Chapter Text
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Virgil dug his nails into his palm, drawing blood. Five things you can see.
Floor.
Barrel.
Darkness.
Wall.
A glimmer of light under the door.
He took another deep breath. Four things you can hear.
The ocean.
Footsteps above.
His own breathing.
Talking from across the ship.
Three things you can touch. He took another deep, shuddering breath.
His necklace.
The wall he had pressed himself against.
The lapels of his blue navy coat, dotted with a pin of the navy emblem.
Two things you can smell, he continued, feeling his heartbeat gradually slow down.
Saltwater, and... the faint smell of the cook's soup that he had for breakfast on his hands.
He swallowed, and could taste bile.
Right, he had snuck away from his father... and closed himself in this closet. What had he been saying again?
"You will not disappoint me again."
Ah. Fuck.
He fiddled with his necklace, turning the large circle pendant over in his hands. The compass within was a family heirloom, said to point the wearer to their greatest desire.
Ever since his father had gifted it to him, it had been spinning aimlessly.
After opening it again, Virgil sighed. It was still spinning in wandering circles, never stopping or hesitating at any one point.
How hopeless do you have to be for a MAGICAL ARTIFACT to give up on you?
[[[((()))]]]
Logan pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing deeply. "We cannot raid a coastal town simply because you think the mayor looks 'delicious', Remus."
"He DOES! Did I mention I want to hang his face on my wall?"
"Yes, exactly three times."
From his position on the railing, Patton rolled his eyes affectionately. "How about we do that later, sugar cake? I know Roman and Janus are discussing a REEL good plan right meow."
"And I know that the current lead is optimistic at best," Logan muttered to himself as Remus backflipped into the ocean with his morningstar, cackling.
Patton looked at him with an emotion Logan couldn't place. He swung his legs back onto the ship, then approached Logan with a sad smile.
"Hey. We'll find him eventually, I know it," Patton said soothingly. "He can't hide from us forever."
Logan sighed. "He certainly can, the ocean is a very large place and therefore difficult to-"
He cut himself off when Patton cupped his cheek softly. "Well, we're trying our best, so as long as Lady Fate wants us to find him... we will."
Returning Patton's tender smile came as easily as breathing to Logan.
Both of them jumped when the cabin door swung open, revealing Roman in all his glory, arm outstretched as if to proclaim his affection for all his soulmates to the heavens.
"I have a plan!" He announced.
"We have a plan," Janus corrected, rolling his eyes, although anyone present could see clear affection in his gaze.
"According to one of our sources, there's a very powerful magic user in a nearby coastal town that has claimed to have no soulmates," Roman went on, his eyes alight with inspiration and confidence. "There's a chance it might be him!"
As if summoned by the words coastal town, Remus was suddenly clambering back aboard the ship with a dead fish impaled on his morningstar. "Is it the town Iria Samara?"
"... yes, why?"
"Fuck me sideways with a swordfish, that's the one I wanted to go to!"
Roman tilted his head at Remus. "What about this man's face is so unique that you want it?"
"He just has a very punchable and fuckable face! And also he punched my grandma in the nose once."
The twin souls started bickering back and forth about Remus'... odd collections.
Janus chuckled, his fae ears twitching, then addressed Patton and Logan, twirling his hooked staff. "Anyways, this lead is... far-fetched, but it is better than nothing. We can also do some restocking while we're at it."
"It's okay, I know we're all doing our best to find him," Patton said, smiling reassuringly. "Hopefully... hopefully we do find him soon, though."
Logan nodded, then pulled up his sleeve to look at the new purple-inked word that had appeared this morning.
It was a phrase that, just like the rest, made his heart sink for his lost soulbound.
Pathetic waste of space.
All of the words that appeared always disappeared after exactly 24 hours, so Logan always made sure to write every single word and phrase down in a timely manner after they appeared, especially after they found Remus and only had one soulbound left to find.
The five of them had been together, terrorizing and reigning over the oceans for nearly seven years now.
Before any of that, it had just been Janus. He owned the ship long before any of them came on the scene, and was known as the Fae Pirate, with a crew he commanded like an army.
After finding Roman, who was another pirate captain at the time, and realizing they were soulmates, Janus took him on as his co-captain.
Once the duo encountered Logan, it was only a matter of time to convince him to join them, and Patton only took minimal convincing to join his soulmates and sail the ocean.
The four of them became known as The Legion: small in number, but powerful in ability and influence.
A few years after that, Roman's long-lost twin brother came onto the scene, and in an interesting turn of events, Roman had to be convinced to let Remus join.
Ever since then, and even long before, they desperately sought out their purple-inked soulmate… judging by the words that appeared for them, he needed them.
Useless son.
Ungrateful child.
Disgrace to the family.
Soulless.
Worthless.
Hopeless.
[[[((()))]]]
Virgil took a deep breath, straightening his coat before stepping inside his father's quarters.
“Ah, Virgil. I hope you've come to your senses,” he said, framed by the setting sun. “You've missed a lot today, I expect you to make up for it tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir,” Virgil said, standing perfectly still and tall with his hands folded behind his back, as he had practiced and been reminded of so many times. “I will make up for everything I have missed.”
He was not looking for any trouble tonight.
Even as one of his black hairs fell into his eye, he stared straight ahead, waiting for orders.
His father smiled, an expression that was not as comforting as it probably should have been. “Our next stop is the town of Iria Samara - I have received word that our next supply restock is ready.
“And who knows? We might find a few more pirates there.”
“That would be a pleasure.”
His father paused, glancing at the compass. “Still nothing?”
The compass was an ever-present weight on Virgil's neck as he swallowed. “No, sir.”
“I see. Maybe some productive pirate-hunting will get you working right - I'm not getting any younger here, after all!” He laughed. “When we find the next pirates, I want you to lead the charge. That'll be good for you.”
A flare of panic shot through Virgil's mind. His combat skills were not up to any such task - not that his father didn't know that.
He was absolutely aware of the fact that Virgil would much rather run; but he preferred to let him fail and then punish him later for not “rising to the challenge”.
Virgil was a survivor, but that sort of skill was something that his father loathed.
If it didn't honor the Storm family name and their already amazing reputation within the navy, it needed to be snuffed out.
And survival wasn't exactly honorable.