Hell Hath No Fury - Book One

Drowning

A total of 47 suns had passed since the call to prepare a fleet had been given when the alarm bells rang; The Center was fast approaching. It was nearing sunset when the noise reverberated around the island. Having the fight at nighttime was a double-edged sword. For one, it would be dark, and it would become more hazardous to maneuver around the reef but for The Center, entering at nighttime was basically suicide. The number of ships they would lose to the jagged coral jutting up through the water would be double what the pirates would lose. At the sound of the alarm bells, chaos had broken out and the streets were filled with pirates running to their stations.

Some of their ships were already in positions, hiding behind small islands and rock formations, lying in wait. They would aid the ships leaving from shore, the plan was to form some sort of ring around the navy to trap them in and attack from all sides. Theo had been sharing some sard outside of Grog's pub with a newer captain when the alarm bells rang. Theo dropped the sard at the first ring and booked it towards the docks to find the scout. Before arriving there, she was stopped by Morgana.

"Scout says three lightbringers and an estimated 50 ships!" Morgana yelled as she began to jog back towards the town.

Theo nodded and turned around to see a group of people that gathered at the docks had paused their frantic duties when they saw her. They stared at her expecting something

"We can do this, people!" Theo shouted as encouraging as she could make it, finding reserves of energy deep inside her to pull in time for the fight, "Run them into the coral, board their ships and turn their cannons against their own people! We've trained for this!"

The small pep talk seemed to light a fire under their asses and they dispersed, repeating what Theo had said to others they encountered on their way. Theo stopped her journey to the docks and turned to run towards the mountain, her destination was the cells under the estate. The plan had been that if lightbringers arrived, the larger ships would converge on them and attack. With Theo having one of the largest ships on the island with The Scorned Woman, she leading the charge on one of the three lightbringers. As such, she would most likely come face to face with someone high ranking in the navy and if things were to go south, they needed leverage. Theo was heading back to the jail to retrieve Avery and keep her in the brig of her ship in case anything went wrong.

Theo tried to keep her emotions out of it. She couldn't think about the plan for too long because the urge would arise to break Avery out and set her free from Corinspian punishment. Fake her death on the sea, let her run away, let her back on her own ship; anything. It was a clash of feelings when she thought of it for too long, when she realized what it meant to have Avery being used as a bargaining chip she began to second guess it. But Theo had a duty to the island, not to someone who had been deceitful for self-gain.

For the first time, Theo made it past the door of the jail. She nodded to one of the guards and instructed him to guide her to Avery's cell. She was walked to a section of the jail that held completely enclosed cells, no bars just a door with a small, closed window that could open for visitors. Theo watched as the door opened to see Avery curled in on herself in the corner of the room. Avery looked up, squinting her eyes to see through the darkness of her cell to who was coming. She was wearing the same clothes that she had left the ship with, dirty and tattered. She didn't look starved, which was good, but she did look pale and her eyes were sunken from lack of sleep.

Avery's eyes looked up to meet Theo's but Theo quickly looked away, she couldn't look her in her eyes. Neither of them spoke, Theo could just feel her staring. The guards walked in and unshackled her. Theo said nothing as she was escorted out of the cell, she just turned around and began to walk out. The guard pushed Avery to follow and she did. A voice she hadn't heard in two cycles spoke up and Theo's heart felt like it was crumbling, her resolve slipping with every syllable.