The Sky Pirates Part One (complete)

    All my life I had been told that nothing good came from touching the earth. All my life, I have maybe set my feet on solid ground four or five times. Every time I do, something strange happens. Not bad, but something that has yet to reveal itself yet.

    I come from a family of Furies, my mothers are powerful warlords who rule over the sky in their unique ships called Brigadoons. The ship my mothers' captained was tilted the Allecto and was what I had always called home. I was born there and more than likely I will die there too, and I will know it was a life worth living. 

    I can remember vividly the first time I had set foot on the earth. We had to shop for supplies to stock up our ship so that way, it would be a much longer journey until the next time we needed to land. I was so scared. I was barely eight years old, and I had been told so many stories about the land and the people there. My mothers assured me things would be alright as long as we didn’t stay.

    It was also during this trip my mothers wanted to recruit new crew members, young people who could grow on the ship, start their families there and build lives onboard for as long as they offered their service. It was during this search I first met Cyrus.

    He was shorter than me and much heavier. He had a round pot belly and wide eyes as he looked up at my mother, Sicyon. He was one of the Lizardfolk with dark scales covering most of his body while along his throat and belly there were stripes of vivid red and blue. His head was long and flat, blending into his neck. But his mouth was wide, and his hands were clawed. I hid behind Sicyon, not wanting to be seen by him.

    “Your wings are so cool!” He said in awe.

    Sicyon smiled and extended her wing out. Her wings were black tipped and faded into pale gold. “You think so youngling?” She asks.

    “I didn’t know pretty women could have wings!” Cyrus bounced on the heels of his feet.

    Sicyon knelt down in front of the boy. She would tell me later she had chosen Cyrus because she had noticed how dirty he was, how his clothes were ill-fitting and he had no shoes. He was alone and probably had no connections, so he was perfect to take.

    “Would you like a job, young man?” Sicyon asked.

    Cyrus looked apprehensive for a moment. “What kind of job?”

    Sicyon lifted her wing, revealing me to him. “My daughter needs a friend,” she replies. “I think you would make a perfect one.”

    I tugged so hard on Sicyon’s robes I nearly ripped them. Cyrus seemed awed, and he agreed. From that moment on, Cyrus became a part of our crew. For a while, I didn’t want anything to do with Cyrus. It wasn’t until he showed me his skill with a knife that I took notice.

    He could take any scrap piece of wood and make into something amazing. He could sit and carve for hours if he was allowed.

    “Can you make a kitty?” I asked.

    Cyrus nodded. “I sure can.”

    “Can you make a boat?” I threw out again.

    Cyrus just nodded. “I sure can.”

    I gasp with awe, watching him widdle down the small chunks of wood. In his time on Allecto, he made me many a beautiful charm and keepsake, and I kept them all. We grew close, becoming friends who were as thick as thieves. 

    We grew up together, trained together, worked together. Cyrus eventually outgrew me, standing far taller than I could ever reach. He never quite lost the pot belly, but he easily became one of the strongest members of the crew. He was valuable and dear, especially to me.

    When I was to turn eighteen, I was going to be made captain of the Allecto, and I had every intention to make Cyrus my first mate. I figured he knew my plans, but I wanted to keep it a surprise for as long as I could.

    So it came as a shock to all of us when he and a few other members of the crew approached my mothers and me. 

    “I take it this about the offer Captain Brunhilde gave you,” Sicyon said with a sniff.

    I stared up at her then looked to Cyrus. “What offer?” I gasped.

    Cyrus nodded. “I’ve decided to take it. I’ll become his first mate, and once he retires, I’ll take over the Apollo as Captain.”

    Sicyon sighed. “Well, we certainly hate to see you go Cyrus, but you far outgrew your place her long ago. I take it you’re leaving now.”

    Cyrus stiffened a bit. “I was hoping to leave after Theai’s birthday.”

    “Allecto is no longer your home, Cyrus,” Sicyon hissed. “You’ve made that perfectly clear. If you intended to stay, you should have announced it after not before.”

    Cyrus looked at me and my mother Semnai put her hands on my shoulders as comfort and to hold me back. Cyrus sighed, a cold resolve coming over his face.

    “Very well, Captain,” he said with a bow. “It was an honor to serve under you all these years. I am grateful for everything.” He and the others turned and walked away.

    I was heartbroken and longing for my friend. In the weeks that followed I had no interest in my birthday party nor for the fact, I was to be named captain. My mothers dragged me from my room, promising me a wonderful time.

    “Once you’re named captain all those things won’t matter,” Sicyon told me. “You’ll have your role and your crew, and everything will be as it should.”

    Semnai smiled at me. “Have you decided on a first mate?”

    “I did,” I grumble.

    As we walked out on deck one of the horns was sounded. Sicyon turned with a glare. “How dare they approach us on our child’s birthday?”

    Semnai took out her viewing glass and stretched it. “Isn’t the Apollo?”

    I perked up then, watching as the Apollo came to rest beside us. A line was cast out from the Apollo then and Cyrus came swinging from it, landing beside me. 

