“Captain, we’re going to die!”

Men and women dashed frantically across the deck, their footsteps pounding like desperate hammers against the ship’s dark, weathered planks. Anguish was etched onto every face, and as though sensing the chaos around them, the sails thrashed wildly, flapping like the wings of a trapped beast.

The sky churned with ominous clouds spiraling like the eye of a vengeful giant, and a sharp, unrelenting sound—like the eerie cry of some strange creature—echoed in the distance.

“I’m not the captain!” Luna shouted as she stormed out of her father’s cabin, her voice cutting through the storm. A knot tightened in her throat, choking her as much as the frustration weighing heavily on her shoulders. It was like carrying a burden she’d never asked for. My father had always been the leader. How could I ever replace someone like him? she thought. “And I don’t want to be your captain!”

“Captain, we have to attack!” another crew member yelled, hastily adjusting one of the cannons. Sweat poured down his face, dripping into his wide, panic-stricken eyes as he searched for a solution—one she simply didn’t have.

Luna clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles turned white. This isn’t the time to give up, she told herself. Her gaze swept over the Lady Diana, the old family ship. Every plank, every rope, was steeped in memories of the place where she’d grown up. No, this wouldn’t be the place where they all would die.

For a moment, her eyes flicked toward the horizon. There it was—the Madame Sofie. Imposing. Menacing. The warship exuded a predator’s calm, its four towering masts draped with blue-green sails streaked with dark stripes. The masts rose like spears pointed at the heavens, while its cannons stood ready to unleash destruction.

“Damn it!” Luna growled through gritted teeth as she stared at the churning sea battering the hull of the Diana. The pirate ship, with its meager two masts, rocked like a nutshell in the grip of a giant. “I told you—I’m not the captain!”

But she wasn’t about to stand there and die, either. She wouldn’t let them be slaughtered like this, she resolved.

Her eyes swept over the faces of the crew—friends, her lifelong family. She couldn’t let them fall. They had trusted her father for years, and now, even though the thought terrified her, she would fight to the end to honor that trust.

She took a deep breath, forcing her lungs to obey, as she struggled to master the anguish that seemed to freeze her in place.

"Prepare for the attack!" Luna roared, pouring all her fury into the command. "Raise the sails and adjust the cannons! Let’s show these bastards what happens when they take aim at a pirate!"

Her voice thundered across the deck, slicing through the oppressive air and breathing life into the crew. The sails unfurled with a resounding snap, billowing like a falcon’s wings diving into the wind, and the Lady Diana surged forward, cutting through the waves.

Ahead, the Madame Sofie, immense and menacing, loomed like a floating fortress, dominating the water. Its sails rose in flawless unison as the ship adjusted its course to tighten the noose.

Farther behind the Diana, a small Imperial Navy vessel was rapidly closing in, its intent unmistakable: to trap the Diana. Luna quickly grasped the gravity of their situation. They were caught between the treacherous sea, where the wind was beginning to falter, and the deadly range of the Sofie’s cannons.

Keeping her eyes fixed on the enemy ships, Luna scrutinized their every move—the trim of the sails, the angle of the hulls. Her gaze sharpened as she recognized a familiar pattern in the maneuvers. A cold shiver ran down her spine.

“Johny...” she murmured.

The name hung heavy in the air. The reputation of the Imperial Navy captain preceded him, as did his relentless obsession with capturing her father. Now, with the old pirate dead, Luna knew Johny had set his sights on a new target: her.

Farther behind the Diana, the smaller Navy ship was closing the gap with reckless urgency, like a ravenous predator oblivious to danger. Driven by greed and the lure of capturing the infamous Midnight Pirates, the crew ignored the clear signs of peril and blatantly disobeyed Johny’s orders.

A sudden shift in the wind brought both opportunity and risk, exposing a critical vulnerability in the smaller vessel. The ship cut the waves on a diagonal path, advancing too quickly. Its speed was impressive, but the overfilled sails and clumsy maneuvers betrayed their desperation. They were determined to reach the Diana’s stern before the trap closed completely.

So predictable, Luna thought.

Luna bit her lower lip so hard she felt the sting of broken skin. First, her gaze locked onto the smaller Navy ship, then shifted to the Sofie, which remained strategically positioned, its movements deliberate. Johny’s vessel adjusted its course with patience, clearly waiting for the smaller ship to flank the Diana before acting, ensuring an unassailable advantage.

But the reckless advance of the smaller ship left its bow directly exposed to the Diana’s cannons. Luna spotted the error instantly, analyzing it in mere seconds. A thin, cunning smile curled her lips.

The distance between the ships closed rapidly, and the steady wind made the shot almost certain. Luna’s heart hammered like a war drum, each beat marking the meters that separated them. With her hands gripping the weathered wood of her father’s cabin, she felt adrenaline surge through her veins, sharpening her focus.

