Shortly after Ava was taken back under the building and to her cell, Uncilo made everyone aware of the looming danger. He spoke of the deal that was struck between The Center and Fletching to send their navy to Corinspian shores. A recess was called so that Seal and his other co-conspirators could be questioned about the deal and if Fletching had already sent the go-ahead for The Center to arrive. Theo had gone to the pirate council and requested that she accompany the council to interrogate the prisoners and offered her services. Uncilo asked if Xyra would prefer to do it but Theo had said no, that she would prefer to. He agreed to allow her to help and before long, she found herself standing in front of a blindfolded Seal.

As she entered the room, the others that had accompanied her downstairs to also participate cleared the way for her, they stood back by the doorway. Theo placed her hands on either one of the arms of Seal's chair and tutted her tongue.

"Pathetic," Theo chuckled and then pulled off his blindfold. Seal blinked and adjusted his eyes to the darkness and saw Theo's face. He frowned, "You get me and not Xy, sorry to disappoint."

"Better for me," Seal said with a small smirk forming.

"Worse for you," Theo laughed and patted his cheek, watching Seal flinch as she did that, "See, unlike Xyra, I don't have much experience in this sort of thing. So, I don't know moderation. For me, it's all in, right away. To avoid the pain that comes with that, cooperate."

"What do you need to know?" Seal already seemed defeated. He had heard stories of what The Scorned Woman had done to their prisoners and was likely trying to avoid it.

"Was the go-ahead given? Did Fletching send that letter for the attack to happen?" Theo asked.

"What letter?" Seal looked at Theo straight in the eyes.

Maybe, he wasn't defeated. Theo took out her dagger from her waist and smashed the hilt of it into his hand like a hammer, breaking multiple bones. Seal let out a startling scream and tried to move back but all his limbs were tied down.

"I am not here to fuck around! Next, I slice your whole hand clean off," Theo warned, "you are not valuable to me, I have three more of you fuckers that can give me answers. Keeping you alive is not my priority. Now, I'll ask again. Did he send the letter?"

"He sent it ten suns ago!" Seal gasped out then added in a whisper, "He sent it ten suns ago..."

"Right," Theo looked over at Uncilo and his men and nodded, "That's basically all we needed."

"Very well," Uncilo nodded, "we are going to be asking him and the others questions to confirm what the pages you turned in tell us. Are you staying for that?"

"No, I have shit I have to deal with, but I have one more thing to ask," Theo mentioned and then turned her attention back to Seal, "Do they know about Avery?"

Seal didn't give Theo the chance to hurt him that time, he came clean right away, "Fletching didn't tell them. He wanted her as a guarantee for safety in case The Center went back on their word. He wanted leverage."

"How did he find out?" Theo pressed.

"We saw her portrait in the Vaith's estate We left here to go inform Vaith of what you had asked the pirates to do, and we saw her there. We used one of our men on the inside to find us the document from The Vault that confirmed her identity," Seal's breath was labored as he tried to work through the pain in his hand.

For good measure, Theo balled up her fist and struck him across the jaw.

"Thank you for your cooperation, you dirty rotten bastard."

She shook out her hand and pushed past the people in the room and began to walk out of the wing of the jail. Uncilo followed behind her

"Theo, I am calling a meeting tomorrow in the first hour of the aftermorning to discuss what Seal has just told us. Spread news of the meeting," he requested as they walked.

"Will do," Theo shot back without looking his way.

"Be ready."

That stopped her in her tracks.

"For what?"

"We are going to need your help to rally everyone to fight what is coming. The charm you used to get them to agree to your plan last time, use that," Uncilo caught up to Theo and began to walk her out of the jail, "you are benefiting off a win against Fletching, use it to your advantage."

Theo narrowed her eyes in his direction and shook her head. She scoffed and walked ahead of him once again, trying to shake his presence.

"Theo, is there a problem?"

"So, you are just going to ignore the fact that you did nothing to come to my defense?" Theo turned around, "and then you ask me to do your fucking job for you?"

"I had no choice but to be impartial and honor the rules of the charter," Uncilo said, folding his hands in front of him.

"Where in the charter does it state that you cannot visit me in jail? Or ask me if I am okay? Or tell them to unshackle me when I was in a room full of my peers?" Theo felt the anger rising up and her voice raised with every question.

"Theo you always have such a flair for the dramatic," Uncilo dismissed with a sigh, "I knew you would be alright, and you were."

"I am thankful everything turned out okay because I don't know if you would have done shit to save me had it not," Theo shook her head.

"Theo, my hands are tied when it comes to these matters. I could do no more than I did. You know I care deeply for you-"

"Do you?" she cut him off.

"Theo-"

"Cause I'm not sure you know how to care for someone unless they are furthering your own plans," Theo shook her head again, looking at him with pure loathing, "I will see you tomorrow, Captain Uncilo."

------

Theo was sitting in the mess hall with a small candle. She kept trying to get up out of the chair and walk to the brig to go see Cooker and Xyra. Iona and Navi had walked them back to the ship after the meeting had ended and gotten them to go in the brig. Theo wasn't there but she had heard that it happened with little fuss, both of them understanding that they were to await their ship trial there as was mandated by their ship's rules.

Theo wanted to go downstairs and ask them questions. Wanted to confront Cooker since she had yet to do that. She wanted to yell at them for answers and just to get the weight off her chest. She wanted to take her anger out on them and force them to listen to her. But seeing their face would make her cry. Her anger had subdued throughout the sun, she had killed and even tortured and all of that type of emotion had been expelled from her body. In its wake were tenderness and pain. She was hurt, everything felt raw and too emotional. Theo knew that if she talked to either of them, her voice would shake and tears would flow.

They had seen her like that many times before, but they didn't have the right to anymore. She needed to protect herself better, needed to stop others from being able to have access to her emotions that way. She had come to the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea before going over to the brig, but she hadn't been able to go. Her tea was cold as it sat untouched in front of her. Theo ended up resigning herself to simply sit there and wait until the sun rose and the trial started. There was no way she would be sleeping, much like the night before.

