standing in the doorway, her eyes full of betrayal, was a blade that wouldn’t stop twisting in his heart.

“It’s always about a woman,” Atlas groaned, rolling his eyes.

He clapped a hand on Draevyn’s shoulder, his grip firm.

“Well, we’ll take this back to the king and inform him of everything so the kingdom can further plan.

I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to find the entirety of The Night Wraith’s crew in his hold. ”

Her crew.

Visions of the beach came back to him then—of Valor attacking The Night Wraith with cannon-fire.

Draevyn grabbed Atlas’s shoulder. “ The crew—they’re alive?”

He nodded. “Held below deck. My future wife is aboard to make sure none of their magic allows them to escape. I’m surprised they haven’t tried much since we left, to be honest. She must’ve put the fear of all gods in them that day at the cave.

However, it’s an odd thing, isn’t it?… A crew of all beings. ”

Draevyn raised a brow. “Wife?”

Atlas smirked. “We have much more to catch up on, brother.”

Draevyn pressed his lips into a firm line, but was racing across the deck and back down the stairs toward the holding cells before Atlas could say anything further.

He knew he was running out of time, if he hadn’t already.