He grinned. “You didn’t think I’d miss your birthday did you?” He winked.

After that day, Cyrus and I kept in touch as often as possible. Our commerce was lengthy and often and whenever we were in the same skies we made sure to meet. Recently, it had been a few months since I had last seen Cyrus, but our letters never stopped.

His last letter informed me he had been traveling over the Golem territory and he was heading for the Cobra Strait.

“I have to touch down,” the letter says. “Gather supplies and a few new crew members. When was the last time you touched down Theai? Can you even remember? I know your birthday is coming up again, I promise I’ll try to make it again. Yours always, Cyrus.”

The Cobra Strait was one of the few easy places to land a Brigadoon. The port was wide enough the ships could touch down and not worry about the balloons coming into contact with any trees or mountainsides. It was in Obresh that we had first found Cyrus, so in a way, it was his home.

I go to my first mate, Iris after reading the letter. “Are we close to the Cobra Strait by any chance?”

“Why?” She asked with curiosity. “We don’t need to touch down for anything, Captain.” She smirked at me. “Another letter from Cyrus, eh?”

I laugh. “I was thinking how nice it would be to add to the gardens,” I said. “We’re running low on seed.”

Iris coked her brow. “Because we haven’t harvested.” She snaps her hand to her hip. “This doesn’t have to do with that letter does it.”

I open my mouth as my wings shudder behind me. “Well, I wouldn’t. I would never!”

“No need to get yourself in a fit,” Iris winks. “If you think we need seeds, well then, maybe we need seeds,” she laughs.

I sigh with relief. “Then let’s set a course for Obresh. I’ll talk with the crew to see if there is anything else we might need.”

“Finally having sex might be it,” Iris mumbles under her breath.

I turn sharply on my feel. “What was that?”

Iris looks at me, wide-eyed and caught. “I didn’t say anything,” she shook her head. “You must have just been hearing the helm settle.”

“No, no,” I scoff. “I very clearly heard you growl something under your breath first mate.” I wag a finger at her.

“I did not growl, captain,” Iris huffs.

“Then you did say something!”

Iris blinks slow then huffs. “When are you and Cyrus ever going to admit how you feel?” She asks. “All kidding aside, I know you love him.”

“Of course I do, he’s my friend,” I chuckle.

Iris rolls her eyes. “Oh my god.”

“What?” I snap. “It could never be more than that!”

“It is,” Iris says. “And the longer you keep denying it, the more desperate these little meetings are going to seem. The crew had been talking about it long enough. Eventually, you’re going to need a better excuse than lack of seeds.”

I’m a bit struck. “I had no idea that you and the crew were-” I stop and laugh. “It’s not like that, Iris. Cyrus is my family he is like-”

“If Mythri saw you two she’d be planning your wedding and first child,” Iris sniffs. “Hell, her unborn baby would probably do it too.”

I take a step back. “I need to go inform the crew,” I say dismissively. I want to get away from the topic, but it haunts me all evening to the point where I can’t sleep.

It isn’t until we reach the dock and I see the Apollo that I feel relief. As we disembark, I notice a familiar face waiting at the dock. He’s grinning and his tail and wagging behind him.

“Surprise, surprise!” Iris laughs. “I never expected to see you here at all!” She shakes Cyrus’ hand as her sarcasm overflows.

“My, my Iris,” Cyrus smirks. “Your thinly veiled rage is always a treat to my senses.”

“Not rage,” Iris corrects. “I am always happy to see you. I just wish my Captain could be a bit more honest with me.” She winks. “Excuse me, I have seeds to buy.” She seethes as she says the word.

Cyrus whistles. “Seeds? Really?”

I shake my head and scoff. “My crew also has a list.”

“You can’t just say you miss your friend? Maybe reward the crew and let them have a day?” He says. “Then maybe Iris wouldn’t have to grind her teeth so much.”

I laugh as I walk beside him, my wings twitching a little as our hands touch. “Iris has nothing to worry about.”

Cyrus sucks air through his teeth. “Doesn’t she though? I mean having you as a captain seems pretty worrisome. Why do you think I took up Brunhilde’s offer so long ago?”

I pop his arm hard. “How dare you!” I laugh.

“I knew you were going to be a problem right from the get-go,” he snaps his fingers. “I had to jump ship before my life was made a living hell,” he says while grinning.

I shove him again. “I feel sorry for your crew!” I point a finger in his face. “Having to deal with how two-faced you are.”

He mocks offense. “I’m two-faced?” He scoffs. “Me? Have you ever met your mother?”

I snort and have to cover my face “Which one?”

“Oh you know which one,” Cyrus is doubled over as he tries not to laugh. “Starts with Sic ends with yon.”

I brace my hand on his arm as we started to bleat and wheeze with laughter. It’s then silenced as we kiss. I’m gripping hold of his strong arms as his hands wrap around my waist.

I pull away quickly, pushing against him.

“Theai?” Cyrus asks.