It must have been several hours before dawn when Tuni walked in and silently came over to sit next to Theo, wrapping her arms around Theo's arm and resting her head on her shoulder. They didn't say anything to each other. Tuni didn't ask how she was or try to talk to her about what had happened. Theo had been avoiding everyone all sun. She had gone from the meeting to Seal then back to her quarters and shut out any requests for a visit. Navi had come banging on her door and so had Oceane, both of them angry about Theo's decision to pull her support for Avery. She should have answered the door. She should have left her quarters. She should have gone to Grog's and shown her face and thanked those that supported her. But she did none of those things.

Tuni had taken the hint and decided to just sit in silence with Theo. It was an hour before Tuni even moved, she stuck her finger in the tea and then put it in her mouth.

"It's very cold," Tuni commented, "and not very sweet."

Theo let out a soft laugh, "Why are you not in bed with your soon-to-be wife?"

"She is staying with Navi tonight," Tuni shrugged, "she is very upset with me."

"Why's that?"

"She heard about what happened at the meeting."

"What happened at the meeting to make her upset with you?"

"Apparently, Navi told her that we shared a look and that look told you to throw Red off our crew," Tuni sighed a bit.

"We did share a look and that look did help me make my decision," Theo pointed out, "but sorry that it bit you in the ass and sorry for getting Morgana mad at you."

Tuni shrugged again, "If she disagrees with my opinion on the matter, then that is something she needs to deal with. If she needs the night to work through her anger, she can do so, I don't mind it."

"Thank you for your support," Theo leaned over and kissed her head.

"You were hurt and that is unacceptable. It is not something that can go without punishment," Tuni replied and tugged on Theo's arm, "come on. Let's get you to bed for just a bit at least."

"It's a useless venture," Theo stayed in place, "I think I want to stay here until we start."

"Guess you are going to have to deal with my company for a bit longer then," Tuni said and settled back in next to Theo, with an arm across her back.

Eventually, Tuni made more tea and this time, Theo did partake. She didn't let it get cold before taking the first sip and she even asked Tuni to scrounge around the kitchen for some stray pieces of bread. They kept each other company in silence until the sun rose and the room began to fill. The first people to come in were actually those that had gone out to party the night before, even in the face of the direct order to not celebrate that night. They, like Theo, had yet to sleep and were still quite drunk as they came in.

They began to discuss things that had nothing to do with their situation at hand and Theo welcomed the distraction, joining in on their nonsense conversation. The remaining officers also began to file in. Navi, Oceane, and Morgana were quite cross with her. Iona and Pearl showed no emotion on their face, but Iona had not been all too supportive of Theo's decision at the meeting. Iona and Pearl, however, at least waved at her and said good morning whereas the others did not. After a while of sitting down quietly, Morgana made it known that she was upset.

"You fed one of us to the wolves, by the way," Morgana called out from her chair, "without consulting us first."

"Had I stood up for her, our crew would have been branded in a bad light," Theo shook her head, "these pirates would think of us as Vaith apologists, and that is far from the truth. That puts a target on all of your backs."

"According to the rules of this island, she stopped being a Vaith the moment she became a pirate," Navi added on.

"If you are so passionate about the safety and wellbeing of someone that had no issue lying to us for close to a length then, by all means, start a new crew, go to Uncilo, and advocate for her," Theo stared at Morgana and Navi with a raised eyebrow, challenging them.

Morgana was angry, it was clear on her face and in the way she huffed as she turned around to speak to the people behind her. Navi kept her unapproving gaze on Theo and they stared off for a bit before Navi broke it with a roll of her eyes as she looked away. The morning began to go into full swing as everyone began to file in from their restful or not so restful night.

Once enough people had filled the room, and it looked like most of their crew had arrived, Theo began the meeting. She was exhausted, having slept barely a wink in two nights. Her voice didn't carry as much as it usually did, and she couldn't get herself to sound firm or in charge. She felt meek and worn down and as she stood in front of everyone, the feeling of wanting to curl up in a ball and sob was at the forefront of her mind. Whatever strength or resolve she had been projecting had been slowly depleted from her.

Theo gave Morgana the order to go retrieve the two from the brig and minutes later, Morgana walked in behind Xyra and Cooker. Without being told, the two on trial walked to the front of the room, next to Theo.

"Right, this commences the trial of Cooker, advisor to the Captain. Xyra, you may take a seat," Theo said and waved her hand to the many seats left open in the front. Xyra did as she was told and Theo continued, crossing her arms, "As Cooker is occupying a position that was given to her by appointment, that appointment is being rescinded given the circumstances. Therefore, as we move into the deliberation of punishment, Cooker's job should be kept out of consideration as she no longer has one aboard the ship. You should adjust your questions accordingly."

As Theo informed the crowd of Cooker's removal from the position, Cooker's head snapped over to Theo with furrowed brows.

"Theo, come on," Cooker whispered, trying to argue for her job back but Theo ignored it.

"There is no evidence to present, Cooker is guilty of knowing who Avery Vaith really was. Therefore, we move into a period of questions for her, then Xyra followed by deliberation on what is to happen. Because of the sensitive subject area for many of you, I will not be limiting how many questions you may ask or how long this period will last. There will be no moderator so amongst yourself, find an order in which to ask. You may begin."

Theo walked off to the side, leaning against the wall. The instructions and agenda had been given without a hint of enthusiasm or energy.

"How long did you know?" Tuni was the first one to ask a question.

"I figured it out about two cycles in," Cooker crossed her arms as she stood in the middle of the room. Her eyes had dark circles under them, her face was pale and her posture was hunched over.

"How did you find out?" Tuni was the one that asked, once again.

"I knew her when we were children. I picked up on the clues and just put it together."

"Why'd you keep it from Theo and the crew?" someone asked, one of the new girls in the back of the room.

"I felt bad for her. I knew she didn't know anything and was just as lost as anyone else that had run away from home," Cooker admitted, "it wasn't supposed to be a secret forever, just until she became a pirate but things got out of hand and we never said anything."

"Like what?" the girl asked a follow-up question. Theo found it a bit amusing how someone with so little onboard experience was leading the charge. Theo couldn't quite place her name; she had a twin and Theo couldn't tell them apart.

"She rose through the ranks quickly, she got too close to our Captain emotionally, her father was literally sending people after us," Cooker shrugged, "I felt like I couldn't come clean without everything going to shit."

