“Where is that damn girl?” I hear Master Pirate shout, as I run into the training room with Hunter at my side. He isn’t running, just strolling behind me and stops at my side in front of Master Pirate, who doesn’t look impressed one bit. I smooth down my messy hair, untidy clothes and flushed cheeks. I woke up on the ship, knowing I would be late, but Hunter had no plan on letting me out of that bed. Not that I’m complaining.

“That damn girl is my fiancé, and unless you want me slamming my fist into your face, be more respectful,” Hunter drawls in a surprisingly calm voice. Master Pirate and Hunter stare at each other, before Master Pirate nods.

“Understood,” he remarks, looking over at me. His black hair is tied at the back of his head, and his eyes are narrowed on me like I’ve just killed his cat or something. He is still as huge as I remember, but his cloak is gone, and it shows off his impressive body.

“Have fun, I will check in on Ryland. Don’t kill Master Asshole, yeah?” Hunter requests, making me chuckle as he pulls me to him and kisses me deeply. I’m breathless by the time he pulls away and leaves me on shaky legs. Master Pirate glares at Hunter as he walks away, before turning his eyes back to me.

“What’s your first name? I don’t like calling you master whatever,” I ask him, wanting to know.

“Master Pirate is my name,” he replies dryly.

“It’s going to be your first name, or master asshole . . . your choice?” I push, crossing my arms.

“If you beat me, I will tell you my name, Cassandra,” he suggests. The smirk on his lips makes me think he believes he won’t have to tell me.

“You think you will win?”

“From what I’ve heard, you have no control. Your power reacts due to stress, which is the starting base of our powers,” he tells me, and holds his arms behind his back as he starts walking around me in a circle.

“Water is your gift, like mine, and when controlled properly, is the most powerful gift any changed one can have,” he tells me.

“Why is that? I assumed fire was the most powerful,” I comment, and he arches a blond eyebrow at me.

“Fire can be put out, while water cannot be stopped, only controlled,” he says and stops right in front of me.

“Water,” he comments, lifting both his hands up and a long stream of water steams out from them, shooting up into the air as I take a step back. The water swirls around, getting faster and faster, until it looks more like a water tornado. Master Pirate lets it go, and it falls to the floor, but he keeps one hand in the air, still controlling it as it swirls around.

“Amazing,” I say, actually meaning it.

“I can make this, but only with this amount of water. I’ve heard you flooded an entire room, am I right?” he enquires.

“Yes,” I say, folding my arms and watching as he stops the water, letting it splash all over the floor and soaking my trousers.

“Then if we can teach you control, you would be stronger than any changed one I have ever trained,” he states.

“I can't seem to call the water at will. It only responds when I’m in danger,” I explain. He nods, sitting on the floor.

“Sit down,” he instructs and I do, ignoring the cold water soaking my bottom through my trousers.

“Close your eyes, Cassandra,” he tells me, and I raise an eyebrow at him, before doing as he asks.

“Now what?” I ask.

“Our power comes from our chosen. I have one chosen, so my power is limited to her, but our bond is so strong that I can hear her thoughts. I can sense where she is without opening my eyes, and if she were in pain, I would know,” he tells me.

“My bond isn’t that strong,” I say.

“It is strong, but still new and muddled because you have so many chosen. It’s rare for a changed one to take so many chosen. In fact, there is only one changed that I know of that even has four chosen, not six like you have taken,” he informs me, but his voice holds no judgement, only stating a fact. I wonder why he doesn’t mention the queen, as she had four chosen. I hate how everyone here just seems to have forgotten her.

“Are you saying I won’t ever have that bond?” I ask him, keeping my eyes closed. I don’t want to hear the answer. It really doesn’t matter in the end, because I wouldn’t change anything.

“Not at all, you will have that bond with each them in a few years. Maybe an even more powerful than bond any of us have experienced,” he says.

“Right, so why are we closing our eyes as we speak?” I ask.

“Straight to the point, no thank you for the reassurance and advice?” he asks me, but it’s clear he doesn’t want a reply as he keeps speaking. “Our power comes from our bond; it’s where it builds, where it comes from. Imagine your bond as you listen to my words.” I take a deep breath, doing as he asks and feeling for the bond. It’s like a warm place in my chest, where I can sense my pirates and their love and trust.

“Now, imagine a need to protect that bond, like a wave of water covering it,” he says, and I do as he asks, feeling water spreading out from my hands. I hold them with my palms facing the floor as I keep the feeling of my bond in the forefront of my mind and the need to protect it.

“Open your eyes, Cassandra,” he tells me, and I blink in shock when I see the entire room flooded in a low level of water. We are in a clearing; the water doesn’t touch us at all.

