Cage had known that drinking wouldn't make his problems go away, but he had never anticipated it would cause other, much bigger ones.

He'd needed to reprieve from the pain, to forget for just a few moments how badly he'd failed his brother and his kingdom. How he'd failed Kat. The fear in her eyes the night they'd returned had killed him.

He'd seen it before, when she was trapped in the castle, before she knew who he was, before she fell in love with him. Fear of the beast and the man he was now after he'd chosen to let it out. It could no longer be blamed on a curse.

He was a monster. A monster who still had so much to do but wanted to forget that for just a few days. At least until Trix hid his rum and he was forced to sober up and face the hangover from the seventh circle of hell.

It wasn't completely gone. His head still throbbed. But what had happened felt like a bucket of ice-cold water dropped over his head.

Jinx was singed. Trix was barely clinging on to life. Kat was responsible, and Jazz wanted her off the ship.

"Understandable, I'd probably do the same, but you can't leave us in the middle of the ocean," he said to Jazz the moment Kat disappeared inside.

"Again, you don't have to go."

Yes, he did, and Jazz was a dick for pretending not to understand this. "You know I wouldn't leave her side even if we weren't bound by magic, don't you?"

"I honestly don't give two shits, Kale."

The use of his real name had Cage flinching. "We'll stay out of your way until we reach the nearest port, and you can drop us off there."

Jazz snarled and indicated his crew. "Don't you care?"

Cage's heart stung and it came with a newly potent throb to his temples. "Of course I care. They're my friends. And speaking of which, we should get them inside instead of arguing over their bodies."

Jazz seemed rattled by the idea, and Cage then realized that their captain was panicking. A silent truce was reached while Jazz picked Jinx up, and Cage grabbed Trix, and they headed for the chamber next to the stateroom, which served as infirmary. The moment Cage left Trix on one of the cots, he stepped back, feeling as if everything was spiraling out of control. What had he missed? What could have happened to leave Trix like this?

Jinx moaned in pain as Jazz lay her down.

"It's okay, love," he whispered. "You'll be fine."

She only whimpered as an answer, and Cage felt like throwing up. What was wrong with him? How could he have let it get this far? On some level, he knew it was his fault. He hadn't been paying proper attention to Kat, had left her to her own devices for too long, even when he sensed that something was wrong. But he'd naively trusted that she'd share her fears with him, anything that gave her pause. She hadn't. Either that, or this was as much of a surprise to her as it was for everyone else.

He needed to get to her, but he was also aware that he couldn't leave things as they were. There was damage control in order.

This could've been avoided if he could only face his failures. But he never could. It was what put him in this position in the first place.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered.

Jazz just growled in return, not taking his eyes of Jinx, holding her hands.

It wasn't helping. It did nothing for her burns. But Cage could understand his panic, he'd felt it before, when he'd almost killed Kat. And just like then, he knew there was just one way to fix this.

"Allow me."

He expected Jazz to tell him to fuck right off, but instead, he let go of Jinx's hand and let him take the chair, apparently all too able to let Cage burn himself.

Jinx looked feverish, sweat coating her light skin, her eyes were closed and her lips dry and rough. Her arms were covered in blisters, which seemed filled with hot liquid.

With a deep breath, he took Jinx's hand and focused on the wounds. He knew how to take them upon him, but this time, he tried to just heal them and send them into the nether instead. His skin burned. It was light at first, but it grew in intensity. Her forced himself to push the heat out and away from him. The effort drew his energy much worse than if he'd just embraced the pain.

No, you have to learn how to do this.

The heat became unbearable, and, out of reflex, he let go of Jinx's hand and drew back, panting. She looked calm now, breathing normally. The blisters on her skin were gone, replaced by reddish traces.

Cage watched his own skin, but apart from a mild rash, he seemed fine.

"Thank you," Jazz said from the corner, his voice low.

"I owe you this."

"Yes, you do."

His body heavy, Cage turned to Trix next. He wasn't sure if he could still help him as well without some rest.

"No, there's nothing you can do for him," Jazz said.

"Why not?" Cage asked, fighting the wave of relief overcoming him.

"Because he doesn't have any physical wounds." Jazz pushed himself off the wall. "She fucked with his mind."

"I don't understand how--"

"I don't either. Let's step out and let them rest."

Cage nodded and stood. His muscles ached as if he'd been training all day, and the task of walking into the stateroom was exhausting. The moment Jazz closed the door to the infirmary, he wanted to drop on a chair, but the captain nodded towards the door, so he got the message that he should step outside.

