In her years of traveling with Pirates and in her years in war, Kailani had learned to recognize changes in magic in the air which is how she felt the sudden change on the pirate ship. She rose in fury on a bed made cold.
Zathrian was gone.
Hell hath no fury like Kailani if any pirate or Zathrian had been harmed on the ship.
As soon as she threw on her jacket and opened the door she noticed the eerie glow that surrounded the ship and not too far off from the Iris, the lilting notes of a song she had heard so long ago.
"Sirens." She cursed. She spread her fingers, thunder crackling at her fingertips as she stormed up the stairs into the main floor. She saw the other pirates listening with glazed looks on their faces on the edges of the Iris. Yearning to meet the cannibalistic Sirens that wanted to eat their flesh off their bones.
She snapped her hands forward ropes of violet circling the ship, webbing upwards into a spiderlike design that covered the ship. "That'll keep you safe for now." she muttered.
"Nice shooting there."
Kailani whirled around looking upwards to where a clear eyed Lorcan was steering the Iris. She climbed up the stairs, her eyes widening as she found Zathrian crumpled at his feet.
"What did you do?" she said reaching for Zathrian.
"I rather thought you'd approve." Lorcan said tiredly as he kept the ship steady his eyes on the horizon.
Kailani rolled her eyes as she checked over Zathrian satisfied when she felt his pulse, and swept her hands on his face, noticing the black bruise on his forehead.
"Spare me." Kailani said getting up and glaring at Lorcan. "The only reason you saved him is you still need him to create the rest of the map." she snarled.
"Why are you awake anyways?" she muttered putting her hands up to strengthen the defenses a flash of what looked like lightning striking the forcefield.
"The sirens call at your hidden desires things that you crave." Lorcan said.
"Let me guess you only crave treasure." Kailani said dryly.
"The Sirens are still coming. If I try to steer the ship away from them they'll attack. I get any closer."
"They'll attack." Kailani finished. She looked around thoughtfully. "You wouldn't happen to have cannons on the Iris?" she asked.
Lorcan raised his eyebrows. "You can't load cannons by yourself." he said with a scowl.
"Can't I?" she asked.
"Did you hit me." Zathrian moaned.
Kailani jumped in surprise, leaning forward to help him up. Lorcan raised his eyebrows as he saw that Zathrian was just as clear-eyed as he was.
"A mapmaker impervious to Siren calls? That's handy." Lorcan mused.
"My mother was born in the Orion Empire." He groaned, clutching at his head, blinking his eyes rapidly. "There is much I'm impervious to."
"Wish I could say the same about the rest of my crew," Lorcan said casting a glare at his dazed pirates.
"Come on. I've got this. Keep your heading, until we say so." Kailani said grabbing Zathrian and heading below deck.
XXXXX
"So how is this going to work?" Zathrian asked as he loaded the last of the cannons.
"Watch, how mine is angled and do the same." Kailani said gesturing to her cannon that was raised upwards. Zathrian frowned looking at where they were and arranging the cannons to match.
"Aren't they aimed to high to hit Sirens?" Zathrian asked.
"We're not hitting the Sirens." She said lighting a firing stick. "Here." She said handing a pole to Zathrian.
"As soon as the light of the moon hit's the edge of the cannon you fire." Kailani said. She raised her hand at the porthole and started whispering in a language that sounded like garbling nonsense to Zathrian's ears.
He glanced at the cannon. "It's getting close." Zathrian said. "Ready?"
Kailani nodded her head and as soon as the moon lined up, Zathrian tapped her and they both fired the cannons at the same time.
The cannons hit the top pf the cave that was the opening of the Siren's home. There was a loud screeching noise and flurry of splashing as the rocks fell into the water effectively trapping them in the cove.
"They are coming!" Zathrian said as he watched the Sirens pounce around the rocks aiming for the Iris with a fury.
"BOIL THE SEA, STRIKE THE WAVES, CALYPSO BRING YOUR FURY ON THOSE UNDESERVING OF YOUR WATERS!" Kailani said in a chant.
Zathrian watched as the waters seemed to churn and boil the Sirens shrieking as a whirlpool appeared. "Go tell Lorcan to turn!" Kailani demanded over the screams of the Sirens.
Zathrian bolted up the stairs and shouted up at Lorcan. "Whirlpool! Turn! TURN!"
Lorcan's eyes went wide as he yanked the wheel of the ship. Zathrian lost his balance and fell back down the stairs, with a resounding crash as he landed on some empty crates. "Urgh." He groaned.
"Zathrian!" Kailani yelled.
"I'm fine!" Zathrian yelled back.
This had been a hell of a night for Zathrian. First Kailani pulled him into bed with her, than he'd heard the silence and sorrowful sound of the Sirens, and after going to investigate the noise he'd been bashed in the head. Now yet again he was on the floor, he looked up and saw Kailani worriedly looking over him. He glanced up at her allowing her to help him up and wondered if the concern in her face was actual concern or just part of her mission to keep him safe...
XXX
The sun was setting when Kailani opened her eyes after going back to sleep, after the whole Siren fiasco. She shook her head and raised slightly in her bunk startling to see that Zathrian was relaxing on his own bunk sketching something, his shirt off, and his hair in a disarray.
"That was quite a nap." he mused, smirking slightly as he smoothed something in his drawing. "The Magic wears you out, doesn't it?" Zathrian asked curiously.
"It depends wholly on the magic used." Kailani muttered, rearranging her shirt discreetly. The shirt, she realized was actually Zathrain's that she must've grabbed by accident. She glanced outside, turning to look at Zathrian.
"How long have you been here?" she asked.
"Would you rather I not be here?" he asked her. "Do I make you uncomfortable?"
"I've been surrounded by all kinds of men for years before you were even born." she hissed.
"And you probably scared off every single one of them." he said.
Kailani sat up in the bed a leg hanging outside of the bunk. "Do I scare you?" she asked carefully.
Zathrian shut his book resting his charcoal on top of it. He leaned forward. "Do you wish me to be?" he asked quietly.
"I'm not entirely sure." She murmured.
Zathrian moved until he was sitting in front of her in her bunk. "You were worried about me when the Sirens attacked." He murmured.
"You are my mission." Kailani said. "My only goal is to bring you back alive." She stressed.
"Are you sure that's all?" Zathrian said, moving his hand to her neck and pressing his lips to hers. Kailani paused for a moment before her hands went to his shoulders but instead of pushing him away as she should have she found herself kissing him back pressing against him.
Swallowing the moan he made as she touched the darkest parts of him. She twisted and Zathrian was underneath her, as she pressed down on his center moving her lips from his mouth to his neck delighting in the way he whispered her name in the dark.