"But you could have come clean and avoided all of what we just went through," Iona pushed, she had grown closer to Cooker and Theo could tell that Iona was let down by Cooker not letting her in on it or trusting her, "you almost got yourself and our captain killed. This was worse than whatever would have happened had you said something."

"I know but like I said, I felt like I couldn't tell the truth. It had become a tangled mess," Cooker explained.

"But you could have," Iona pressed.

"I fucking know!" Cooker took a deep breath and composed herself, "I know that and if I could take it back I would."

"So, you regret it?" Gianna, the girl they helped in Alenroux who barely involved herself in conversations, asked. It was shocking to every one to hear her speak.

The question hung in the air, and everyone looked expectantly Cooker's way.

"Of course I do," Cooker said and she looked over at Theo as she said it, "I wish I had just said something but I got in my head about it."

Theo immediately looked away, all eyes were now on her and she was blinking back tears trying to keep herself from running out of the room. Cooker hadn't even said anything hurtful but just seeing her face made her want to cry. She was torn between wanting to let Cooker off the hook, hug her, and make rest and wanting to choke her before throwing her back in the brig.

"Were you positive she was safe? Did you at least make sure she wasn't a spy?" Miga, a part of Pearl's cleaning crew, asked.

"I knew she wasn't a spy," Cooker asserted, "Some of you aren't aware and some others have forgotten but I knew her while we were growing up. Her and her siblings. Most of the noble children don't know anything about their parent's affairs unless they are the heir. Especially not the girls."

"Did she know you knew?" Oceane asked.

"Aye, I told her eventually." Cooker admitted, "the plan was to come clean once she was a pirate. She just had to get accepted by the crew and make herself useful before saying anything. Obviously, that plan fell through."

"So, you admit you allowed her into our ranks and allowed her to get to know each of us while having full knowledge of her background," Tuni asked.

"Is that not what I just said?" Cooker rolled her eyes

"And then you told no one else?" Tuni pushed again, "this was only between you two?"

Cooker straightened up, not answering the question. It was the first one she had hesitated on. Theo watched as she bit her bottom lip and shifted from foot to foot. She was holding something in, clamming up. Theo knew that Cooker had told Xyra. Cooker was protecting the first mate. She couldn't lie, not after having done so for so long, but she could refuse to answer the question; it was within her rights.

"Did you tell anyone else, Cooker?" Theo chimed in for the first time.

Cooker clenched her jaw and looked over at Theo. Her nostrils flared but she still didn't answer. It went against everything they were taught to snitch on each other, and Theo was putting Cooker in a bad spot. Theo didn't care though; Cooker was on trial and the crew would get their answers. Before Theo could ask again, Xyra spoke.

"She told me. Right before we left Corinspe," she said, "I was going to search for Red's birth records when I got to Elox to confirm she was telling the truth about who she was. Cooker found that out and came clean. She wanted to tell Theo, several times the idea was floated around, but I said no."

"This is not your trial, Xyrabellis, you have no right to speak at this one," Theo reminded Xyra of the rules.

"I told Xyra," Cooker finally answered, "but no one else."

The room was quiet for a while as what happened was laid out in front of them. The connection between the three of them, Xyra, Cooker, and Avery, and how long the ruse had gone on for was now common knowledge. There were no more questions, everyone seemed over questioning Cooker and were more interested about what Xyra had to say, about why she refused Cooker the request to come forward. Theo confirmed that there was no one left with a question before moving on.

"Cooker will be escorted back to the brig. Xyra will be questioned. Keep in mind, Xyra is in an elected position and can be removed from it as a part of her punishment. That will be deliberated in tandem with Cooker's punishment after questioning has concluded."

Xyra stood from her spot and took to the middle of the room without needing to be instructed to do so. Her face was emotionless, blank, she was using the training Uncilo had worked so hard on giving them. Theo hadn't even allowed questioning to begin before Navi jumped right into it.

"You found out about Red being a Vaith as we were leaving from Corinspe on our separate journeys, is that correct?"

"Aye," Xyra nodded.

"And you didn't tell anyone because..?" Navi continued.

"Telling anyone would have meant that they would also be involved, and I didn't want that."

"And you failed to tell your Captain for what reason?" Navi crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow. It was quickly becoming a conversation between the two of them with everyone else spectating.

"If I told Theo, she would be forced to tell everyone. Which would call both Red and Cooker into trial and have them most likely removed from their positions. We were about to leave on a journey where that would have meant two out of the four most important officers on our crew would be gone. Not only that, but shit would also be weird, and tense and we would be distracted from surviving whatever we were thrown."

"So, you are trying to convince us that you did it for our own good," Navi scoffed, "how noble a deed."

"I am not asking that you excuse my behavior or justify it, I am simply answering the question," Xyra rebutted.

"Sounds a lot like you are trying to cover for the fact that you had no excuse for going back on your duty," Navi shot back without hesitation.

"It is my duty to protect both the captain and my crew. I made a decision that would protect my crew and its ranks when it needed protecting. I knew it would hurt people. I knew it was risky. But I also knew it was the best course of action if we didn't want The Center to fucking sink us," Xyra finally looked at Navi instead of a point she had found on the wall in front of her.

"How did you know that she wasn't dangerous? That her identity wouldn't bite us in the ass like it almost did?" Navi wasn't letting up.

"I observed her for a long while before confronting her. Once I did, I interrogated her to make sure she only had allegiances to us," Xyra looked away from Navi, "As for others causing trouble, I already said I knew it was risky. I had no way of knowing that her identity had or had not been compromised but we had gone that long without a discovery, I was taking my chances. The only reason Fletching found out is probably because he saw her fucking portrait while he was off being a rat."

Xyra, somehow, had landed right on the answer for how Fletching knew and Theo couldn't help but feel even angrier at that fact. Xyra was smart, smarter than anyone she knew, she had used that fact to lie to everyone.

"Do you not care for the people you would hurt by doing this? Do not care about the trust you have broken between you and your crew members who rely on you?" Navi interrogated

"Of course I care. But I rather see them emotionally in distress than at the bottom of the ocean," Xyra answered quickly.

"Do you regret it?"

Xyra paused for a second and swallowed, "No."

There was no collective gasp and then quiet. No murmurs. No shouts. It was silent. Utter, chilling, silence after Xyra spoke the simple word.

"No?" Navi repeated.

