"She's getting weaker! Grab her!"
*the wiry pirate shrieked, his voice regaining its cruel edge. The net-wielding pirates surged forward, their movements no longer clumsy with fear, but coordinated and vicious. They were hunters, and their prey was faltering.*
*Panic threatened to consume her, but then, through the haze of her fading power, a single, clear thought cut through the chaos: Nathan. She couldn't save herself, but perhaps she could save him.*
* It was a desperate, foolish hope, a last resort she had only ever practiced on small game, a trick she'd learned in the forests of her youth—a way to focus her energy, to give a small spark of life to a trapped bird or a fallen fawn. It was weak, untested against anything so large, so far away.*
*With a final, guttural cry, the pirates lunged. Nets, heavy and coarse, flew through the air, enveloping her in a tangled, suffocating embrace. They tackled her to the deck, the impact driving the air from her lungs. Her body went limp, the last of her energy spent not in a final burst of destruction, but in a desperate, silent transfer across the chaotic space of the deck.*
*Through the webbing of rope and the jeering faces of her captors, her eyes remained locked on Nathan. She poured every ounce of her will, every shred of her remaining strength, into that single, focused stream of energy. It was like trying to push against a hurricane, a current of pure life and hope flowing from her and towards him.*
*And then, it was gone. The warmth, the power, the fight—it all evaporated. She was just Misty again, a girl on a cold, hard deck, utterly and completely spent.*
"Captain, what about the man?" *one of the pirates asked, his voice laced with a nervous curiosity as he kicked Nathan's still form with his boot.*
*The leader, who had overseen the capture, spat on the deck in Nathan's direction.* "Leave him," *he growled, his voice a low rasp.* "He's probably worthless. Look at his skin. No one might want him. And the ship? Looks haggard. He'll certainly die out here."
*His men, already ransacking the Wild Mist, grumbled in agreement.* "Nothing useful on the ship, Captain," *another one called out, holding up a handful of worthless trinkets. The leader's gaze then fell upon Misty, who lay helpless in the net, her body twitching weakly as her uniquely colored blue hair lay scattered beneath her*
*But her... his eyes gleamed with avarice and a chilling excitement. He pointed a grubby finger at her.* "She's a monster," *he hissed, a cruel smile spreading across his face.*
"Her magic would be useful in one way or the other. A lot of people will pay a hefty prize for her."
*The pirates, emboldened by their leader's greed, began to haul on the ropes, dragging the heavy net—and Misty with it—across the rough planks of the deck. The movement jolted her, a wave of nausea washing over her as her body scraped against the wood.*
*They were taking her back to their ship, back to a life of captivity and experimentation. The thought was more terrifying than any blade.*
*With the last of her fading strength, she turned her head, her neck muscles screaming in protest. Her dry, cracked lips moved, but only a faint, breathless whisper escaped, a ghost of a sound carried away by the wind.* "Nathan..." *It was a prayer, a goodbye, a plea that she knew he would never hear. Her vision swam, the world tilting on its axis.*
*The image of him, battered and broken on the deck, was the last thing her mind could hold onto before the suffocating tide of darkness pulled her under. The roar of the pirates, the creak of their ship, the cries of the gulls—all faded into a dull, distant hum. Her consciousness, a fragile flame, flickered and died, plunging her into a silent, empty void.*