“What was that?” I gasp.

“Too short,” Cyrus picks me up and kisses me again.

Iris was right, and I didn’t want to go back to be told that but I knew I would have to face the choir eventually.

“It’s not bad is it?” Cyrus asks as he brushes my hair from my face. 

“No, no,” I hold his hand to my cheek. “I’ve been fighting it so long. Just pushing it down and down. I guess this was bound to happen.”

“I’ve written you so many letters telling you how I feel,” he huffs. “But I always chicken out.”

“Do you still have them?” I ask.

He smiles. “Why?”

I blush as I grin. “I wouldn’t mind having them now.”

Cyrus kisses me again. “Yeah, I still have every single one, dating all the way back to your tenth birthday.”

After leaving the port and returning to the skies, I start receiving the love letters Cyrus had written for me. Each day I get one or two until I get the first and last one he’d written. The first one is scribbled with a heavy hand and spelling so bad I could barely read it. The new one confessed he wished to join our crews and start a fleet.

It was probably as close to a marriage proposal as it could get. I wrote my response quickly, saying it may take time, but my answer was yes.

I was getting it ready when the horn was signaled.

“What’s going on?” I asked Iris.

“It’s the Tisiphone,” she says. “Your mothers are here,” Iris looks at me with a dark expression.

Visits from my mothers are never exactly a cause of celebration. They usually bring with them grim news or new laws we had to follow. Even if I was the captain, when they were around I felt lesser than.

I greeted Sicyon and Semnai as they boarded the Allecto. “It’s so wonderful to see you,” I say, lingering in Semnai’s arms longer. 

“You look so radiant!” Semnai grins. “That’s a good sign.”

Sicyon kisses my forehead. “We have wonderful news for you, daughter.”

That was a first. “Is that so?” I turn to Iris and smile. “We would welcome some! It’s been quite boring the past few weeks.”

Iris rolls her eyes in knowing.

“We’ve brother your fiance with us,” Sicyon says with a grin.

My heart falls out, and my stomach feels as if a stone is weighted there. “My what?” I blink furiously.

Semnai’s smile is hiding her anxious manner. “You’ll be twenty-five soon,” she says. “Just like your mother and me.”

I turn to Sicyon who still has a proud smile on her face. “You could have told me,” I said. “Some sort of-”

“Warning?” Sicyon asks. “This isn’t something bad, daughter. This is wonderful! It’s overdue too. Your mother and I were married at eighteen. But she somehow convinced me it would be better to wait with you.”

I look at Semnai and the guilt in her eyes as she still tries to smile.

Sicyon extends her wing. “Daughter, this is your betrothed,” she says as a Furies comes down onto the deck. Her wings are all white, and her hair is bright red. She looks at me with gold eyes, and a soft smile spreads on her lips. “This is Megaera,” Sicyon says with pride.

Megaera comes up to me and touches my cheek. She runs her fingers through my dark hair and along my brown feathers. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Theai,” she says. She tilts up my chin and presses a soft kiss there.

Sicyon claps her hands together in joy. “You both suit each other so well!” She sighs. “And no worries, daughter,” she says. “Your mother and I have planned the wedding, absolutely everything. We’ll be holding it on your birthday.”

“It’ll be a happy occasion,” Semnai says, “I promise.”

Megaera looks at me and tilts her head. She stands a head taller than me, and her mannerisms reminds me of Sicyon. It’s a bit frightening. 

“You look so surprised,” Megaera says. “Aren’t you happy?”

“I’m-” I swallow down the painful lump in my throat. “I’m still so shocked,” I force a laugh. “You’ll have to give me a moment!”

“She’s always been that way,” Semnai says as she comes over to us. “Easy to stun, easy to scare,” she chuckles.

“Very much like her mother,” Sicyon says. “I always liked it about Semnai, it hid the true strength she possessed.”

Megaera chuckles. “I can’t wait to get to know her better.”

Sicyon turns to Iris. “Do you mind taking control of the ship for the night?” She asks her. “That way, the new couple can get to know one another better.”

Iris looks at me, and I hope to the gods she understands what she needs to do. “Of course,” Iris says with a gracious grin. “I’d be happy to.”

Sicyon comes over to us. “Good, why don’t you two go to your quarters, daughter.” She strokes my hair. “I’ll send over our finest wine and a delicious meal for you two.”

Megaera takes my hand and laces out fingers. “Thank you so much, Sicyon, this is such an honor.” She then looks at me. “Lead the way.”

I nod. “Oh, yes,” I chuckle anxiously. “Of course.”

Iris returns to the cockpit where she starts to write a letter to Cyrus. She sends him the warning, telling him that my mothers have betrothed me to another Fury. 

“She needs you,” Iris wrote. “Do something stupid, I beg of you. For all our sakes. If this marriage goes through, the crew could be in danger. Please, Cyrus, you’re our only hope!” She sent the letter, using her best hawk for the task. 

“Please,” she prays, clasping her hands together. “Do something stupid!”