A Daughter's Love

Chapter Eight.

Ryker.

I was making my way down the street from the forge with a brown paper bag in hand that had a few sandwiches for Malia and I to share inside of it along with a bottle of water. I was dirty and covered in sweat from spending the day in that heated room, beating on the same piece of steel for hours on end but she was used to seeing me in such a state. I found myself thinking about her while I worked, her dark skin, so flawless and smooth, her mismatched eyes, one gold and the other the color of the sea, her round lips, often times swollen and bleeding from a fight. I would dab at them, gently yet stare at them longingly, always wondering what they would taste like. She was beautiful, even more beautiful than her mother if that were even possible. I could vaguely remember Evangeline, her voice when she sang to me, her gentle and loving smile. She was such a kind and loving person that it hard for me to believe that Malia was her daughter from how much she despised the world and always looked so sad when we were alone. My thoughts came to a standstill when I noticed the door to the flower shop gaped open with the open sign lying on the sidewalk. I instantly knew that something wasn’t right and rushed into the shop calling out her name “Lia?” there was no answer which only caused my heart to start beating faster, my mind racing with possibilities while I inspected the room. Glass crunched beneath my feet, flowers scattered across the floor along with papers and the money from the register. The desk had been toppled over and blood stained parts of the floor and wall but the blood on the floor by my feet was what caught my attention. Was it hers? Had they found her? Did she managed to escape? It was then that a thought surfaced in my mind. The pirates “No, no” I turned on my heels, the brown bag discarded when I broke out into a run, pushing and shoving my way past people to get to the bakery, cutting through the buildings and moving as fast as my legs could carry me. She had to be alright, she just had to be. She was Malia, she had killed so many people and hardly ever gotten more than a scratch or a split lip. They couldn’t have bested her. I kept reassuring myself but my heart still raced, breathing frantic and body trembling with fear, a tormenting fear that asked ‘What if?’ in the back of my mind when I reached our street and flung myself through the doors of the bakery. Head turning this way then that in search of her familiar dirty blond hair, her sunflower earrings, her yellow dress that fluttered in the light breeze “Ryker?” my mother questioned, startled by my abrupt entrance, her hands clutching at her heart while she gazed at me with worried, confused eyes. I looked to her, shoulders heaving from my uneven breathing “Malia, is she here?” I asked just as Malik stepped into the room, ready for his day of work. His shift at the bookshop always started at noon which meant that he could sleep in and take his time getting ready in the mornings unlike Malia and I “Malia? Why would she be here? She’s supposed to be at work?” he questioned which caused my blood to run cold in my veins. I ran my hands through my hair a few times and began pacing nervously, mind racing with thoughts of how to get her back. If she wasn’t at work or at home; then they must have taken her. It was either that or she was somewhere hiding out. The latter was unlikely since she would’ve come to me, asking me to treat her wounds if she’d been hurt “She left this morning with you” my mother informed as if I had lost my mind. My father was nowhere to be seen, out working odd jobs for the neighbors to earn some extra money. I fell back against the wall, my lips trembling when I spoke, not seeing the pained look in Malik’s gaze at the sight of me “The flower shop was ransacked” I informed, causing a gasp to escape my mother and Malik to drop the books he had been holding, letting them clutter to the wooden flooring. He stepped forward “My sister?” he asked, eyes dangerously desperate for answers when they locked with mine. He loved Malia despite their constant arguing or teasing. They were worlds apart but they were still siblings and if anyone dared mess with Malik, Malia would skin them alive for laying a hand on her brother “She-She wasn’t there when I stopped by for lunch” he looked defeated, like the air had left him, his shoulders slumping so that his bag slid down and fell to the floor. My mother tore her apron from her body and started for the door “I’ll send word to the authorities” I didn’t stop her, instead I pushed off the wall and rushed out the door behind her, taking off at a sprint. She froze, turning to stare after me with Malik hot on my heels, fear consuming her aged eyes “Ryker? Ryker!” I ignored her and made a sharp turn, heading for the water, for the port where I knew the pirates were located off the shoreline. I wasn’t sure what I could do to help but I was going to try. I would do anything for her. I just wished she would realize it. Realize that I loved her despite her hatred of that very emotion.

Malia.