It turned out to be a good idea. The moment the cold, salty air hit his face, some of Cage's energy seemed to return to him. Jazz appeared a lot calmer, too, probably since Jinx had been healed, at least partially. He headed for the edge of the deck and Cage followed, leaning his elbows against the railing. He really needed to get to Kat, but he had enough sense to know he couldn't leave Jazz like this.

Jazz spent a few moments in silence, his gaze lost in the distance, but Cage wasn't fooled. The tension in his shoulders screamed that their captain wasn't appeased.

"This is..." His voice faded.

"You knew it would happen," Cage said. "You must have seen it."

Jazz didn't answer, but clenched his fingers around the railing. "There's something inside her that neither of us know of."

That was true and very unsettling. One of Cage's many failures.

"You obviously know something."

"I don't. But you can't tell me you don't sense something is wrong. It's been wrong ever since you set foot on this ship."

"Is that why you didn't want to take us until I showed you the card from Cecile?"

Once again, Jazz's grip on the railing tightened. "Cecile... She sent you to me without telling you what she wanted."

"I asked, but she claimed I need to master my magic before she could give me any--"

"She wants you to find the heir of Endir."

Cage did a double take. "What? Why? Endir is just fine without an heir. Without us stirring the pot."

"Why." Jazz huffed. "As if she would tell us why she wants a certain thing done."

Bits and pieces began falling into place, but they only brought anger. Cecile's game was not that complicated. It was probably why she'd come to him in the first place, but she'd been distracted by his looks, by his reputation. Then, she'd cursed him and searched for a new champion. Jazz. The thought that he had indirectly caused Jazz's curse made his skin crawl, but he'd paid for his failures and then some. At least until the curse was changed which started a new string of failures.

 His latest one was having this conversation and letting Kat threat by herself for too long.

"I'm not finding the heir of Endir. I have other, more important matters on my plate."

"Do you?" Jazz turned to face him, the look on his face less than friendly.

"Kat most certainly didn't do this on purpose, and she's scared out of her mind right now."

"Are you convinced she has no idea what she is doing?"

"Don't try to poison me against her! I consider you my friend but--"

"Do you have any idea what will happen to Iride now that Ferdinand is gone?"

Cage shook his head, trying to rein in his anger. "Iride has a king--"

"For how long? You know that his majesty has a failing health."

"His majesty can choke on his own vomit."

"You can't run from your destiny, Kale!"

"You shut your mouth!" Cage pointed a finger at Jazz. "Don't you dare say the words. I don't give a fuck what you've seen."

Jazz didn't listen, but Cage didn't let him say anything else and stomped away towards the entrance. He had no time for this shit, not when Kat was waiting for him and he'd already lost enough time.

He wasn't wrong. He found her pacing her cabin, wringing her hands, a look of panic and shock on her face. The moment he entered, she stopped, the fear on her face more than obvious. How could Jazz even dare to insinuate that she had wanted any of this?

"Oh, thank the gods! Are Jinx and Trix alright?" She hurried to him but faltered, her eyes taking in his forearms. "Oh no."

"No, I'm fine. I just healed Jinx a little. I managed not to take most of it upon myself. She's going to be alright."

Relief crossed her face, but only for a moment. "What about Trix?"

"He's alive, but we have no idea what actually happened so there was nothing I could do for him."

Kat let out a strangled sob and started pacing again. It only lasted a moment before she turned around and threw herself in his arms.

"I'm so scared. I never meant for any of this to happen."

His heart tightened, as if it could pick up on her distress, on her pain. He stroke her hair. "I know you didn't." And he should have said this earlier.

She pulled away, shaking her head. "Everything has been so chaotic since we started, and I've been feeling less and less like myself. It's terrifying."

Cage tensed, Jazz's words digging into him. He couldn't be right. Because if he was right about one thing, it meant that he could also be about the rest.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You had so many other things on your mind, and I didn't want to whine. I did my best to convince myself that it was nothing, that it was all in my head."

"Kat..."

"And the voices..." She clutched her head.

Everything around them seemed to freeze. "Voices?"

"They keep saying that I have to burn down the world and that it's my destiny, and then my magic turns out to be fire." Her words were quicker and more desperate. "Why did it have to be fire? I don't want to burn anything."

"Kat." He grasped her shoulders and glanced down at her.

She returned his gaze, her blue eyes wet and filled with terror. Darkness stirred inside him as if the beast wanted to come out and protect her from the world.

"I'm so sorry," she whimpered. "I never wanted to hurt anyone."

"I know you didn't. You're kind and noble and brave. We just have to..." He had no idea what they had to do, but it was painfully obvious that they couldn't stay there. They've both fucked up and were now paying the price.

"You would be totally justified to leave me out in the middle of the sea."

