"you want freedom, I can grant it to you."
"do not give me hope. that is a luxury I cannot afford."
***
{S&B s1-?}
{the darkling x oc}
{through heaven's eyes :: book one}
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
☼☼☼☼☼☼
Perse tapped her foot against the docks, waiting for her captain to show his face so she and Tamar could deliver the good news. The latter had already boarded the ship, desperate to find her twin brother so they could celebrate the news Alexei Stepanov had died to bring them.
The Sun Summoner was alive.
The Sun Summoner was no longer a myth.
They could go home.
Well, her crew could, she was locked in one area for the rest of her life, outrunning demons that had plagued her since she was little. Her hand clutched the string of beads around her neck. It would be so easy to abandon them now, to find her brother and spend the rest of her life in the shrouded streets of Ketterdam, stealing for the right to live.
Her hand fell and she continued to stare up at the ship that had been her home for the last year.
Taking a deep breath, she boarded it and went straight to the Captain's cabin, catching sight of the unfamiliar head of dark hair. She was so used to the blonde curls, the bright eyes she'd grown fond of when she first met him.
But here he stood, pouring over maps and books before locking gazes with her. "Tamar told me," he replied, already knowing what she was going to say before she said it. It was always that way with him. It was why they got along so well. "The Sun Summoner is real then?" Perse nodded, gulping down the lump in her throat with no success, "I have to go with them, Nik," She pleaded, leaning on the desk, fingers splayed out over the map of East Ravka. He let out a sigh and nodded.
"I know you do. That's why I'm asking you to bring her back to me." The glint in his eyes didn't go unnoticed and Perse's chest tightened.
She furrowed her brow, "You want me to betray them? My own brother, my chance for freedom?"
Nik stared her down, no remorse or sympathy in his gaze. It was what made him an effective captain. It would be what helped him to victory. She had always admired it about him. He was never tied down by anything except his crew, and even they were expendable. "We have the chance of a lifetime Perse, and I'm asking you not to betray your brother, but to reaffirm your loyalty to me."
Perse bit down on her bottom lip and scoffed, refusing to believe what she was hearing. It wasn't unusual for him to give orders like this, but never had she been on the receiving end of it.
It felt wrong, and left a horrid taste in her mouth almost like metal. She met his stern gaze again, the vein in her forehead popping out as every muscle in her body clenched, torn between the love she held for her brother and loyalty she felt toward Nik.
He let out a sigh and moved around the table, grasping her hand in his, "I trust you Pers, and I know you'll make the right decision."
She didn't believe him, and with a final tug, ripped her hand from his before storming out of the cabin.