I awoke to the motion of being rocked, the smell of the sea strong in my nostrils as the waves sounded near. A groan escaped my lips at the pounding feeling in my skull and my eyes blinked open, head rolling from side to side, feeling so heavy from how weak I was. The sight I met with was that of the deck of the ship, wooden flooring covered in various pairs of boots as crewmen moved across it “Well would ye looky here, the rat’s awake” the man who’s arm I’d manage to break said, kneeling in front of me with a wide grin. I tried lunging at him but was thrown back against the mast when I realized that ropes were wrapped around my arms and torso, keeping me pinned in place. He placed his index finger beneath my chin and raised my head to look at him when I tried struggling against my restraints “No use fighting, doll. The Captain tied those himself-.” the crew began to notice and started to stare at the sight of me in both amusement and sheer anger. The sky had begun to darken which meant that nightfall was soon approaching. I had been out for some time “Trust me when I say, that there be no getting out of them” with that he stood, his arm wrapped in a splint and held close to his torso. I continued to struggle, feeling the ropes digging into the flesh of my wrists, biting into them and soaking my hands in my own blood yet still I continued to fight it. My father would roll over in his grave if he knew I’d just given up without giving it my all and fighting like he taught me to. My feet managed to root themselves on the Damned Dame’s deck, forcing me upward until I stood with my arms and torso still tied to the mast. The man’s grin faltered for a brief moment “I’ll f*****g kill you, all of you!” I yelled my threat through gritted teeth, some strands of my hair having come undone, soaked with the blood that had seeped through from the wounds of the blows I had survived. The fact that they had managed to take me down and tie me up was exhilarating, it drove me mad with pleasure but I couldn’t show it just yet “All this for a few golden coins” a smooth, crystalline voice said, catching the eyes of the men around us and drawing them to somewhere behind me. A man came to a stand beside me, leaning up against the past with his face hidden beneath the brim of his black Captain’s hat “Curtis” I greeted in a hiss which caused an uproar among the crew. They yelled things like ‘Respect the Captain!’ or ‘Who to ye think ye are, calling the Captain by his name?’ but I ignored them, turning my head to get a closer look of the man who stood so close, I could feel his breath fanning the side of my face “You’ve got fire just like your father-.” he pointed out, pulling away before I could map out his face to cut away at the ropes that bound me with the use of a dagger. I felt myself grin when the last rope snapped and I turned, reaching out to shove the man’s face into the mast as hard as I could “Capin!” the man with the broken arm cried out to which his Captain raised his hand, ushering a calm over the crew before he reached for my throat, gloved hand constricting around my windpipe when he shoved my back into the mast with the tip of his dagger pressing into the flesh over my heart, drawing blood. His hat had cluttered to the deck the moment his face collided with the mast, giving me a clear view of the man who was holding me prisoner. He was handsome, even more so than Ryker or Malik with dark skin and bright green eyes that stood out against the darker shade. His black hair was short and stubble coated his shin. There were small scars littering his face and crow’s feet stretched out from the corners of his eyes. He was a man, powerful and strong, older than Ryker, my brother and I by nearly a decade “It’s such a shame that I’m forced to snuff it out without witnessing the full extent of its flames” Captain Curtis said, blood trickling from his nose. He then turned me, shoving my front into the mast with both hands pinned in place behind me. I groaned, feeling his hands as they moved, tying the rope around my wrist again, expertly enough for me not to be able to escape. Once he was done, he pressed himself into me, his hard chest rubbing up against my back when his lips brushed over the shell of my ear “Your father was one of the most feared Captain’s to ever sail these seas-.” my eyes widened, staring ahead at the black body of water from around the side of the mast. I knew that my father was a former pirate but never that he was a Captain of his own crew and vessel “And you’re just a disgrace to his legacy” with that he tossed me aside, letting me land on the deck with a loud thud, shoulder crashing in first, followed by the rest of my body. His words repeated themselves in the back of my skull while I tried to get up onto my feet. I wasn’t a disgrace, I was Caleb Campbell’s daughter and I will prove that I earned that title “Have at her