#but it was certainly fun to draw (feat. me changing the pose slightly)

[simkjrs]

For the draw ask thing: Izuku is A2 and Katsuki in b4? Thanks if you can!!

izuku: loves puns

katsuki: outraged, shocked, offended,

[bittykimmy13]

Queen of the Sea (GT): Chapter 4

((All posted chapters))

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KAIA

As her eyes adjusted to the light, Kaia could scarcely draw a breath. The silence that followed Ailith’s statement felt like a leaden weight upon the room. And then the quiet was broken when two dozen mercenaries--giants to her--clamored closer to take a better look at her, their questioning voices ringing in her ears. She squeezed her eyes shut, hardly able to make out a word in the commotion. The fingers coiled tighter around her body as she was lifted higher. Her eyes snapped open, and she found herself in front of her captor’s narrowed gaze. Andrea. Clearly the second in command aboard the ship. There was such a predatory glint in those sharp green depths, it was no wonder she was called the Huntress. Kaia still had her fishing hook and line tucked under her shirt. She could use it as a weapon, but that seemed unwise when she was suspended so high off the ground. “What is this?” Andrea demanded, her voice so close and sharp that Kaia was able to catch the words amongst all the cacophony. Kaia was relieved of her intense eyes as she turned to glare at Devian. “You said you swindled your magic map from sea nymphs. Is this one of them? Have you been keeping her captive in your pocket? You're sick! How in the hell was she not found earlier?” Kaia felt a stab of surprise. It sounded almost like the Huntress was outraged on her behalf.

Devian made a choked noise. “She has not been in my pocket since I arrived! I met her aboard this ship! You have some nerve calling me sick when you’re threatening to throw me overboard for the crime of existing aboard the Cutlass!”

