TREASURE || ATEEZ

13- intel

ep. 13
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"Wow!"

Your mouth hangs open when you see the scenery unfold before you, colors of the sky melting with one another beautifully as the waves rise and go. The sound of the ocean rocking the ship fills your ears like a quiet melody, the scent of the air pleasing your nose. You can feel the sunlight hitting your skin and basking it with its warmth, and you close your eyes for a while to immerse yourself into your surroundings.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" you hear Jongho whisper, his footsteps slowly making its way next to you. "This is what I get to see a lot of the time."

The both of you stand in the middle of the crow's nest while you appreciate the scene in front. You arm wraps around the pole of the main mast to steady yourself, and your lips curve into a smile.

The first mate decided that once you were changed out of your old attire, he would bring you up here to enjoy the sight of the ocean. Fortunately, he managed to get you an oversized shirt and some pants that was retrieved from the cabin boy, which has allowed you to move more freely. Strapped along your waist is the dagger that Yeosang has given, hanging on the left side of your waist.

"So, how does your powers work?"

You look over to Jongho as your arms rest on the wooden railing, body facing forward to the sea. The chilly breeze kisses your face gently as your hair glides along the air, and you take a second to think about your answer to the question.

"I'm not really sure," you say, moving your hand to touch your pendant. "All I know is that I can hear a voice when I put this pendant on and it allows me to control water. It was never my doing; I just follow what the voice tells me to do."

"Do you know why... it did that to Yeosang?"

A melancholy expression washes over his face when he asks, as if he is recalling of that incident in his mind. The question also sparks a replay of that night, your eyebrows scrunching together out of annoyance. You wish you knew the reason behind the peculiar behavior of your necklace, but it has never acted that way with you.

Looking down at the moonstone pendant, you wonder what its ulterior motive behind the attempt to drown the combatant. Because he is a pirate? Because he has spilled the blood of many people throughout his life?

"Because all men are selfish."

You stop twisting your pendant around in your fingers, eyes widening at the sudden voice perking up in your mind. You look over to Jongho, who is fortunately observing the sea with a longing gaze, to make sure he does not catch your sudden change in expression before conversing with the voice residing in your head.

What do you mean by that? you ask them, a bit confused on its sudden comment. You're making no sense at all.

"That man... tried to use my power for his own good," it answers. "I could feel it when he held me in his possession. He wanted to experience this power himself, see how powerful he would be if he had this power. Why else would he jump into the sea with me?"

Now that you think about it, it was odd for him to suddenly go into the ocean when he took my necklace. You never knew that the jewelry itself had these powers, so you simply gave it away as a gift since he gave you his favorite dagger.

How did he know about the powers behind your necklace?

It made no sense to you, because you never showcased this power before.

Unless...

With that thought in mind, you call out to the pirate beside you. "Jongho? Can I ask you something?"

He hummed in response.

"Have I ever showed this power... before I even knew about it?"

For a second, it seemed as if the man was reluctant to answer your inquiry due to the silence washing over the conversation. He rolls his lips inward, making them thinner and sealing his mouth for a bit, and appears to be thinking about something after you asked him.

Reluctantly, he tells you about the commotion you caused when you first arrived: how you were flung into the ocean, how you were brought back onto the ship with the help of the ocean, and how your necklace was glimmering for seconds before its light died out. You simply listen to him with eyes widened, not knowing such event has occurred after being thrown overboard.

"I... I had no idea." You look out to the sea, confusion circling your thoughts. "I honestly don't remember anything from that day."

For some reason, you suddenly recall your sprained ankle and squat down and touch it. Seonghwa had told you one your first day on the ship that it would take a while to for your ankle to heal, yet you realized that you've been walking completely fine since you regained consciousness.

Jongho, who noticed your peculiar behavior, bents down to meet your eyes. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself on the way up here?"

"I'm good!" You quickly turn your head to face him with a wide smile. "I thought I felt something brush against my leg just now."

How could you forget about your ankle?

Fortunately, it seems that no one noticed your abnormally quick sprain recovery due to Jongho's reaction. With that, you stand up and let yourself gaze out to the sea once more in silence, your mind roaming in your thoughts while no words escape your lips. Jongho seems to let the silence wash over the conversation and simply mimics your action, the two of you now watching the sunrise.

With your pendant, you noted that you have the power to command the seven seas, the power to heal, and the power to move water to your control. It's hard to believe in this information you discovered, however, as you never heard of magic being prevalent in the timeline of your life. Besides, how could a necklace hold so much power?

From there, you decide to keep any further discovery of your powers a secret as much as possible, knowing well that the more you showcase yourself the more the pirates can use against you. You will be utilized as a tool for the pirates, and you won't be able escape from that fate if it becomes a reality.

But you never realized that it's already too late.