boys!” Curtis ordered, causing the crew to erupt into cheers and the man with the broken arm to send a strong kick into my side. I toppled over, gasping when another kick followed, this one colliding with my back, send from another man. A fist struck the side of my face and another quickly followed “Damn you!” I yelled, imaged flooding my mind from years before when those boys were beating me, kicking and slapping and punching while I lay on the ground similar to how I was lying on the deck of that ship. I gasped when another boot struck my chest, knocking the air straight out of my lungs and forcing me to start coughing violently, eyes wide and ears ringing. A fist struck my face again and again and again until I could taste blood as it trickled from my nose, mouth and made its way down my throat, chocking me. The beating stopped for a moment and I managed to drag myself onto my own two feet “Bastards” I bit out only to be knocked down by the sting of a fist. I collapsed, head bouncing off the ship’s deck and filling my mind with more images of those boys. They were laughing, yelling insults similar to the crew but one of them, Bastian was grinning when he grabbed my arms and began dragging me away from the rest of the boys, fiddling with his pants since he was a few years older than me at that time, around seventeen while I’d only just turned thirteen. I remember screaming, protesting when the others tried to pin me down. I kicked and fought violently, relentlessly when Ryker came running, smacking Bastian over the head with a piece of wood he had found lying nearby. It distracted the older boy long enough for me to fight back, tearing my right hand away from the one who held it and punching him. The rest was just an image of red, scarlet red that clouded my vision the entire time. I blinked and found that I was stood over their unconscious bodies which were covered in blood as I breathed hard, knuckles bruised and bloody. The wooden plank cluttered from Ryker’s hand, drawing my attention onto him. He was backing away from me, fear in his eyes before he paused and realized that I was crying. It had been the first time I’d cried since my parent’s death and would be the last to that very day. He was trembling, legs unsteady when he moved forward and brought me into a comforting embrace. Ryker. I yelled out, kicking at one of the men’s leg, feeling the bone snap beneath the force, eyes blinded by rage and adrenaline. He screamed and fell to the deck, distracting the others long enough for me to head butt a second man when I tried to stand. He staggered back, clutching at his head and face while I panted, my entire face covered in blood, my blood that soaked my apron and dress, coating my shoulders and arms. My hair had come undone and was sticking to the sides of my face “Enough! End this already!” Captain Curtis ordered, followed by a fist connecting with my stomach. I couldn’t block it and fell back down to the floor where the beating continued. My vision was fading in and out when one of the men dragged me to my feet, walking me to the ship’s railing. It was the Captain “Tie her ankles!” he ordered, pushing me down on the railing while a second man bound my feet in the same rope they had used to bind my wrists. I tried struggling but I was too weak, only managing a few flinching motions before the Captain shoved me overboard “Let the sea judge you” was the last words I heard before the biting cold collided with my flesh. Everything went quiet, peaceful as I descended through the mass of water, the air in my lungs begging to be replaced with a new round of oxygen. I tried wiggling my body to reach the surface but I was too weak, having lost too much blood to manage such a feat. My lungs continued to burn, eyes drooping, unable to see anything but the moonlight that poured into the water from above, lighting only the hair that danced around my face and the dress that tangled with my lower half. I wondered if that same stinging, suffocating feeling was what my parents felt before they drowned? I laughed in the back of my mind, finding it ironic that the sea had taken the lives of nearly every member of my family yet it still remained so beautiful even when it was about to claim me. I could hear the men above cheering and laughing while I drowned, could hear the songs of creatures that swam in the deep blue around me. The orange light from the lanterns on the ship’s deck gave off enough for me to see my own blood coating the water around me, most likely beckoning sharks to my location. I tilted my head back, gazing up at the surface that was so close yet so far and thought ‘At least I’ll see them soon’ before darkness took me, bubbles escaping my lips when the last bit of air was squeezed from my lungs and my body became limp, drifting aimlessly among the waves and currents until the sea spat me out on the shoreline of Vannes.