“You’ve yet to answer the question of what she is.” Ailith’s voice was almost musical. Gentle. But when she spoke, all the others silenced herself. Where Andrea looked furious, the queen looked intrigued. She extended a finger, brushing Kaia’s hair experimentally. The touch was feather-light, but Kaia ducked her head with a whimper all the same at the contact. “She very well could be a sea nymph,” Ailith mused, “with this gorgeous hair.” Kaia offered no comment, trembling in Andrea’s hold. She doubted she could find her words even if she wanted to. Her most terrible fear had come to fruition and all she could do was cower like a weakling and be thoroughly disgusted with herself for it. “She’s nothing like any sea nymph I’ve ever seen,” a nereid said. Ondine, she had been called. She stunningly light blue hair and eyes to match. “They’re supposed to have fins and solid colored eyes.” “As if you’ve ever laid eyes on a sea nymph,” snorted a pyromancer. “No one asked you, Thorne,” Ondine hissed. “She could be a wind nymph!” someone put in. “What would a wind nymph be doing out in the middle of the ocean?” “What about a fae?” another said. “A fae would not let herself get captured so easily by a human! Look at her--she’s defenseless! Besides, they're supposed to have wings.” Soon enough, the room was filled again with everyone talking over each other to voice their opinions or questions. All the while, Kaia kept her head lowered. But she could feel every eye on her. The curious stares of the crew, the mysterious gaze of the queen, the guilt-ridden attempts of Devian to make eye contact. Worst of all, she could feel the sharp glare of the Huntress right before her. “Clear out, the lot of you,” Ailith said suddenly, quieting all the others. “Everyone out, except my Huntress and our two… guests. Thorne and Malika, stand guard outside the door. Go on.” Kaia dared to peer up. Eyes were still on her. Many in the crew looked like they wanted to argue, but they seemed to know better. The two mercenaries holding Devian released him. He made no move to run--there was nowhere for him to go, anyway. He was just as trapped and doomed as Kaia. As the room emptied, panic gave way to heavy despair in Kaia’s heart. For a few glorious minutes with Devian in the brig, she’d had hope. Hope that she could reach the treasure and reform her life back to the way it was supposed to be. Now, that hope and far more was being stripped away from her. “I don’t much appreciate stowaways,” Ailith said, strolling over to her throne. Her long coat billowed gently around her, as if a flowing aura of gentle air followed her. She had admitted to being half-sylph--a conjurer of wind. She took a seat at her throne and crossed her booted legs, regarding Kaia with a soft smile. “Stowaways are leeches, parasites who take resources that don’t belong to them. But you are… a most interesting stowaway. One that I simply cannot do away with. What exactly might you be, my dear?” Kaia’s insides squirmed like a nest of sea serpents. Unlike Devian, she had a feeling that the queen would not leave her alone without an answer. She struggled to breathe. Andrea’s hold was firm, tight. Even if it had been gentle, Kaia doubted speaking would have been an easy feat. “I-I might be a sea nymph,” she croaked out in clipped words, bowing her head. “Abandoned by my people. Simply trying to survive these harsh seas. Your Majesty.” Ailith laughed. “I don’t believe a word of that. Do you, Andrea?” “Not for a second,” Kaia’s captor grunted. “Ondine may be a river nereid, but she certainly knows more about sea nymphs than we do. If she says sea nymphs have fins and a particular set of eyes, then this is no sea nymph in my hand.” Kaia swallowed hard. “I-It matters not what I am! I mean no harm. As I said, I am only trying to survive. And as for your resources, anything I would have taken would not have been noticed. You have so much, I wouldn’t have made so much as a dent in one crate of food.” “Hmm.” Ailith cocked her head, observing Kaia almost languidly. “If you don’t want to answer what you are, that is perfectly fine. Given how defenseless you appear, it won’t be hard at all to sell you at the next port.” “W-what?” Kaia squeaked out. The queen grinned. “You’re eye-catching, my dear. Your size, and your hair. Mysterious and beautiful. You’ll fetch a wonderful price at a luxury market. My Huntress, have someone find a suitable cage for her. The one that held the harpy will do nicely.” Kaia’s mouth and throat went absolutely dry. She felt ill, but no more than a croak of horror passed her lips. “You can’t!” Devian declared. “You can’t sell her!” Ailith looked almost bored when she regarded him, as though he was a nuisance spoiling her fun. “And why is that?” Devian pointed right at Kaia, as though he might be referring to anybody else in the empty room. “She is the key to obtaining the treasure once we arrive at the shrine. I can read the map, but she can’t. She can activate the treasure, but I can’t. You need the both of us to get what you want.” “Interesting,” Andrea said, lowering Kaia slightly, where her voice wasn’t quite as jarring, but the view of her became more intimidating. “Just minutes ago, you claimed it was only you we needed to find and get the treasure. And now, you’ve been discovered a liar.” He stammered for a second, then answered, “I didn’t want to reveal her for her own safety. You’re mercenaries. You’ve only proved my choice right by immediately planning to sell her!” Kaia looked between them helplessly as they argued. Her life had been so simple that morning, and now it was being argued over without her say in the matter. “You claimed to have met this little… something aboard the ship,” Andrea went on. “How do you know she can activate the treasure? Hell, even you admitted to not knowing what she is!” “We’ve only just met! You barged in on us before we could speak for very long.” Devian ran both his hands back through his hair, trying to gather himself. “This is what I know. The treasure is… mysterious, ancient. A well-kept secret by gods and demigods themselves. And Kaia recognized it before I even full explained it to her. She has knowledge of it--enough to reveal herself to me even though she was frightened. Clearly, she has use. It would be unwise to risk something so dire. You cannot sell her.” A terrible mix of emotions twisted in Kaia’s gut. Devian was defending her, she understood, but the knowledge that her life hinged on her usefulness was enough to make her wish she had never revealed herself to him. She was merely a tool, a necessity. “Now this is simply delicious,” Ailith sighed, planting her chin on her knuckles. “These are terribly bold claims you’re making. I should kill you for lying to begin with, boy, but I’m simply too intrigued. The energy and resources it will take to fulfill your claim, however… What say you, Andrea? Should we throw the boy overboard and sell the girl, or shall we keep them both and embark on this adventure?” Kaia looked up at Andrea and found her staring back. Kaia flinched, but didn’t look away. The Huntress had mentioned something about Devian owing his life to her. Perhaps she had vouched for him to the queen. Certainly the same could be done for Kaia. “The girl can’t have had anything to do with the Cutlass crew,” Andrea said finally. “She has to have come from that ship. There is simply no way she arrived from somewhere before today. She would have been discovered.” She sighed, hesitating. “Someone as small as her poses no threat to our supplies. She’s only trying to get by, and she was no target to begin with.” Ailith’s eyebrows shot up. “Is that pity I hear, my Huntress? Oh… that won’t do at all. You’re beginning to sound like our dear, sweet Devian here. Innocence does not equal harmlessness.” Andrea became stony-faced at once--a startling change that made Kaia’s blood run cold. “No, my queen. What I meant to say is that there are better benefits in keeping these two. If they are lying, the girl will sell for more than enough to cover the supplies the two of them use aboard the ship. If they tell the truth, then they lead us to an incredibly valuable treasure.” The queen nodded slowly, deep in thought as she weighed Andrea’s words. Meanwhile, Andrea made quick eye contact with Kaia. Her expression was unreadable, making her all the more terrifying. Ailith laughed suddenly. “You truly are a huntress, through and through, making the most of her resources to benefit the most. Oh, I adore you.” With that, she stood. “They will stay, then.” Devian’s shoulders drooped with relief. “And once the treasure is yours, you’ll let us go?” “We’ll see,” Ailith said coyly. “For now, thank your god of choice that you aren’t under the ship.” She strolled over to the sliding doors and pulled them open. “Thorne! Find some chains. I want to keep Devian close. Cuff him in here, won’t you?” “And this girl?” Andrea sked, speaking over Devian’s protest to being confined. A fiercer light entered the queen’s eyes. “I simply cannot have you losing your edge. She’s your prisoner for now. Your prey. Your responsibility. Get what information you can from her, however you can. As long as she’s still in one piece to unlock this marvelous treasure, do whatever you see fit with her.” The fingers around Kaia tightened ever so slightly. She could practically feel Andrea’s outrage pouring straight through their skin-to-skin contact. Andrea breathed out sharply. “Your Majesty, I--” “You’ll do as I say,” the queen said calmly. “See that you have answers to report to me by tonight. And consider very carefully if you wish to show pity again.” No sooner than Ailith sauntered outside through the forecastle doors, two mercenaries entered with chains for Devian. He stepped back swiftly, throwing a wide-eyed look at Kaia. She trembled in Andrea’s hands, staring hard at him. Why did you have to put me in your pocket? she wanted desperately to demand of him. In a matter of moments, he was chained to the wall, and Andrea was briskly walking out of the forecastle. Their audience with the Queen of the Sea was over.