"I believe that had I said something, the past cycles would have gone very differently. I have thought about the what ifs a lot. Realistically, very few scenarios end with this many people alive and well," Xyra admitted then cleared her throat and broadened her shoulders as she adjusted her posture, "I am done with questions. I believe that whatever my judgement is has already been decided by what was said here today. I will walk myself to my cell."

Xyra stood up and walked out of the room, Morgana following close behind as was her job.

Theo called for quiet as the room began to become charged with energy and conversation once Xyra had left.

"You have as much time as you need to deliberate. The officers present here will be moderators and help work through what you decide on. There are no wrong answers, do what feels right. Retrieve me when a judgment is reached," Theo said and nodded in Navi's direction, "you got this."

Without consulting if that was alright, she walked out and once she was clear of any eyes looking in her direction, she bolted as quickly as she could to her room. Bounding up the stairs, two at a time, she was trying to beat the tears. She arrived at her room and shut the door behind her before they started to fall. She sunk to the ground, wrapping her arms around her knees and letting out a silent cry. She threw one arm up to search for the lock on the door so no one would walk in on her like that. That is where she stayed, in one position barely holding onto the flood waiting behind her eyelids, until someone knocked and informed her the judgment had been decided on.

--------

32 suns of pure torture had passed since her trial. Brutal heat and hard labor were all that made up Theo's suns. In the mornings after she would wake up, her schedule was filled with nothing else except helping the preparations for a pirate fleet. The meeting Uncilo had held directly after she was cleared had resulted in Theo rallying almost every crew to give their ships to a fleet, with compensation from the island fund if their ships were sunken. With The Center coming and no one believing that they would come as empty-handed as they had promised, Theo had convinced everyone that with their pooled resources they could deal a blow to the Navy that would take The Center half a classification to recover from. They would protect what was theirs and allow them to hold the seas for lengths after.

Crews were not forced to fight but a spirit of defending their island had spread throughout the people and most everybody that could had enlisted to fight. Even those that couldn't or wouldn't fight helped in some way. Of course, some pirates left the island, deciding to flee to protect themselves; but the rest were working hard on getting everything ready for the moment they had been waiting for. Ships were being loaded with cannons that belonged to others, the hand cannons that Theo had gotten had been distributed, ships were being reinforced and repaired, handmade explosives were being created. Everything that could give them the upper hand in a battle, they were doing.

Theo wasn't the sole person heading the effort against the navy. Owl and Blue, for starters, were a huge help with delegating tasks and relaying orders. Captains that would have once allied themselves with Fletching were now stepping in to help lead their own camps in the direction of joining the defense of their shores. It had been a time of unprecedented cooperation, peace, and trust. In her time as a pirate, the island had never seen internal war like other eras had but political strife was still rampant among captains. Not at that moment though.

After everyone would get done with a long sun, working in the blazing heat, the festivities would begin. Some of them would only be breathing for a little bit longer, it was a lottery of fate and everyone was living their potential last suns to the fullest. Theo, without fail, headed to Grog's every night and got drunk off her ass with her friends. Some nights she would do other things before drinking, like attend to her crew or go to meetings she had to take with heads of the fleet effort. But once everything was done, she would unwind. If unwinding looked to others as turning to the drink to ignore her problems, then that was their issue, not hers.

That sun had been the last sun of preparation. A fleet could only go as fast as its slowest ship and a lightbringer was quite slow. Assuming The Center was bringing their good ships like the lightbringers, they had calculated about the time that The Center would be arriving. Which had given them a very strict deadline to have the preparations done by. The first sun of potential arrival by The Center had been the night before but it wasn't until that aftermoning that they had completed the final task. The suns to come would be spent training and resting and having scouts circle Corinspian waters as they waiting for the navy to arrive.

That night, the party raged on, a grander celebration than any other night. Even in the face of a potential alarm ringing, that meant The Center had arrived, they were still partying. That night, however, Theo wasn't feeling up to a party because thoughts of The Center were looming. She didn't expect the fight to be that night, no one did, but the thoughts were there. The sounds coming from the band and the loud chatter around her had become too much and she found herself fleeing from the table she was at and heading outside. She hid herself in the dark alleyway on the side of Grog's lighting some sard on the way to her destination.

Theo hated sard, it was useless, yet she had found herself using it more and more lately. Some sick joke from the universe, the very drug she had banned from her ship had been her guilty pleasure for the past cycle. Shadows moved around her and coming to stand across from her, leaning against the opposite wall of the alley was Navi.

"First time I've been able to catch you when you haven't been belligerently drunk," Navi said as Theo offered her the sard.

"I'm not always drunk," Theo shrugged, "You just never catch me at the right time."

"Cause I'm working my ass off for an effort you are the face of," Navi handed the sard back and exhaled, "You would think that would get me an audience with my own captain whenever I needed one."

"You have my audience," Theo pointed out, "go on then, what do you need?"

"Have you visited her yet?" Navi asked, referencing their ex-crewmate that was currently sitting in a cell.

"I don't have time to visit people, Nav," Theo shook her head and threw the sard on the ground before stomping it out.

It was a lie. Theo had walked up the mountain and stood outside the entrance to the jail every single sun since Avery's trial but couldn't bring herself to go inside. Theo didn't know if it was guilt over what she had done or hurt over what was done to her but either way, Theo didn't let herself dwell on it too much; she would just drink those thoughts away.

"She's been sitting in jail for more than a cycle," Navi scolded.

"She's had people visiting her, I'm sure she hasn't been lonely," Theo said, and Navi's face lit up with surprise like she hadn't expected Theo to know what her crew had gotten up to, "you think I wouldn't find out? Oceane's in there every fucking night."

"There is no rule against us going to see her. Corinspian law grants her visitors," Navi defended.

"And she receives plenty. I don't need to go."

"You've got a lot of people on your side Theo, more than the majority. But there are a lot of people who are upset about leaving her there. That wasn't your decision to make," Navi said and Theo began to walk away but Navi grabbed her arm and pushed her back against the wall.

Theo pushed Navi off of her and straightened her coat, "If the majority agree that means if the decision had come to a vote, it wouldn't have mattered anyway; she would be in the same position."

"You hold influence over everyone. If you had said the word, everyone would be okay with having her back on board."

"It is too late anyway," Theo shook her head, "I have no power to change what happened."