Malik.

I followed Ryker to the Port where he stopped on the beach, staring out onto the sea where a ship sat perfectly still on the horizon. It was a pirate ship judging from the black flag that fluttered in the breeze but its sails were white. I knew that Malia often snuck out at night but I never knew whatever it was she was doing would get her into that much trouble. It had taken some time to reach the Port on foot since it was a few miles down the shoreline and Ryker was exhausted, his breathing heavy and his body hunched over, hands gripping his knees. He wore a plain shirt that was soaked through with sweat and clung to his tone body, his brown trousers stuffed into his heavy duty boots with his hair a mess, sticking up in every direction “She’s on board that ship” he managed to get out in between pants, motioning to the pirate ship. I felt jealousy coursing through me at how desperate he was to get to her, to save her as he’d always been but he’d never show the same need, the same longing when it came to me “And how exactly are we supposed to reach it?” I questioned, contemplating using my water abilities but my mother’s words echoed out in the back of my mind. Out of all the people in the world I especially didn’t want Ryker getting hurt because of me so I refused to use them in his presence. He glanced at the Port around us in search of an abandoned boat but there were none. Vannes wasn’t a Port town and trading was rare since it mostly relied on imports from other French countries. His gaze landed on a man who stood near the waves, dressed in a black suit with a black coat, black hair neatly combed back as he examined the ship in the distance, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his coat on the back of which was an embroidered image of a silver whale. Ryker surprised me by racing toward the man regardless of my protests “Hay, Sir. Do you maybe have a boat we could borrow?” he questioned as I rolled my eyes and started to head in the direction of the pair. The man with pale skin and sapphire eyes gazed down at the hunched over Ryker like he wasn’t really there. After a long pause, he turned his attention back onto the pirate ship “She has to die” he bluntly stated which had Ryker staring up at him in horror. It wasn’t smart of the man to say what he did since he gave himself away as being part of the crew and had the red head fuming with rage. He stayed perfectly still when the unknown man continued “In order to be awakened as a Heart, she has to die” he repeated which had Ryker lunging at him, stepping into the shallow waves with his fists balled around the material of the man’s shirt. He looked at the younger man with little emotion other than annoyance “Listen asshole, if anything happens to her I will-I will-.” the unknown man tore his hands away from him and shoved Ryker back a few steps, brushing out the fabric of his shirt. I flinched at the determination and pain in Ryker’s tone when he tried to threaten the man but what drove a knife into my heart was what the man said next “You will what? Your rash actions are a direct result of your feelings toward Malia and I suggest that you push them aside long enough for me to explain before you regret every getting involved with our children” I had known how Ryker felt toward Malia for many years now, how he looked at her when she wasn’t paying attention, how he smiled when she looked away from him, how his eyes filled with adoration when she stepped into the room. I tore my gaze away from him, hands clenching at my sides while my teeth gritted. Ryker stood frozen in place at how the man spoke so casually, how he had used her name as if he’d known her all her life “I am known as Neptune, the god who rules over the seven seas-.” he casually introduced as if it wasn’t completely absurd that he considered himself a god. He sighed and bent down to touch his index finger to the waves below, causing them to freeze over completely, the waves stilling as if he’d stopped time only to reverse themselves then part, splitting the water down the middle in two halves that stretched on as far as the eye could see. Both mine and Ryker’s gazes widened when Neptune rose to his feet “And I am Malik’s father” I fell to my knees in the sand when the waters began to close again, moving normally as the sea should, pushing and pulling to a steady rhythm. Ryker couldn’t understand since he didn’t know about my abilities but I knew, I knew that it was true. He was my father but did that mean he was Malia’s father as well? He couldn’t be, she looked nothing like him whereas I had his eyes, his pale skin, even similar facial features that made it seem like I was staring at a reflection of myself a decade or so from them, older and wiser. His hair was as black as the night while mine was silver, leaning more toward my mother’s ivory color than his “How?” Ryker questioned, still awe struck from what he had just witnessed, the fact that gods did exist fresh in his mind and almost too much for him to process. He looked to me, eyebrows furrowed from my reaction to Neptune’s declaration “It’s true” I confirmed, my eyes traveling from Ryker to my father who was stood with his hands once again stuffed into the pockets of his coat, his face set in stone when he examined me. Was I a good enough son for him? How long had he known and if he did, why hadn’t he visited me? Help teach me to control my abilities? “Your mother is trapped in Purgatory along with Malia’s father. Because of this the only hope they have of ever seeing the land of the living again resides with you and your sister” how could any sane person believe what he was saying? He was surely mad, completely crazy but there I was, seated in the sand with my hands gripping at the sand, my eyes gazing up at him with trust. I believed him regardless of how insane he sounded. Ryker on the other hand was struggling to even comprehend what was happening. It wasn’t as if he was speaking to Ryker, instead he looked directly at me when he continued “Both you and your sister were born with Hearts of the sea which you inherited from your mother-.” he tore his eyes away from me to glance at the pirate ship on the horizon, the sun having descended in the sky as it began to grow dark. Orange light pouring from the deck of the ship “If she drowns, I will awaken her and she will become stronger, capable of competing in the upcoming war between gods” this had Ryker completely baffled, running his trembling hands through his hair, the setting sunlight dancing in its brilliant crimson shade when he shook his head, turning to glance back at the sea, blinking a few times to try and clear his mind as he gazed to the ship “Your mother is counting on you, both of you”