Page 101 of Prince of the Phantom Sky

Cassidy nodded once as she remained crouched by Hector’s side. “I don’t recall a Silas, but Jack was a long-standing crew member.” Kora’s gut hollowed. More lies she’d believed, of Jack’s tale that they’d been recent recruits. “Jack mentioned he had a twin, he must’ve enlisted him.”

“Silas was a savage.” Kora rubbed her thumb between her fingers to distract her hands whilst her inner beast roared. “I took revenge for Finlay. Jack’s now imprisoned at Deadwater Prison.”

The pirate lords grimaced collectively, and after a beat, Cassidy spoke, her stare vacant. “He doesn’t belong there.”

“They stole from us and killed people,” Kora replied, her body numb as dark, foggy memories washed over her.

“Something must’ve been wrong. That’s not like Jack. I don’t believe it.” Cassidy shut her eyes for a moment, placing a hand on Hector’s arm. The lords paused in that moment, gracing each other gently.

“Someday, we’ll get him back,” Hector croaked. “For James.”

Kora bowed her head, shame battering her insides. It wasn’t just Jack Flint, but probably hundreds of souls chained in the boughs of Deadwater Prison that didn’t belong there. That she’d been manipulated and tricked into believing were the enemy.

“James was the most determined of us all to find you. Whilst we set our goals on survival outside of the Mist, he was convinced you were the key to our future. He organised every raid, found the empire’s weakest points to steal ships and weapons.” Cassidy pushed the subject along.

“I noticed the ships,” Kora replied, somewhat impressed by the actions of a singular pirate.

“We drifted the seas for nearly a decade, separated from our haven in Galen. Peril Cove is a cursed land, and we couldn’t return there either. Not until Leto sensed a break in the Mist. His power had nearly vanished from shielding us so much for so long. We attempted to sail in, and survived.” Cassidy weakly smiled.

“Our first time on land . . . proper land, our home, in so long . . .” Cassidy drifted off, her lip trembling before she ran a hand over her face. “We just wanted to survive. We had hope. The moment we returned, we knew we had to continue James’ work. We thought you were dead. Your father perished. But, alas.”

The pieces fell into place. Because the pirates had ventured back out of the Mist with a Galenite warship in tow.

“You were trying to find me.” Kora glanced to Skylar. Her jaw worked before responding.

“Yes. Raiden would’ve known if you were dead. He could still reach you through the Mist.”

“But . . . how? Barron told me he’s been trying to break through the Mist for years. He’s been using mages to attack it, but they failed.”

“I’m the strongest of us,” Raiden replied, his tone cool, but his body vibrated with tensity.

“He’s also the most tied to the Mist, he could barely venture further than the edges of Mistros City,” Skylar added.

“Skylar!” Raiden moaned.

“What? She needs to know. The Mist suppressed us all differently. I could venture freely around the island, along with most of our residents—albeit we were all blind as fucking bats doing it. Aerion could get a few miles past Mistros City, but Raiden was stuck here. Some otherworldly force kept him back.”

“So, the stronger your gift, the more the Mist affected you?”

Skylar nodded. “How Raiden managed to contact you is a mystery to all of us. We tried to use what he saw to our advantage.”

Kora bristled, remembering how the pirates surprised them, how Raiden had led her to the edge of the Mist. How Galen had miraculously attacked when they were transporting Theron to Talmon.

None of it had been a coincidence. It’d all been planned.

“My life has been orchestrated from the beginning,” Kora muttered, uncertain on whether anyone heard her. “What about your father? He was at Skybell Castle when I arrived. His power is stronger than all of yours.”

“He was unaffected,” Raiden answered stonily.

Kora frowned. How was that possible?

“Ye are in no place to question the king,” Hector grumbled. “We must keep our wits about us. Someone’s controllin’ that hawk I saw.”

“Danger, danger!” Mara squawked, fluttering her feathers. Leto shifted, his stare complacent. His skin bordered translucent, and he leaned back into the chair beside Hector’s, his long legs disappearing under the table. Reaching into his longcoat pocket, Leto produced a black pipe, striking a match on the chair casually as he inhaled a deep puff.

“When did you start smoking?” Raiden spoke out loud as he signed.

Leto shrugged, motioning quickly with one hand. Every puff he took, the colour returned to his lean face, his eyes shuttering with delight.