“You have so much control of this water, it is yours. You have made it so it doesn’t even touch us. Now lift it into the air, high enough to touch the ceiling,” Master Pirate demands.

“I-I can’t do that,” I stutter out.

“Now, Cassandra. Don’t think about it, just feel,” he pushes me, placing a hand over his heart. I close my eyes, trusting my bond, and try to picture all of the water rising. It’s hard to imagine the impossible, but I have to trust that I’m strong enough to do just that. A warm feeling spreads all over me, and I open my eyes, knowing if I were to look up, the water would be floating.

“Look,” Master Pirate says, and I nod my head before looking up at the ceiling, where all the water floats. It’s easy once you can control it, like it listens to my demands. My love for my pirates makes this possible. I stand up, holding my hands in the air, and push all the water into three balls.

“Let’s play,” I grin, stepping back as Master Pirate laughs, and I throw one of the balls of water at him. He goes flying across the floor, somehow landing on his feet, but dripping wet. He holds his hands out at his side, and two balls of water appearing like mine. I pull my own spheres of water right in front of me, and aim another one at him. His own water sphere meets mine, and he follows straight after with a jet of water aimed right at me. I quickly make my last sphere of water into a jet, and it collides with his directly in between the two of us. I have to hold both my hands up, struggling to push against the pressure from his water. It inches towards me, and I'm gradually losing ground, one step back at a time. I can’t lose this, I need to prove to him that I’m not nothing. Nothing. The word evokes memories of the king and his dark, evil eyes. The amount of hate in his sure expression when he said I was nothing flashes in my mind. I channel the hate, opening my eyes, and suddenly everything changes. My jet of water extends, getting stronger and destroys his, blasting into him and this time, slamming him into the wall. I look down, realising I’m actually hovering above the ground as water swirls around me. The power disappears quickly, and I collapse onto the wet floor. The door opens behind me, and Dante and Everly walk in. They both stop, looking at me, and then over to Master Pirate. Everly runs over to check on Master Pirate as Dante comes to me, offering me a hand. He pulls me up and holds me close.

“Are you alright, pretty girl?” he asks me, pulling back and checking me over.

“I’m fine, it was just training. I needed a changed one’s help to learn,” I explain to him.

“You just scared me, seeing you lying on the floor like that,” he says, and I wrap my arms around him.

“I’m sorry,” I mumble, and he kisses the top of my head. I look over as we hear clapping, slow loud claps. Master Pirate walks over to us, with Everly at his side, who looks amused.

“So, I won, what’s your name?” I ask.

“Never trust a pirate, Cassandra. Hasn’t anyone ever told you that?” Master Pirate taunts. He walks around me and out the door as I laugh. Everly leaves with Master Pirate, shutting the door behind them.

“I missed you, but didn’t quite expect to see this when I walked in,” Dante says, sliding his hand into my hair.

“I didn’t know I could even do this,” I admit. “It’s amazing to have such a connection to water.”

“It’s amazing to be so close to you, and to be able to watch you be so wonderful,” he says, being the charmer that I’ve always known he was. I chuckle, leaning up and kissing him slowly, taking my time teasing him. He allows it for a second, before grabbing my face with his hands and taking over.

“Tease,” he whispers against my lips.

“You’re my pirate, am I not allowed to tease you?” I ask, running my hand down his hard chest, and he catches it, bringing it to his lips.

“As much as I want to lay you on this floor, take off your clothes, and make you moan in that sweet way I know you do, I can’t. This is a public training room, and I have a class due in here at any moment,” he says and just as he speaks, the door opens behind him.

“Fine, can I stay and watch for a bit?” I ask, and he nods.

“Sure, you could even join in if you wanted?”

“No, I’m no fighter, but I have other talents,” I grin, and his eyes drift down my body as I step away.

“You sure do,” he drawls in a seductive tone that makes me long to be alone with him. Ten men and three women come in to the class as I wait, and they all look at Dante like he is their god or something. They all appear shocked to see me sitting on the side-lines, but they don’t say a word. I watch as Dante takes control of the class, teaching them how to use a sword and how to throw daggers. He encourages them to practice fighting in pairs with wooden swords to start with. While they are all practising, Dante walks over to me, sitting down.

“You’re a good teacher. They all seem to respect you.”

“I’ve been teaching them for a year, that’s why,” he shrugs like it’s nothing.

“You’ve helped them and given them a strength they can use to avenge whoever they are fighting for. Everyone must have lost something, like a home, or worse, someone,” I muse, and Dante slides his hand into mine.

“Loss makes us stronger, and it gives us a reason to fight. We can do this,” he says and gets up, going back to his students.