"Are you insane? I'm not leaving you. You don't have to apologize. I'm the one who should be sorry for letting this happen."

"You're not my keeper, Cage. You're not responsible for me."

She made an excellent point, and her independence was one of the reasons he'd fallen so hard for her, magic be damned. Because this is all this was. The two of them getting screwed over by magic. Again. It had altered their minds, made them afraid of their feelings, killed the purity of what they'd discovered inside his castle.

This entire trip had been a disaster, and he was at risk of losing more than just his brother. He wouldn't let that happen. He wouldn't lose her.

"That doesn't mean I don't want to help you. I've been too distracted with what Cecile wanted to focus on what's truly important. You and me. Us and what we want. Not what some fairy wants. Fuck their games."

His words seemed to work like a balm, because her eyes dried, and she nodded. "I want to go back to that. To our home, and our plans, and our rebellion."

Shit, there was that, too. But they'd figure it out once they got off the ship. The first step was to make sure they made it to shore. And for that, they had to stand together. He pulled her into his arms and held her close against him.

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. For pulling away, for getting distracted, for letting the madness and the magic drive me away from what really matters."

"That included rescuing Ferdinand," she whispered, and her words, even if spoken kindly, drove an arrow through his heart. "I didn't even get to tell you how sorry I am. I didn't comfort you when you needed me most. But I was scared."

That was true, and it should have been his biggest clue that something was wrong. But as it often happened to men like him who had a lot to lose, one potential tragedy helped alleviate the pain from the previous one. Fer was gone, and he'd have to learn to live with the knowledge that he'd let it happen. He still had Kat. He wouldn't lose her, too.

"We should have both seen the signs," he said, kissing her hair. "I see them now. And it's time we did something about them."

She tensed in his arms. "Cage, I'm not sure that the voices are gone, that I can contain my magic. What if I hurt you, too?"

"I can handle more than most men." Jazz and Trix included, apparently. They didn't have his resilience or his ability to heal inhumanely fast. Magic was different for everyone.

"I don't want you to have to. I don't want you to have to leave our friends because of me."

Hearing Kat calling the crew their friends sent another pang through his stomach. Yes, he'd come to consider the Jolly Marauders friends. He never thought Kat truly did, and it had always made him feel bad. Apparently he hadn't gauged her feelings correctly.

But Jazz now wanted Kat gone and Cage could never accept that. Yes, he cared for him and wished they could face whatever would come together, but not at the price of being apart from Kat.

"I did consider them friends," she whispered as if his thoughts were written on his face. "I know I butted heads with Jinx a lot, but I do admire her. She's so strong and sure of herself."

"So are you."

Kat shook her head. "Not like her. I guess that's why I was so jealous of her."

"Kit-Kat, there's nothing to be jealous about."

"I know. But I'm only human." She glanced at her hands. "At least I thought I was."

This broke his heart, the thought that she had lost her innocence and her faith in the world. He'd been jaded for years, but he most certainly didn't want to see her become like him. She was sunshine after the rain. He was lightning among the storm clouds. 

"There's nothing wrong with you."

"I killed people. I've hurt our friends." Her eyes dropped to the floor. "Killed our friend."

"Harrison was not your fault."

"I don't believe that."

"You should. We need to fix this, come on."

Cage took her hand to lead her towards the door. She seemed reluctant at first, but fell into step with him. His body began to hum with energy at the prospect of confrontation, but he knew they had to get this out of the way. Either Jazz forced them off the ship or let them stay. And as much as he hated thinking about it, Jazz was at least alone right now which was a huge advantage.

When they stepped out, the first thing Cage noticed was how dark it was, as if light itself had decided it wanted to take no part in this. Jazz was no longer there, most likely in the infirmary. Cage released Kat's hand and headed for the door to the stateroom, but before he could reach it, it opened, and Jazz stepped out, rubbing his eyes. He froze in the doorway, his weary gaze moving from Cage to Kat standing behind him.

His eyes narrowed, and his lip curled back into a snarl.

"No," Cage said. "We're having this out and deciding what is to be done."

"I told you what will be done," Jazz said between his teeth. "You can stay. You should stay. She needs to go."

"Jazz, please, I'm so sorry--" Kat's words died on her tongue once Jazz raised his hand to stop her.

"Don't speak to me. Don't..." The tremor in his voice spoke of his anger, and Cage was shocked by the intensity of it. He'd thought he would've calmed down a little by then.

"You know I didn't mean to!" Her words were desperate. It only increased his unease and anger.

Yes, he could understand that Jazz was upset, but he was taking it too far.

