“Little fighter,” Zack whispers in my ear, making me blink open my groggy eyes. I see him lifted up on his elbow, with his golden hair falling into his eyes as he looks down at me. I find myself staring at my mark on his forehead for a while. It’s strange how quickly I’ve grown used to seeing my mark on all my pirates. It’s so normal.

“Morning,” I say, even though we haven’t been sleeping long, yet I don’t regret not sleeping one little bit. I trace my hand over his chest, and he closes his eyes with a contented hum before grabbing my hand and pulling it to his lips.

“Thank you for last night . . . I never expected it to be that amazing,” he admits.

“I never expected me to be your first. I remember you saying you had a girlfriend once . . . and I assumed,” I say, blushing a little.

“We were too young for that. We only ever had a few stolen kisses,” he says.

“What was her name?” I ask, mildly jealous of his first kiss. At the same time, I know he lost her, and it made him who he is today. I have her to thank for who my Zack is; she helped him get to where he is.

“Kasa,” he says, kissing my forehead. There are a few knocks on the door before it abruptly bangs open.

“Morning, you both look . . . refreshed,” Dante teases. Chaz walks in after him, rolling his eyes as I sit up and attempt to keep the blanket wrapped around myself. Zack doesn’t care about nudity it seems, as he gets out of bed and starts pulling his trousers on.

“We didn’t mean to interrupt, but there is a meeting for Cassandra in an hour,” Chaz explains.

“And I’m hungry,” Dante shrugs, giving Zack a pointed look.

“Fine, I will make something for you to hopefully choke on," Zack says playfully as he grabs his shirt and walks towards the door. “Toasted banana sandwiches?” Zack turns to ask me, and I nod with a small grin that matches his. I couldn’t think of a better food to eat right now. Zack and Dante walk out, leaving me alone with Chaz.

“There are clothes in the drawers that are yours, I think I got your size right. And the shower room is through there,” he says, almost awkwardly. I stand up, with the blanket still wrapped around me and walk over to him.

“Is everything okay?” I ask, and he sighs quietly, reaching forward and pushing a little bit of my hair behind my ear.

“I’m worried. The masters . . . I don’t know what they are going to say or what they are going to ask from you. I’m worried about you,” he says in a soft voice.

“Don’t be worried, no one is ever going to control me. No one.” I say firmly, and he smiles widely.

“I forgot how strong you are, how inspiring,” he comments, stroking his fingers down my cheek, “and how utterly stunning.” I lean closer and press a light kiss to his lips, before moving back.

“Thank you,” I say, feeling a little overwhelmed, but in the best way. I feel lucky, so lucky, I have all these amazing pirates in my life. It’s almost funny to think back to the times I used to be scared of pirates and fearful of the sea. Both the sea and my pirates are now everything to me.

“Get dressed and ready. The masters are a fearful bunch of changed ones, though all extremely powerful and smart. You have to remember they have never had a woman changed one around. They might be stuck in their ways and not want anything to do with you,” he warns me.

“I will be careful, but they will listen to me. I will have you all at my sides anyway, right?” I ask, but Chaz shakes his head with an annoyed look.

“No, chosen aren’t allowed in the masters’ rooms, only changed ones. It’s a magically blessed room, blessed by the sea god. It literally stops us, or anyone who isn’t a changed one, from walking in,” he explains to me.

“Will you be outside at least?” I ask.

“Always,” he kisses my cheek and walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him. I drop the blanket, not needing it anymore since I’m alone, and go to the other door in the room. It's another cave room, but the walls are smoothed down, and a string hangs from the ceiling near the door. Natural light shines in the room from a small hole in the wall, but it's still a little dark. I pull the string, and water comes out of the wall like a waterfall, splashing onto the floor and draining into the hole in the corner. I step in, moaning at the feel of the warm water. It’s not very warm, but it’s not cold, and that’s a bonus. I wash my hair with the soap I find, putting it back and looking up at the water. I know I can’t control my powers, not really, but I want to learn. It has to be possible to learn somehow. I reach into myself, feeling for the bond to my pirates, and then trying to control the water. I stare for ages, but nothing happens, and I drop my hand, feeling a little disappointed. My powers come out when I’m scared, but it’s too powerful, too much water releases, and it takes over me. I don’t like that, I want to have some control over my power. I get out of the shower, stepping onto the cold stone and grabbing a towel off a stone shelf I see in the corner. I dry my hair before wrapping the towel around myself and walking back into my still empty room.

“Time is drawing near, you must speak to her, and then leave the mountains, my changed one,” the sea god’s voice whispers in my mind, powerful enough to nearly make me fall to me knees. I lean against the wall, holding my hand to my head as he speaks one more time.

“Time is not on your side; the deal must be accomplished . . . or you will pay the price.” His voice finally disappears from my head, leaving me with a headache and a deep worry about the threat at the end of that. What price?