Theo began to walk out of the alley.

"Fine, but you do have the power to stop being this way. You have the power to fix other things," Navi followed behind, "Talk to Cooker. I know you haven't so much as looked her way this whole time. She's struggling."

"It is amusing you think I actually give a fuck about what she's done to herself," Theo didn't skip a beat, she walked past the entrance of Grog's and continued to walk, heading towards her ship.

"Theo, that is your best fucking friend, I know you don't mean that," Navi continued as she followed the captain, her voice laden with desperation for Theo to listen, "she's spiraling hard. She's always high, she's been missing out on every party, and she's refused every attempt to spend time with any of us. You see her every sun, Theo, just spend one minute speaking with her."

Everyone else on the island was clueless as to what had happened between her officers. They had been unaware that Cooker had undergone questioning, had been removed from her position as advisor and been demoted all the way down to being Yurwa's assistant in storage. Because of the lack of knowledge of what had really happened, she had been offered an advisory role over the construction of the fleet alongside Theo. Which meant that Cooker accompanied Theo every time there was a meeting or something important to be done with all of those heading the effort. Even with the several hours a sun they spent together, Theo had yet to speak a word to Cooker but she was well aware of how bad she had been looking. Tired and almost hollow. But Theo hadn't broken, she had stayed resolute in her anger. She wasn't planning on speaking with her anytime soon, Navi was wasting her time.

"Navi, was there something else?" Theo stopped in her tracks and turned to face the other woman.

"Aye," Navi took a deep breath, shaking her head, "it's Xy."

"Are you all of their fucking advocate now? So, what now? You are just going to go down the list of people who have wronged me and ask for forgiveness on their behalf," Theo began walking again, "fuck right off, Navi."

"Theo, stop fucking running away from this!" Navi continued to walk after Theo, "you haven't spoken to Xyra either and you need to."

"In case you haven't noticed, she's nowhere to be found."

"You know where to find her..." Navi pointed out.

"I've been sweating under the blazing heat every fucking sun, working from sunrise to sunset and what did she do? Ran off for a little vacation," Theo scoffed.

"She was practically exiled," Navi defended her old lover, "her room taken from her, her position stripped, no offers from Uncilo to help with the fleet, nobody reaching out to her the way they did with Cooker. Anyone would run."

"You keep defending them and it just doesn't make sense Navi. Are you some kind of masochist?" Theo shook her head, "She was telling you she loved you while lying to your face. She kept the secret from you in order to keep the relationship alive and then tossed you to the side once she realized how fucked her plan was."

"You don't know what happened between us, you weren't there," Navi looked affected by Theo's words, physically taken aback as she stepped away from Theo, "you have nothing to do. Go get her, please, ask her to come back. Show her some compassion Theo, she's your best friend. She's your family."

"I am busy. The Center can come at any moment, and I cannot waste time by fucking off for a two-hour horseback ride. You go if you care so much," Theo dismissed Navi.

"Captain, with all due respect, this isn't you. You aren't this callous," Navi was almost pleading with Theo to open her eyes to her actions.

"You do not know me, Navi," Theo shook her head.

"I do. I do know you."

"The person you knew allowed herself to get blindsided too many fucking times. Consider this a new era," Theo pointed her finger and pushed it into Navi's chest, "Follow me and I will make sure you have to find Tuni for stitches."

Theo turned on her heel and briskly walked back to her quarters. She would not be told what to do. She would not be asked to speak with people that lied to her face for cycles on end and then be made to be a villain for not wanting to make amends. Theo slammed the door behind her and made for her balcony. She sat and watched the hypnotic waves, which helped clear everything from her mind. She thought of work, of fighting, of what she had to do the next sun. When thoughts would drift to anything else, she would quickly hum a song or find a drink. Theo was so used to reaching out to Riva to talk during calm nights like that one, but Theo hadn't uttered a prayer to her since arriving on the island. Theo retrieved the bottle of whiskey that was left out on the balcony the night before. It had been left in the sweltering heat and was not yet all the way cool but Theo drank anyway. Like she had done many nights before, she sat there for hours drinking and staring ahead. Until eventually, her body gave out, and was ready to submit to mediocre sleep.

------

Theo had been informed early the following morning that Uncilo had requested a meeting with her at his office, in the mountain. Theo greeted those that guarded the large doors to the building as they opened it for her. Her somewhat elevated boots echoed across the dim-lit halls. His office was two sets of stairs above the entrance floor and it was quite hidden away inside the building. But when she was younger, Uncilo had gone to many meetings with the previous head of the council, so her and other two would roam the halls for hours. What was a maze for others was a quick trip for her, already being very familiar with the route.

Theo didn't bother knocking, turning the knob and simply allowing herself in. Uncilo was sitting behind his desk with a glass spectacle up to his eye as he was examining documents.

"Theo," Uncilo looked up and motioned for her to take a seat, "thank you for coming. How are you feeling?"

Theo looked around the room to take stock of what had changed. A few pieces of furniture had been rearranged, trinkets had been taken out of storage and added to the décor, and his chair was different. There was not supposed to be anyone else in there, but she still checked the room, glancing about as she sat down. Theo didn't answer, she just finished her sweep of the room and looked at Uncilo.

"Are you still cross with me?" Uncilo asked, "it has been quite a while since the fit you had at the prison; I figured you had to time to get over it."

"Captain, why did you bring me here?" Theo asked, crossing her arms over her chest. She had barely talked to Uncilo since her release, doing so only out of necessity.

"Is there anything going on between you and the girls?" Uncilo asked and Theo shrugged.

"No, everything is great," Theo lied.

"I happened to notice that Xyrabellis was missing," Uncilo commented, "and Cooker has not been looking very good."

"Cooker's addicted to drugs, Uncilo, no thanks to the trauma you managed to inflict on her as a child," Theo snapped, and her jaw clenched. Her heart was beating rapidly, she had not acted this insolently in front of him in some time, "and Xyra is just going about her mysterious ways. We are missing nothing without her here."

"You are missing everything while she is gone. The three of you are a unit and are there to take care of each other. You miss one piece, you are missing it all," Uncilo's voice hardened, booming a bit louder through the room than before. Theo instinctually made herself smaller, pulling her arms tighter to her chest, "is something the matter between all of you? Something causing strife?"