“Ed!” she shouted, turning toward the Diana’s stern. Her voice cut through the deafening roar of the sea and the frantic rhythm of her thoughts. The crewman in charge of the cannons, already positioned beside one of the massive iron tubes, looked up at her. “Take them down! Bring down their sails, and then we’ll deal with the Sofie!”

Ed didn’t respond—he didn’t need to. The wicked grin that spread across his face said more than words could. With a swift motion, he grabbed the torch nearby and lit the fuse. The cannon roared, its blast echoing across the waves like thunder.

The projectile streaked across the two hundred meters separating the ships in a heartbeat, tearing through the air in a perfect arc before slamming into the enemy deck. The impact was devastating. Shards of splintered wood erupted into the air as the Navy ship’s main mast shattered with a deafening crack, toppling onto the deck like a tree felled in a storm.

The sails collapsed in a tangle of shredded fabric, draping the ship like broken wings and leaving it adrift, helpless. An easy target. But the Diana’s crew wasted no time. In seconds, muskets were drawn and aimed at the stunned sailors, who barely had time to process what had just hit them.

The thunderous blast still echoed in Luna’s ears when a new movement caught her eye. The Sofie was beginning to respond. She noticed its sails being partially furled as the warship slowed its pace, revealing a clear shift in strategy.

Instead of advancing head-on, the Sofie adjusted its course, tacking against the wind and repositioning to the left with deliberate precision. Luna narrowed her eyes, her mind racing to anticipate Johny’s next move.

Luna knew Johny would never attack without careful consideration. He was clearly waiting for the perfect moment to unleash that peculiar magic of his—the kind that could turn the tide of battle in an instant.

The Sofie crept forward, trading speed for maneuverability. It was a calculated move, positioning Johny like a predator closing in on its prey with measured patience.

On the crippled Navy ship, a sailor hoisted a white flag, its ragged edges flapping awkwardly in the wind—a clumsy plea for mercy. Luna didn’t even blink. She clicked her tongue in irritation and turned away, refusing to waste a second of attention on such desperate, pathetic gestures.

Taking a deep breath, she sought the connection with the Light of Hope. The energy surged around her like a warm wave, pulsing in sync with the rhythm of her heart. The wind seemed to respond as if it, too, were alive—fierce and untamed, waiting for its cue. The Light harmonized with her mind, and she felt the wind coursing through her veins like a wild, defiant force. It challenged her, but at the same time, it bolstered her resolve.

It was a power with a will of its own: indomitable, impossible to subdue. It wasn’t something she could force or command—it was pure freedom, something that chose to align with her because it recognized a kindred spirit, one just as rebellious. The wind whispered in an ancient, almost imperceptible language, assuring her that she had what it took to command it.

She held the air in her lungs, feeling a tingling sensation spread through her body. Her vision filled with tiny points of bluish, reddish, and translucent light—echo particles. She guided them, concentrating and condensing each one as she inhaled deeply. The particles collided with one another, creating a raw sensation of energy, as though a small vortex was spinning within her.

The Light of Hope grew stronger, enveloping her like an invisible shroud, keeping the particles contained. Luna anchored herself in the primal force that burned inside her. It was a rebellious energy, resisting her like an untamed beast. But the Light demanded more than mere physical strength—it asked for something deeper.

Faith.

She had to believe in the impossible. Trust without hesitation.

Luna understood the frailty of the human body—how incapable it was of sustaining such immense power for long. A single moment of doubt could turn all that energy into a catastrophic failure. But in that instant, her determination was unshakable.

Her dreams of living a grand adventure were solid, forged like steel in fire. And she wasn’t about to let them shatter.

With power surging through her veins like molten lava, Luna fixed her gaze on the Lady Diana’s sails. She closed her eyes, allowing her breathing to synchronize with the energy swirling around her. Silently, almost like a prayer, she asked the wind to heed her command.

The wind was her specialty. She could harness it to gain speed or amplify attacks, whether at a distance or in close combat. But directing the wind to fill the sails of an entire ship was an entirely different challenge. Like her, the wind loathed being forced and detested going against its natural course.

For a moment, it resisted, rebelling like an untamed beast. Luna didn’t retreat. She deepened her connection with the element, feeling the air around her pulse with its own life. Slowly, the wind’s defiance began to fade—hesitant at first, then with growing strength, until finally, it surrendered to her will. When she opened her eyes, a wave of relief mingled with a burgeoning confidence, and a subtle smile curled her lips. The Lady Diana’s sails filled, and the ship surged forward with renewed speed.

“Turn the helm to right!” Luna commanded, her voice cutting through the noise on deck. “Stow the weapons—we’re breaking out of this trap now!”