Elena's P.O.V.
Today started like any regular day: I was given a piece of dry bread that was supposed to last from breakfast to night snack, Captain Claes threatened my life, and I spoke with the Musketeers as a distraction from my pain.
But the world had something hidden in its sleeve today. Although I did not know what would happen, I could still feel the crack in the cycle.
"There will be rain today," Athos stated, looking at the wooden ceiling with the small gaps separating the planks. "A huge storm is coming."
Aramis gave him an irritated look knitted into bewilderment, "What are you talking about? It is the hottest day we have experienced since we got here - I am in true words dying."
Is that his way of saying 'literally'?
I chuckled quietly, trying to stabilize my breathing so my lungs wouldn't pain my ribs too much. It was a warm day like Aramis pointed out, but then again, I haven't seen Athos standing on the wrong foot.
"Wait, do you guys hear that?" I asked through the chaotic sounds of pirates running around, their panics echoing down the cells. "What's going on up there?"
The Musketeers went mute and sharpened their ears, listening to the commands jumping from one pirate to the other.
"Heave ho!"
"Belay and drop the anchor!"
"Man-O-War!"
Despite the fact that the pirate tongue was foreign, I could still understand and see the picture in the frame: someone was coming.
"Do you believe it is. . ." D'Artagnan let his question wander without a clear closure, but we didn't need the end to interpret his words as the entire situation spoke for itself.
Ethan? My heart ran uncontrollably and was an untamable muscle that created knots and twists. The only thing I could think about was his safety, and I prayed for him to be unharmed.
Please, whatever you do, Ethan, just stay safe.
It was difficult to comprehend the situation. Feelings and thoughts collided, creating a turmoil of worry and fear. The tension was so thick it made breathing heavy and difficult, and I even found myself holding my breath due to the anxiety.
And suddenly, it went deadly silent; the pirates were quiet, their voices muted, and their footsteps airy.
What was going on? I wanted to know, wishing that I had a view of the scene that was taking place on the deck.
"Well, well, well," Captain Claes' voice was the first one to break the ice, his mocking tone painting a picture of his twisted smile. "What do we have here? Though I did not expect ye to come, I cannot say that I am disappointed. After all, a prince is a prince."
My eyes met Athos' hazel hue, sharing a fire of fortitude. Whatever lies in front of us, we will stay together in the battle for freedom. Today is the day the Musketeers' promise comes to life.
"Captain Claes."
The spoken words of the uninvited guest revealed the veracity behind the curtains, and I did not know if I felt disappointed or revealed. But one thing is for sure: the voice did not belong to Ethan
"Is there something wrong, Yer Majesty," the pirate mocked, trying to mask himself as a person free from crimes.
Whoever the prince was, he fell silent before he spoke again. "It has been rumored that a ship of pirates is sailing with the Musketeers as captives."
Everyone in the room looked at each other, finding relief that their absence had not gone unnoticed.
"The Musketeers ye say?" Claes guffawed, his thick laugh reaching every inch of the ship. "Are they not supposed to be impossible to defeat, let alone kidnapped?"
"I am going to kill him," Porthos growled, his hard eyes glaring through the gaps.
Although the atmosphere was thick and dangerous, the unknown prince did not seem to be affected by it whatsoever. "There is another tale that has been roaming the seas and kingdoms. A young maiden. Kidnapped mercilessly by pirates," the pauses between his words made the seriousness of the situation clear.
It was a threat.
"And ye believe I have something to do with these kidnappings?"
"A letter, written by His Majesty of Areadan, was sent across the sea. He is ordering that all ships must be searched from an open cabin to a closed cell."
I watched the moving shadow of Captain Claes taking slow, threatening steps. "Now why would we want to kidnap the Musketeers and a meaningless lass?"
The prince stood his ground, his posture and voice unchanged. "We are not here to figure out motives, we only want to make sure that they return home safely."
It was quiet due to Claes thinking over his choices.