"I said everything is great, my answer is not going to change," Theo stood her ground.

Uncilo raised an eyebrow and finally put the document in front of him down, putting his elbows on the desk and folding his hands on top of it, "Interesting. Because I heard that things were not as splendid as you are making them seem,"

"Gossiping is beneath you, Captain."

"While I appreciate that even in your anger, you are not turning your backs on your vows to protect each other, I know what is going on," Uncilo stood up and walked to a wooden cart with a bottle of rum on it, pouring two glasses, "Cooker came to me a few suns ago."

Theo let out a dry chuckle and shook her head, running her tongue over her teeth trying to keep from slamming her fist against something. She had become angrier as of late. Taking out her frustration on manual labor had helped but the past suns with nothing hands-on to do had left her with a pent-up rage she was afraid would blow up in her face. Theo took a deep breath and calmed herself.

Cooker put them all in jeopardy for coming to Uncilo and spilling what was going on. He could easily call for another trial and this time, Theo would be the one jailed over perjury. Cooker had been spared from staying in jail along with Avery because they had all agreed to keep their issues within the crew, Cooker had broken the vow of silence they all had taken. Theo didn't know exactly what Cooker had told Uncilo and she didn't want to give anything away that he didn't already know.

"What was said?" Theo asked, no subtlety in the way she was prodding for what exactly had been divulged.

"She knew about the Vaith girl and went to trial for it," Uncilo put a drink in front of Theo, who grabbed it, "she told me that you removed her from her position as your advisor and now her job when this is over will be working in storage. She didn't mention anything else but with the way Xyra ran off, leaving you uncovered, leads me to believe she knew as well."

"So?" Theo asked, even though she knew the answer.

"You lied," Uncilo said, "In front of the entire council, you lied."

"What are you going to do? Arrest me? See to it that I'm dragged in front of my peers again in shackles," Theo asked, swirling around the liquid in the cup with her pinky, she approximated Uncilo's gruff voice as much as she could, "I can do nothing to help. I am an impartial party."

She caught Uncilo leaning forward, elbows perched on his desk. He steepled his finger observing Theo for a bit before letting out a hum.

"This Vaith girl, the one that I warned you about, was she worth it?" Uncilo asked and Theo's head snapped up from her glass and looked at him.

"Come again?"

"I have always warned you about partners. I have always warned you that letting others get in between you three would be your downfall. And now look, you have neither of them by your side," Uncilo said and suddenly the conversation had been taken ahold of by him and his intentions, "was the girl worth all of this happening?"

Theo rolled her eyes and slammed the glass on his desk, "The fact that I fucked the Vaith girl has nothing to do with the fact that I was lied to. I would have been lied to regardless of my relationship with her and we would still be here now."

"You allowed yourself to be blinded by her the same way you allowed it to happen with that spy you managed to attract onto your ship," Uncilo challenged. He had never been told about the exact details about what happened with Viv and Theo had no idea how he had found out.

"I am my own person dammit! Stop keeping tabs on me, you don't have a right to anymore!" Theo immediately stood up and towered over Uncilo, she slammed her palm on the table, "You gave us up to Barge for this position and it was the best damn decision you ever made. It's my biggest regret in life that I stumbled on your ship first and not his."

Theo was breathing heavily, staring straight down at Uncilo with tears at the brim of her waterline and her fingernails half digging into the polished wood on his desk. Uncilo had always been jealous of the way Barge treated them, of the way that Xyra connected with him better, of letting them go to him. It was true, what Theo had said, but it was said more to hurt Uncilo than to make herself feel better.

"Sit down and maintain decorum," Uncilo said, ignoring the outburst, "this is not what I called you here for."

She didn't know why she sat but she sat down, chest still rising heavily with angry breathing.

"I wanted to tell you I have been very impressed by your work," Uncilo nodded, "You cleaned up the mess that was made. You rallied the crews. You found the culprit to our problems. Very well done, Theo."

Theo didn't want the words to have any impact on her, but they did. Praise was something she needed at that moment, and she soaked it up, craving more. Just one last thing, perhaps a pat on the back and a good job would do the trick.

"I did my duty as a pirate of Corinspe," Theo shrugged.

"You went beyond what was expected, like you were taught," Uncilo tilted his glass in Theo's direction, "you care for this island the way a leader should, Theo."

"Is this what you called me all the way up here for? To continue with whatever delusion you have of me taking your position," Theo looked out of the large stained glass window in his office, shaking her head, "I refuse to do it. There are other candidates."

"Who? Cooker?" Uncilo laughed, "she's got a stain of orange under her nose at all times from loli."

"Don't speak about her that way. Stop being so dismissive of her. She's smart," Theo found herself defending, "she can lead a council better than I ever could."

It bothered Theo, the way he was putting Cooker down. She was supposed to be angry at her though, but she couldn't not defend the girl.

"Are there any brilliant suggestions you have for me? Perhaps your less than intelligent friends you decide to spend your time with on this island?" Uncilo kept poking at Theo's choices.

"It matters very little to me who you decide will be your nomination for a successor, I just know it will not be me," Theo put very clearly.

"Not many people would have been able to figure out what you did. Not many people would have been able to catch his trail in the time you did," Uncilo complimented, once again passing over Theo's comments, "there was a moment there where I thought you would not be able to figure it out but you didn't fail to impress."

Theo's inner alarms rang, the bells sounding off. The tone he carried was not one of relief that Theo had found the rat and saved them but that Theo had found the rat and passed some sort of test. She sat up from where she had slouched in her chair. Theo treaded lightly with the conversation, careful not to appear too hot-headed to handle whatever he was hiding just under the surface.

"I've got a funny feeling that you somehow knew who was behind our little problem before I did," Theo said, regaining whatever loose temperament she was displaying before.

Uncilo brought the glass to his lips and took a small sip, "I had my suspicions just like you did. You've got a good gut."

"Were these suspicions substantiated prior to my presentation of evidence?" Theo raised an eyebrow.

"In a way," Uncilo nodded and set his glass down, "I had made due on a few favors that were owed to me and found information that pointed to his involvement with The Center a few cycles before you arrived."

"And you said nothing?" Theo asked, stopping herself from crossing her arms or having a tight tone.

