“Being sick, again?” Everly asks me as I throw up into the bucket by the bed. I look up to see her close the door behind her. I wait until I don’t feel like I will throw anything else up before I answer her.

“It’s seasickness, I guess. Chaz says some people get it,” I answer, picking up a towel and wiping my mouth from the awful taste. I pick up the glass of water off the side and look up at Everly, who leans against the door. She waits for me to drink it and then to take the bucket to the bathroom to empty it.

“There is something else it could be,” she says slowly when I walk back into the room.

“Like what?” I ask.

“I forget just how shielded you were sometimes,” Everly chuckles, “no wonder you haven’t thought about it.”

“About what?” I demand, wanting to know what she thinks. Chaz suggested all sorts of things to help with the seasickness, but nothing has worked.

“On Onaya, when the women were in the earliest stage of pregnancy, they sometimes would be sick every morning,” she says quietly, but I move back on the bed, shock rolling through me. I never thought about it, about the chances of getting pregnant. I guess in the back of my head I knew we weren’t being safe, but it’s still so shocking.

“But no one ever gets pregnant. It’s so rare in younger women, that I didn’t think it could happen so quickly,” I say in a rush.

“That was on Onaya, where the women were starved, and they weren’t strong enough to get pregnant. You have been well fed and looked after. It’s not surprising to me at all. I just assumed you would have thought about it,” she explains.

“Well, I didn’t,” I bite out and take a deep breath. “Sorry, I’m not mad with you, but at myself. This baby couldn’t have come at a worse time.”

“You do have a lot of husbands, Cassy,” she says with a laugh, but I’m in a daze. I can’t even think about anything other than the fact we are heading into mermaid waters in less than four hours, and I could be pregnant. I could be carrying a baby. My baby. My eyes water as I look down at my flat stomach, where my hands have instinctively gone to cradle.

“The baby could be a royal,” she says suddenly, and it starts to dawn on me that my baby could be another heir.

“No one could prove that. Like you said, I have six husbands. The baby could be any one of theirs," I admit to her, and she shakes her head, both of us silent for a long time. This changes so much, but I can’t help the sudden wave of protectiveness and happiness I feel at the idea of having a baby. If we win, my baby would be born into a world in peace. With six overprotective dads to watch her. Not that I know it’s a girl, but for some reason a little girl with brown hair and a cheeky grin pops into my mind.

“You cannot tell anyone,” I suddenly shout out. Everly gives me a worried look as she comes and sits on the bed next to me. She reaches over and grabs my hand.

“Your pirates would be overjoyed. I don’t understand why you want to keep the baby a secret,” Everly says, confusion written all over her face.

“Possible baby, I might just be sea sick,” I mutter, and she shakes her head at me. She looks about as convinced of that as I am.

“No, I’m almost certain you’re pregnant. I can tell there is something different about you, a glow, and it’s been there for weeks,” she says, earnestly.

“I could sense a change. I have always been able to see more than the average person. All people have this glow about them, but yours was always more. I never told you, because being different was so dangerous back then. It still is, in a way. Your glow was a bright blue colour, with white spots. Now, it's white with a blue line around it," she tells me, looking out the window and towards the sea. Maybe she does have some kind of gifts from her mermaid side after all.

“They would never let me fight the king if they knew. They would never let me near the mermaids. My pirates would turn this ship around and hide me to keep me safe, and I can’t let that happen. If I am pregnant, then I want a world my baby can be safe in, and so I can’t hide,” I tell her, holding my hand over my stomach, and she nods her agreement.

“As complicated as it is, I understand why you don’t want to tell them, but you have to know I won’t leave your side,” she says, and I smile.

“I know that,” I say. A loud, drill-like noise screams through the room, and I scream as I hold my ears. Everly doesn’t hold her ears, she just stands up and looks down at me, her blue eyes glowing a violet colour.

“Ev, what is it?” I manage to spit out, lying on my side as the noise gets louder, and then it suddenly cuts off. I gasp, trying to catch my breath as my ears ring. I sit up, and look over at Everly. She is just standing there, her eyes still glowing.

“Cass!” Jacob shouts, just before the door bursts open, and he rushes in. He stares at Everly for a split second, before rushing to me and helping me up off the bed.

“What the hell was that?” I ask him, and he shakes his head.

“No idea. What is wrong with your friend?” he asks me. I step up to Everly, putting my hands on her face.

“Ev?” I ask, but she doesn’t respond. “Forgive me for this.” I lift my hand, slapping her hard across the face, and she falls to the floor. I drop next to her, rolling her onto her back. She blinks up me and holds a hand to her face.

“You slapped me,” she exclaims in shock.

“Your eyes were glowing, and I had to snap you out of it. I’m not going to say sorry for it,” I respond, and Jacob chuckles as I stand up. Everly gets up with my help.

“Weapons, something is coming, and we need to be on deck,” Jacob says, handing me a dagger. I accept it as Everly runs out of the room.

“Stand close to one of us,” Jacob warns, and I grab his arm before he makes a move to step out of the room. I slide the dagger into his hand, and he shakes his head at me.

“I don’t need a weapon; you forget who I am. I may be your wife now, but I do not need defending,” I tell him, and he smiles, folding his hand over mine holding the dagger.

“You never know when you might need this, so please carry it. For me?” he asks me. I stare into his eyes for a moment, realizing he needs me to carry it for his own peace of mind. So for my pirate, I nod and slide the dagger into the side of my trousers.

