“Viktor, get him! We must make haste.”
Griffin finally got into gear, sliding out from the alcove his bed was stuffed in and making his way to the steps. Viktor peered down at him; his dark eyes nearly voids in the dim light of the cabin.
“Vanravara is aware of our presence. They are making contact. You need to come up here, now. They will assume you are a stowaway if not.”
The words lit a fire under Griffin, scorching him. He knew of the people of Vanravara. Of the many men who had lost their lives to them.
But besides that, he didn’t know why or how. Were they angry men who had been cast aside? Were they a country built on rage and suspicion?
Inside Grypheem, they were only taught to trust the people within the Sacred Trinity; those who resided in Grypheem, Luscinia, or the Isles of Sacerdos. He was raised to distrust and fear outsiders, that they were simply after their precious, sacred cherished women.
His heart pattered loud and fast in his chest as he made his way up the steps, and the sight before him caused it to stop altogether. He blinked his eyes rapidly, adjusting to the rising sun.
Three large wooden ships were approaching them, billowy sails painted black and tinged in red. A pitcher plant sewn in the middle.
A reflection of their carnivorous ways.
“Do not speak, do you understand me?” Drago tugged Griffin until he was hidden behind him.
Griffin didn’t have a chance to respond before two of the advancing ships flanked them. Their size difference nearly comical as long shadows were cast down on them from the much higher vessels.
Drago tightened his shoulders. “If this turns south, jump overboard. It will be better to float at sea than to be taken into their captivity. They are Rakshasa.Pirates.”
Ropes fell from the ships on both sides followed by a blizzard of movement as their boat dipped further into the water from the added weight of the intruders.
Each dressed in full crimson from head to toe. Deep and dark. Billowy robes that whipped above them as they landed, showing off billowy red trousers and bare calloused feet.
Only five were able to land on the boat, the rest hanging precariously above,waiting, biding their time. Masks adorned their faces offering brutal replications of what Griffin imagined demons to be. Whites and reds intertwining in the mockery of blood and bone. Oversized teeth, exaggerated features, long protruding horns.
Griffin’s chest heaved in and out. This was the closest he had ever come to danger. To terror. To pure unfiltered fear. Even when his father sent him away, he had never felt this…strongly.
There was one who stood out, their mask larger than the rest. The teeth elongated, sharper.
“We are simply making passage,” Drago stated. “We are not—”
“Hush.” The hiss came from the mask, a slippery noise that caused a chill to carry down Griffin’s spine.
The apparent leader stepped directly up to Drago. And even though they were noticeably shorter, the manner in which they held themselves was a semblance of undeniable power.
They pushed Drago down onto the ground, using a flip of their leg, and a whoosh of their arm.
The move startled Griffin, drawing his attention, only to find the leader was already scrutinizing him.
“Two princes. One boat. Change is in the air.” A sharp thin blade whipped to Griffin’s neck. “Good or bad? Right orwrong?” The voice was an enigma, sharp, and gruff. Smooth and thick. “State your purpose.”
Drago attempted to speak from the ground, but another of the pirates covered his mouth.
“I want to rescue my mom.” Griffin wasn’t sure why that was what he thought to speak, but it was all that would escape him. He clamped his jaw down as soon as the words were out, expecting the worst.
Before the leader could react, a wave caught their small boat and even with the ships on each side it was not enough to dispel the movement. Griffin stumbled forward, the blade digging further, drawing blood. The pirate’s leader was forced to catch him or take the brunt of his weight.
Griffin’s body pressed fully into theirs and confusion sparked in him as he came to a startling realization.
“A man in search of answers, a prince not succumbing to lies”—danced in his ear—“I will allow you this favor, but one day I will come to collect what is owed.”
Griffin took in the other pirates over their leader’s shoulder, examined them to the best of his ability. Their statures, their frames, their gait. Now that he saw it, it could not be unseen.
Every single one of them.