"Didn't you, though?" Jazz retaliated. "And I don't mean now, but while you were doing it. Didn't you decide to keep going even when you knew it was too much? Even as you saw Jinx catching fire, even as you felt Trix touching you."

"What kind of question is that?" Cage growled.

"He's right," Kat whispered.

He turned to her, fighting back the shock which threatened to paralyze him. "What?"

"Jazz is right," she repeated. "I'm mortified now, but while it was actually happening... There were so many voices."

Jazz frowned. "Voices?"

Kat didn't bother to elaborate, her terrified eyes on Cage. "I'm scared. I'm so scared."

"I told you this was all wrong." Jazz's voice was once again filled with steel. "She leaves my ship now."

"No. We leave your ship now," Cage spat back.

Jazz's expression morphed into one of anguish. "You can't do that. You have more important matters to take care of."

Cage walked to Kat and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her against him. Her fingers dug into his shirt, holding on tightly, while she pressed her forehead into his chest.

"There's nothing more important than this."

"Cage..." There was pain in Jazz's voice now. "You need to stay."

"If you think I'm going to let you throw Kat in the middle of the ocean, you're not the man I thought you were."

"I'm exactly the man you thought I am. Which is why you're going to understand that I have to do this. Eventually."

The world tilted and Cage found himself hanging upside down in midair. The blood rushed to his head, but before he could try to right himself, his back hit the mast and he fell to the deck.

"No, what are you doing?" Kat cried.

"Get off my ship," Jazz said between gritted teeth. "Now!"

"Stop it!"

Jazz only pushed Cage harder against the mast with his magic, holding him in place with too much ease. The captain drew his sword and pointed it at Kat.

"You are the one who can stop this."

"What the fuck are you doing, you asshole? Leave her alone." Cage struggled against the magic, but it dug into him like an invisible wall pressing on his entire body.

"I'm not going to let you hurt him," Kat said. "Let him go!"

"I'll let him go as soon as you're off the ship. I don't want to hurt him. I don't want you to hurt him either."

"You're insane!" Cage struggled harder but to no avail. "When you let me go, I'll kill you."

"Allow me to doubt that," Jazz said, his eyes fixed on Kat. "Your call. And while we're at it, you can take Leila with you."

Kat glanced from Jazz to Cage, her gaze filled with fear and confusion. Cage struggled again and managed to move a few inches, but it wasn't enough to reach her.

"I won't stay. If you make her go, I'm going with her."

"Let us go," she pleaded. "I understand that it was too much, that you don't want to see me anymore. Just let us go."

Jazz shook his head. "Oh, no. You don't understand. What you did to Jinx... It felt a little something like this."

The pressure against Cage shifted into the sting of a thousand hot daggers. He cried out in pain before he could help himself.

"No, please stop!"

"You're going to have to let me go at some point," Cage said through gritted teeth.

Jazz ignored him, his narrowed eyes filled with hatred, glaring at Kat. "Get. Off. My. Ship." And he threw out his other hand, making Kat slide towards the edge of the deck.

She fell over, rolling towards the railing. The air escaped Cage's lungs as he struggled even harder. It hurt. It actually drew blood out of him, as if Jazz was literally stabbing him. He couldn't keep in a groan of pain.

Kat got to her hands an knees and glanced at him.

And it felt as if someone had plunged the world in darkness. For the first time, Cage could see the shift in her expression, how the fear was replaced by a flash of panic, then anguish, finally settling on cold-blooded calculation. Then fire ignited between her fingers and she stood.

"You will burn," she said, but her voice was distorted, echoing, definitely not her own. "You and this wretched ship, and everyone you're trying so hard to protect."

A shiver went down his spine "Kat, calm down."

She didn't. Instead, she floated in thin air as if it was nothing. Quick footsteps preceded Leila's appearance on the deck. She glanced at Kat with wide eyes.

The magic holding Cage in place was raised and he found himself stumbling to regain his footing. Jazz's attention was now fully on Kat and rightfully so.

"Cage..." He said, stepping back. "This is what I was talking about."

"It's your fault for pissing her off," Cage said, but he didn't feel it was true. Yes, Jazz had unleashed something, but it was something that shouldn't have been there in the first place. "Sweetheart, it's alright."

The glance she threw him was indifferent.

"You will all burn."

🌟🌟🌟

Well, that went south quickly... And here come the end of the book, running and jumping at you, demanding attention! Yes, we're going for a ride into the climax zone.

It was about time those voices came out to play. And you'll finally find out what's going on with them. And the mystery shall be revealed and plunge us into book number 3!

I surely hope you're enjoying the story. Don't forget to vote and comment for support.

(Also, updating a little earlier because I won't be around tomorrow)