“On deck, now!” I hear Everly shout loudly, and the sound of swords crashing together fills my ears. Jacob runs ahead of me, and I quickly follow. We run up the steps and out on to the deck just as a large scaly animal of some sorts jumps out of the water, heading straight towards us. It opens its mouth, and thousands of sharp teeth appear as the skin pulls back. Jacob swings his sword off his back, cutting it in half before it gets near us. I look around the deck, seeing dozens of the creatures in bits on the floor, my husbands are fighting them off, with some of the others helping. Everly jumps into the air in the middle of the ship, swinging around a small, thin sword and killing three of the creatures.

“I have an idea, get everyone in the middle of the ship,” I shout to Jacob, who nods, trusting me. We run to the centre of the ship as Jacob shouts for everyone to follow us.

“You best have a good idea, little bird,” Hunter says as he is the final one to get into position, joining us in the middle of the deck. I don’t reply, I simply sit on the floor and close my eyes. When I feel everyone's energies surrounding me, I pray to the sea god they are close enough and that this works.

“Cass?” I hear Jacob question as I feel for my bond, and call my power. I open my eyes, and I imagine the water spreading all around us, creating a wall of water. It works, and the creatures bounce against it. I stand up, and the water keeps moving slowly around in circles. The creatures don’t stop rushing against the wall of water, but they can’t get in. Eventually, they seem to stop. Maybe they are just going to wait us out.

“Impressive,” Tyrion comments, and Chaz places a hand around my waist.

“She certainly is,” Chaz replies, smiling down at me and pressing his lips against mine for just a second.

“How close are we to the mermaids?” I ask as I remember where we are, and that I can’t get lost in Chaz’s lips right now.

“I think we are about to find out,” Dante comments, pointing to the three outlines of people that appear on the other side of the water to our left. I step forward, with Ryland and Chaz keeping close to my side.

“Who are you?” I shout, as a hand presses into the water.

A sweet voice replies almost instantly. “The guards of the mermaids, and our king wishes you all to be killed.” I look over at Hunter as he presses the crystal stick into my hand.

“I promised you I would keep it safe,” he says firmly. I take it in my hand, and drop the water barrier between us quickly. The three people standing right in front of us are stunning, there is no other word to accurately describe them. They all have long blue hair, even the one male’s hair is as long as the two females’. Their glowing blue eyes watch me, not one of them look away or even blink. They are completely naked; no clothes cover any part of their bodies, and it’s awkward to look at. I hold the stick in the air, looking at the star necklaces that look like the same kind of crystal. Dante was right.

“I have something to trade with the king. I wish to see him,” I say, and the mermaid man hisses.

“The king does not see a land child,” he spits out.

“I am a changed one, not just a land child, and I demand he meets with me,” I say, keeping my voice firm, but I know I haven’t got a chance of convincing them when they look at me. One of the mermaid women laughs, just as Everly steps to my side. I look over to her as she stands tall and speaks loudly.

“I am the heir to the crown of the land, and I have mermaid blood as well. Do you not think your king would wish to meet me?” Everly challenges them. The mermaids all look between each other, before the mermaid in the middle presses her finger to her star necklace.

“Gyd liht aunns, fttaao kwnwe geffelln,” the mermaid says, keeping her blue glowing eyes on Everly as she speaks. I look over at Hunter, who is watching us closely, his hand wrapped around a red sword at his side. I know he will kill them if they don’t let us see the king. We have too much to lose.

“The king will see the heir and the changed one. No one else is permitted into Merida, or they will be killed,” the mermaid girl says and bows her head. “My name is Kiaw, and I have been told to personally promise your safety.”

“If you think your king has chosen the weak ones to see him, he couldn’t be more wrong,” Ryland growls out, and turns me to face him. My pirates all surround me a circle.

“Pretty girl, this is dangerous, and I don’t want you to go,” Dante says first.

“The world is dangerous, and we need that crown. There isn’t a choice here, and I will be safe. Everly and I can fight our way out if we need to,” I reply.

“We had to fall for a stubborn one, didn’t we?” Jacob says to Chaz, who grins.

“Don’t back down, but be respectful. Whoever this king is, he is clearly well respected,” Ryland instructs, and I nod as Everly comes into our circle.

“I will protect her, but I don’t think we are in any danger. The king wants to meet us and make a trade,” she says, and I grin.

“We will be in the water, and I kind of have a thing for it,” I joke, making her chuckle.

“Good luck, and come back to us. We can’t do anything, be anything, without you by our sides,” Zack is the one that speaks the words I know they are all thinking. He steps closer, kissing my forehead, and then steps back. I turn around, walking straight up to the mermaids with Everly standing tall at my side.

“Let’s go,” I say, and the mermaid bows her head. The other two run off the ship, jumping into the air, and a warm glow appears around their legs as their legs turn into blue tails.

“How can we breathe underwater?” I ask Kiaw, who is left with us.

“A secret, one you will soon learn. Speak of it, and the sea will take your tongue,” she warns with a hiss.

“We understand,” Everly says, and there’s a loud horn noise. We follow Kiaw over to the edge of the ship, where three water dragons come out of the water, flying and hovering back just next to the ship.

“The Dgaan will take you to our city, where we have places where you will be able to breathe, and there are many spots we can stop on the way to ensure you do not pass out,” Kiaw explains and jumps off the ship, landing on the back of one the dragons.

“See you soon,” I turn and say to my pirates, before running and jumping off the ship.