"I had no proof," Uncilo shook his head, "I am sorry you had to go through that, but I couldn't risk accusing someone like Fletching unless I had definitive evidence."

Theo nodded in acknowledgment then tapped her finger against her knee, taking a moment to think before she acted or spoke. Theo chuckled to herself and shook her head.

"I don't buy it," Theo said as she held her hands up and shrugged, with another laugh, "I just don't believe you."

"Don't believe what, exactly?"

"That you didn't have proof. That you couldn't risk accusing him. That you are sorry things happened the way they did," Theo stood up, "I think I faced adversity and came out on top of a plot against me. I think I dealt with it in a somewhat composed manner and I think the elders are happy with what I've done. I think I did exactly what someone who would be a good candidate for head of the council would do. And I think that is precisely what you wanted me to do."

"I have no idea where you are getting this from, Theo," Uncilo shrugged. But he wasn't even trying to hide that he was lying. It was a dance for him.

"You outplayed me yet again, old man. Well done," Theo patted the desk and stood up, nodding as she did it, "Well fucking done."

Theo adjusted her clothes, putting her hat back on her head as she walked out. Uncilo called out behind her, but she ignored him, knowing he wouldn't stoop as low as to run out after her. He was lucky she had decided to go about it in a calm manner because in another universe, his throat would be cut and she would have left him bleeding out. In her head, she was thinking about how she was never going to step foot in that office again. Externally, she was calm and didn't let her outrage show. The whole chase around the oceans, putting her own life at risk, being jailed, going on heists, being put on trial in front of her colleagues, all of it had been some ruse to get her to prove that she could handle pressure.

Uncilo could have sent a letter to the contacts who owed him favors that whole time. He would have saved her money and time. He would have saved the lives of the crew that never came back from their fact-finding missions. He could have stopped Fletching before he accused her and sent the letter to The Center. He could have shut down any rumor about her from the start and imprisoned Fletching on suspected charges of conspiracy; the word of the head went a long way in Corinspe and he could have used that. What had been life or death for her at several points in their whole experience was merely a game to him.

If she would have died trying to get the information she had, would he care? Or would he have blamed her for not having been good enough to stay alive and never even mourned her? For almost a half a length, she had been consumed with worry for herself and her crew that death was around the corner and the lives of hundreds of pirates depended on them. Now, she realized that had Uncilo tried a little harder Theo would have not had to put so much at risk.

Yet another person who she had trusted her whole life, gone. No longer by her side. No longer someone she wanted to go to for help. It had been a slow process to get her to cease justifying Uncilo but she had finally done it. She was free. She was fucking free and the moment The Center was defeated, she would not step foot on the island ever again

----

It had been another 12 suns, for a total of 44 since Fletching had died and 54 since Fletching had sent the letter. It would have taken less than a cycle on the fast mail ships employed by The Center for the letter to have arrived there, so the fleet should have been mobilized and at their shores already. The longer that went without them arriving, the more worried Theo became. One option was that they were just late because of weather, another is that they decided to not come. The one that Theo worried about however was the option that their fleet was so large, it took even longer than the pirates had anticipated. If that was the case, they would be so vastly outnumbered it would barely be a fight. There was nothing more they could do though. Their resources for war had been used up and all they could do was wait.

Theo was in more of a foul mood than she had been. The negativity festering inside her seemed almost insurmountable. When she wasn't drinking at night, she donned a scowl and was practically walking around with a "do not speak to or touch me" sign around her neck. She had yet to visit Avery in prison and as she had told Navi, she would continue to refuse to go. She rejected every request for a meeting sent by Uncilo and also hadn't spoken to Cooker either. By then, people were noticing that something was amiss but Theo couldn't be bothered the keep up appearances.

At some point in the suns since the fleet preparations had ended, Xyra had returned from her extended stay at The Grotto. Theo had been informed that Tuni had gotten worried about Cooker to a point that she had sent Morgana to go fetch Xyra from her place of hiding. Tuni knew better than to approach Theo with her concerns and while she was also mad at Cooker, she was a healer first and foremost and wanted to see the girl alive. They had sent for Xyra but Xyra had been headed back to town anyway, so they missed each other. Xyra had been back for a while, but she hadn't made herself seen throughout the suns. The most Theo saw of her was a glimpse as they passed each other in the street or at a tavern.

Xyra had been staying in one of the rooms above Grog's. Theo had been tempted to go up there every night and knock on her door. Theo wanted to unload all of her anger and yell louder than she ever had before. She wanted to scream insults at Xyra until she was red in the face and foaming at the mouth. Until Xyra hurt just as bad as she did. Theo never did that though, she knew that she wouldn't be able to. She knew that while she was hurt, Xyra hadn't been senseless about the approach she took. Even if she hadn't agreed with Xyra's logic, there had been logic behind keeping the secret. She also knew that Cooker was immature at times and unable to handle personal things like conflict which is why she kept it hidden from Theo. Not far down in her own senses, she knew that the secret had not been kept in a malicious manner but that didn't make Theo any less angry.

But, she knew that if she saw any of them, the enmity in her heart would fade. She didn't want that, she didn't want to stop being vexed at the three that had done her wrong. She wanted to hold onto that anger because she was justified in feeling it. Almost two cycles of silence weren't enough punishment. She still felt the pang in her chest every time she thought back to how she was blatantly lied to, made a fool of.

The knowledge that the words "I love you" left her lips and it was directed at a Vaith was something that she would think about as she drifted to sleep. Even without wanting to, it would always come to mind. She had once again confessed her love to someone who was lying to her face. And everyone else involved in that lie had an equal role in guiding her down the same path she was so afraid of falling into again after Viv. She was made a fucking fool and Theo was not going to let it go that easily.

Blue, who was joined at their table in Grog's by Oceane and a few other captains of smaller crews, ordered another round of drinks and as Theo downed hers, she was positively plastered. Blue was speaking about something that Theo couldn't focus on. The sounds of everyone around her were muffled as her gaze was set on the bottom of the stairs across the room. Theo stood up from the table after having swiped Blue's drink and walked to the stairs. It was more of a step, step, stumble, kind of walk but she made it to the stairs and eventually landed at the top of them. She remembered Navi's voice and a hand on her shoulder that had been there a few nights before. She's staying in the room on the far right in case you want to see her.