A smile crept across my lips at the taste of his defeat, The fight is over. He lost.
"Ye are only wasting yer time if ye think ye will find anything here," he started, walking back to his crew. "Well, hurry and get it over and done with. I have business to attend to on the other side of the ocean."
Why does he sound so calm? A doubt dripped through the holes in my hope, filling it as I knew there was something behind his confident mask.
"They will not find us," Athos commented, speaking the words I feared were true. "He is shielding the entrance, hiding us from the rescue."
No. It can't be, I thought bitterly, feeling angry and frustrated. Good may come from far away and evil may be at close hand, but I will not let immorality thwart me from my freedom.
"We found nothing, Prince Haru." The statement triggered more fear, summoning anxiety and the refusal of defeat.
"No, no, no," I shook my head in distress, my heart dropping by every passing second. "We need to do something - they're leaving!"
"Oh, I am not going to stay in this hole for another night," Aramis mumbled, his eyes burning a picture of determination and an 'Oh-hell-no' attitude. Suddenly, he rose from the ground, standing in his full form and cupping his mouth. "Ey! We are down here! We are here - help us!"
"I told ye - there is nothing here for ye," a toxic smug followed Claes' words, sickening me with how inhumane and heartless he was.
"I guess you are not the pirate ship we are looking for," the prince responded with an elegant and calm tone, untouched by the captain's threat and mockery. "We will leave for now."
No matter how loudly Aramis shouted and cried, we were deaf in their ears, muted, hidden and helpless.
"Together," Athos stated, gazing everyone in the room. "We need to do it together."
And shout in a synchronized and non-harmonic cry that we did. If Prince Haru did not hear us now, he must surely sense an abnormal, mumbling turmoil.
"Wait," the air fell silent when the royalty spoke out, trying to listen to the sounds his ears detected. His shadow suddenly turned around, facing the pirate. "What was that?"
"I do not hear anything," the captain hastily replied, suddenly tramping on the wooden deck that made the cells shake. "Ah, ye mean this? It is only the rats, Yer Highness, they make the weirdest of sounds - nothing to be bothered about."
"He is lying!" Aramis cried out as he abruptly took his shoe off and threw it at the ceiling, "The Musketeers and the maiden - we are down here!"
And then everything turned still and free from sounds, almost as if the ship was holding its breath.
They must have heard us, I thought with my heart beating in my throat, We have done our part, and now it's their turn to roll the dice.
"Let us return to our ship," the prince finally responded, his shadow and steps decreasing dramatically.
"Wait, what are they doing?" Porthos asked the question that was flying over our heads.
So suddenly and so violently, everything turned around. Shadows ran the other way. Swords collided, battle cries were shouted, and a war between justice and revenge came to the scene.
Prince Haru was attacking the pirates.
Although this was what I wished for - to be rescued - I still felt unrested rather than relieved. This was not the end, only the beginning of a long hell.
We still had to fight to live.
The door was suddenly swung open, almost falling off its ancient and rusty hinges. A light entered the room, filling it with rich colors that felt almost foreign.
Someone ran- no, jumped over the steep stairs, his blue cape following and spilling down his back like a waterfall. His hand gripped a long, sharp sword that was ready to assault anyone who dared to attack.
"Your Majesty, watch out!" D'Artagnan pointed to the older teenager, warning him just in time before a pirate could do him harm.
Even if he did not wear a crown or any pieces of jewelry, I knew he was undoubtedly Prince Haru - the vibes of elegance gave him away.
And also because D'Artagnan called him 'Your Majesty'.
"Catch!" Prince Haru ripped some keys pinned on the wall and threw it to the Musketeer closest to him, focusing his attention towards the sword fight between him and the attacking pirate.
D'Artagnan was out of his cell in a blink, swiftly freeing the rest of us before he helped the prince take down the enemy.
"How good are you with swords?" Athos asked me, ripping the weapon from the unconscious pirates spread on the floor and stairs.
I shrugged my shoulders, "I know that you stab people with the sharp end."
Aramis handed me the weapon right away, "Good enough for me."
And so we exited the thick-aired and smelly room, filling our lungs with the fresh and rich air that we hadn't tasted in what felt like years. The Musketeers quickly departed, running to lash their bottled anger on the pirates and helping our rescuers in the process.
"Stay close to me, Lady Elena," Prince Haru told me, but I was too busy watching the scene. My eyes could finally pin a picture on the sounds my ears had detected; the violent situation becoming a true reality. "You do not look well, and I wish to prevent any more injuries to be inflicted upon you."
To be honest, I was tired and in a great deal of pain. My stomach, back, and head ached the worst whereas the wounds and bruises were still raw with agony.
However, I could not let broken ribs and a heavy soreness prevent me from trying. I would rather die helping than stay alive and tell the tales of my dead friends.
"How do you know my name?" I suspiciously asked the Asian prince, watching him throw a pirate off the ship.
He gave me a small smile, handing me a nicely folded letter as he pulled us to a safe corner. "Prince Ethan sent the order across the sea. Although he did not say to investigate all the ships sailing in the Atlantic Ocean, he did order to stop the Blackburry at all cost and arrest Captain Claes along with his crew. We knew you were here, Lady Elena, even before we heard the shouts from you and the Musketeers."
Empty of words, I stood in silence, frozen at my spot with locked muscles. The information was overwhelming, and it was a slow process to swallow every word.
Did Ethan really do all of this for me? Contacted people over the sea? Sent an arrest order for the pirates?
It warmed my heart to gain such knowledge, to know about the things he had done. His selfless actions seemed to be unlimited as it stretched across the Atlantic Ocean.
After putting the letter in my pocket, a surge of energy sprang through my veins, which made the sword in my hand rise. "Let's take down some pirates."
Never in my entire life did I ever think that I would ever fight pirates with swords - and win.
One after the other, I defeated the vicious and smelly people, smacking them with the flat side of my weapon, kicking them at their weak spots, and just spilling my rage and frustration.
Little by little, raindrops fell from the sky. The drops grew fatter by each second along with the speed that increased.
I threw my gaze at Athos and Aramis who swiftly took down a great number of pirates, looking at how the hazel-eyed Musketeer gave a knowing glance to his blonde friend.
Suddenly, a sword fled next to my feet, its speed dying out. It wasn't before I turned around to see the red-haired young boy holding a plank over Mada's unconscious body that I realized that I was being attacked.
And that he just saved my life.
Although we did not say anything, the smile we sent each other said it all: we were finally rescued from violence.
I tried to look for Captain Claes through the growing rain, but he was nowhere to be seen. It made me unrested that I did not know about his whereabouts.
However, it was a massive relief to watch the pirates being defeated and overpowered.
An eye for an eye, I thought to myself and looked at the raw scene, rubbing my sore shoulders and limbs.
"Ella!" His warm voice was clear like a sparkling crystal, reflecting across the distance and rain. The summery vocal summoned a big smile on my face, mirroring my quickly beating heart when I met his illuminating eyes.
A euphoric feeling exploded all around me as I ran to meet him, "Ethan!" He landed on the ship, which made the gap between us close at a fast pace. We neared each other by every sprinting second, the joy to finally unite parallel to the feeling of remedy.
At last, we are to unify again.
It happened so quick, so abruptly, and so violently. A virulent strength stagnated the union with my friend, holding me and my freedom caged as a menacing knife threatened my life.
So close, yet, so far.
"Ah, yer naïvety never fails to amuse me," Claes spoke in my ear and gripped me in a tight hold, impeding me from uniting with Ethan and my freedom. Despite my attempt to remove the sharp weapon pressed to my throat, it did not vanish nor stir.
Although I'm not chained and locked up in a cell, I seem to be in the same situation when I was caged and hidden from the world: trapped.
I guess the beginning and the ending shook hands while I was in the main section.