Theo's feet dragged her to the end of the hall without really wanting to. She knocked and after a minute, the door opened and Xyra was on the other side of it. She looked shocked to see Theo at her door, or anyone really. Compared to Cooker, who had known longer, Xyra was getting the most heat from the crew.

"Theo," Xyra said and stepped aside, "come in..."

Theo shook her head and took a few steps back, using the time to get a good look at Xyra. She didn't look nearly as tired or run down as Cooker had but Xyra had a way of making herself look better than she was feeling. Theo shook her head, indicating she wouldn't be coming in.

"You, uh-" Theo cleared her throat, "you need to be running the sloop when The Center comes."

"Aye," Xyra nodded, her voice was gentle, "Cooker told me the plan."

"You ran, you weren't here. So, I wasn't sure you were going to help," Theo nodded, "glad to hear you are."

"The calculations were off," Xyra rubbed the back of her neck, "the window they gave you all was about ten suns too early. I was never planning on abandoning the fight."

"Just everything else before the fight," Theo pointed out, her tone a stark contrast from Xyra's more passive one.

"Theo, would you like to come in so we can talk?" Xyra motioned inside her room once again.

Theo shook her head, already feeling the frustration and humiliation, and anger seeping out of her. She needed to soak it back in, she needed to stay angry. It wasn't fair that any of them would get her forgiveness.

"No," Theo continued to back up, "fuck you."

Theo turned around and walked away, she didn't hear the door close behind Xyra so she knew she was being watched. Theo felt tears spring to her eyes and she rushed down the stairs and back out of the pub, fleeing to her quarters to finish the bottle of rum she had left next to her bed the night before.

------

The night she had seen Xyra, after drinking herself to sleep once again, she was sucked into a dream that she would have preferred not to have. Shortly after closing her eyes, Theo appeared on the deck of her ship. None of her crew was around, not a soul other than her was on the ship. The sky was free of all clouds and the stars were easily visible. The ship wasn't moving, there were no waves crashing against it, and the wind was completely still. The setting seemed familiar and Theo knew that when she turned around, she would be face to face with Riva.

Theo didn't turn around though, she tried to wake herself up. Closed her eyes and willed herself to exit her dream state. It didn't work, opening them, she was still on deck. Theo wasn't going to give up, she ran to her quarters, but the door wouldn't open. She then rushed to the entrance to the lower decks and down the stairs but it just led back to the top of the stairs again.

"Why are you doing this?" Theo called out towards the sky, still not turning.

The voice came from directly behind her, "You have been absent, my child. I tried to give you time to come to me, but you never did. I have lost almost all connection with you. I cannot hear your thoughts or see your movements. This was the only way I could think of seeing you."

"You abandoned me!" Theo cried, not having the guts to face her.

"I have never abandoned you, love, I have always been watching," her voice was calm, but not in the way Uncilo's always was. It was a comforting sort of tone and Theo wanted to turn and run into her arms, but she refrained.

"You didn't tell me about her. You didn't warn me..." Theo's voice went soft, weak, and then the anger rose up again and she turned around, "I have given my life to serving you! I have maintained your tenets and dedicated everything I do to you! I thought you loved me, I thought you were supposed to be my protector."

"Theo," Riva spoke, gliding forward as she did, her face was sad, and her eyes gazed upon Theo with sorrow, "you have a turmoil within you that has yet to subside. This anger you hold, it is not you. Your soul is not filled with darkness, these emotions you are feeling do not come naturally. You are harboring hate in your heart, but it would be easy to let that go."

"And forgive those who have wronged me?" Theo asked, "forgive you, who had every ability to warn me but didn't. Not a fucking chance."

Riva said nothing, she just shook her head as she gazed at Theo.

"I have spent the past two cycles wracking my brain to try and remember the dreams you gave me. Trying to remember if any of them had to do with Avery and none of them did. You didn't even try!"

"Your friend was right," Riva got closer, not yet within arm's length of Theo, "the tall one, Xyra. She spoke of the risks of letting you know and the tragedy that would have followed. She was not wrong."

"I can handle myself; I am smart enough to make my own decisions and do what is best by my crew," Theo argued, she was tired of being treated like a child that couldn't handle herself or her emotions.

"Theo, I did not keep this from you because I believed you could not handle it. I kept it from you because you are an honorable person and would do the right thing," Riva came forward again and this time reached out to touch Theo's cheek, but Theo recoiled as she continued, "you doing the right thing, however, had untold consequences. A follower like you comes to me once every few hundred lengths, pure of heart and selfless. I could not risk your life and thus, I deliberately hid the truth. I apologize."

Theo shook her head as she backed up, "You knew you would hurt me. You had to know it would hurt me!"

"I knew it would hurt you, my child, but I did not know you would not find it in your heart to forgive," Riva admitted, "the people around you who hurt you are good people too, I have seen their hearts. They meant no harm, they wanted to do what they thought was best."

"You speak of goodness of heart and selflessness as if you just didn't lie to me for your own benefit. Because you like the way I pray to you," Theo scoffed, "let me out of this dream! I want out!"

"Theo, I did what I did because if you died, thousands of people that you have the potential to help would be without aid," Riva spoke, "I never lied to you. I only hid the truth from view. It was out of fear that you would no longer be able to do what you are destined to do, not out of fear for the loss of your dedication."

"Glad to hear you aren't scared of losing my dedication," Theo kept stepping back, "because you've fucking lost it. Let me out, now."

Riva shook her head, continuing to look at her with sorrow. Theo hated it. It bordered pity and she hated pity.

"Theo, if you stop opening yourself to me there is very little I can do to help you," Riva said and the human emotions running over the face of a god was impressive, she looked distressed, "not because I want to abandon you but because I cannot reach you if you do not allow me to."

"I don't need your protection. I don't need yours, or Xyra's, or Cooker's, or Uncilo's," Theo frowned, and Riva nodded her head.

"I will let you go as you asked," Riva spoke, "if you ever need me, Theo, call for me. I will be there. But I cannot come if you do not call."

Riva waved her hand and Theo awoke with a start. Her body was drenched in sweat and the only thing Theo could think of doing was turning into her pillow and sobbing. She didn't know why she had said what she did or treated Riva that way but she had. There was no going back, she had no choice but to double down on her actions like she had done in the past two cycles.