when you become a memory you can never lose a fight

Safrin

The air above the Sugartide and the Ark shivers, and from that trembling seam of night Safrin unfolds, suspended between the two vessels as though the sky itself has chosen to cradle her. Constellations spill down her shoulders like silk and her hair is a dark river threaded with galaxies. Safrin does not descend, but instead hangs there, held in the crook of her own light, one knee bent, one hand resting idly against the curve of her hip as though this were an invitation she had been waiting to receive.

"Well, well." Her voice drapes over both ships at once, warm as velvet, edged like glass. Her gaze moves first to Jack, slow and knowing, then to Flora, lingering just a fraction longer, before sliding to Kaisel with a spark that is not subtle and never meant to be. Her amusement is unmistakable, fizzing in the air like champagne.

"Clearly," she says, the word drawn out like a silk ribbon between her fingers, "you all know what it is you want." Her smile deepens, neither kind nor cruel. Pride hums beneath it; vanity gleams in it. She, after all, bound Flora and Kaisel together not long ago. She knows the shape of their vows. She knows the heat of their hearts. She has also known Jack in ways even Flora cannot imagine, has allowed him to help create starbursts of life not once, but four times now. But she also knows the secrets coiled tightly between this trio, because there is not a thought on this night that escapes her.

Drama, she has always maintained, is a form of worship, one she readily accepts.

She lifts her hand, and the gesture is languid, almost careless, but yet when her fingers unfurl, the sky obeys. Three small stars spark into being between them; perfect, bright, each no larger than a plum, each burning with quiet, patient light. They hover for the barest breath of a moment in the hollow of her palm before drifting outward, slow and deliberate.

One floats toward Flora.

One toward Jack.

One toward Kaisel.

Safrin inclines her head, as though granting audience rather than offering choice. "If you agree to the terms," she says softly, and though her tone lowers, the sea stills to hear it, "touch the star."

Her eyes gleam, constellations turning in their depths.

"And let us see," she adds, almost purring now, "what becomes of promises made beneath my sky."

---

If you agree to the terms, touch your star! Doing so will cause a small star tattoo to appear somewhere of your choosing. It will disappear if the vow is broken. You will also receive

Kaisel/Flora

Star pact | A binding vow that, if broken, will eliminate the memory and knowledge of Flora across all of Caido, save for Jack.

Jack

Star pact | A binding vow that, if broken, will immediately destroy his revivify feather.

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

When enemies are at your door, I'll carry you way from war

Kaisel offers Jack a single glance, which is more for his own knowledge of the man's location than anything pretending to be a polite greeting. The unhurried shuffle of his words around his chewtoy and the lazy way he dangles over the edge of his ship speak to the casual embrace the Captain is taking of this whole affair, which is—Flora, Kaisel reminds himself, jaw flexing as his attention rolls pointedly back to her.

He drags in a steadying breath through his nose and lets it coast off his tongue long and slow as he recenters himself. Gradually his gaze peels from the woman beside him to the goddess that materializes, watching the night sky adorn her as she takes a moment to mark each of them. He didn't expect to stand before her so soon to solidify another vow, least of all with the current company, but this is their best path forward. It's for this reason that Kaisel does not balk at the approaching star that comes his way.

For someone who takes promises rather seriously, even without the interference of a god, it goes against most of his instincts to merely agree. It's something binding, and that deserves the full attention of understanding, but he hasn't heard the terms yet. Ordinarily, he'd refuse to do shit before at least knowing that, but they had talked this over in advance, so he doesn't leave room for doubt to harbor in his chest. He glances back over at Flora, holding her steady in his gaze as he trusts that she's accomplished what they needed. She would not lead them astray, and she would do everything to the best of her abilities to keep them whole and safe, so he does not need to verify the work she's put in for this. Kaisel reaches out and touches the star.

Kaisel

If you need help, I'll shut down the city lights

JACK

Jack doesn't look at Kaisel, not even once, though the sly spread of a smile across his mouth as he glances towards the bruised fall of night belies his amusement. Safrin is dazzling as ever when she appears in her cradle of cloud and starlight, and though the Captain automatically braces for the meteor shower of her mind, business, it seems, is more important this evening. Quietly grateful for it, he watches the three stars descend towards each of them, celestially binding, and he nods his quiet acceptance of the terms they'd previously discussed.

Flicking the peppermint bark aside and gripping the rail with his free hand, Jack leans out into the open air and touches his star, feeling it crackle through his forearm in a surge of warmth that isn't quite pain but isn't pleasant either. Later he'll discover a new star brand nestled in one of the inked flowers that cover his bicep; an extra little gift from Flora that he'll also never forget.

we've gone way too fast for way too long
and we were never supposed to make it half this far

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

flora

Safrin’s light spills over her skin like warm silk, and Flora lifts her face to it without bowing her head. The goddess hangs suspended between their ships, indulgent and gleaming, and for a heartbeat Flora lets herself simply look, lets the hum of pride and vanity and ancient amusement wash over her without flinching. This is theatre, and Safrin has always loved a stage.

Her gaze flickers sideways, just once, toward Jack. There are a thousand ways this could still go wrong. A loophole. A misstep. A flare of temper. A technicality sharp enough to cut. She knows him well enough to catalogue the possibilities in an instant. But the terms are clear now, laid bare under starlight. If she and Kaisel say nothing, if they hold steady, then the blade he’s been carrying at their throats dulls. The threat to her friends, to her family, to Torchline, gone. Or as close to gone as anything involving Jack Barclay can be.

And if he pulls anything anyway, she still has teeth. She still has an arsenal of demigods, still has the full weight of her title and her reach. So, drawing in a breath, she looks at Kai, and there’s a softness there she doesn’t try to hide, something bright and unguarded cutting cleanly through the tension as she finds his eyes and lets a small smile touch her mouth. He’s already reaching, already trusting her work, and the sight of that steadiness in him anchors something deep in her chest.

Flora extends her hand, her fingers press into its light. Warmth surges through her skin, not painful but sharp enough to steal the air from her lungs, and when she pulls her hand back a small star gleams inked into the middle finger of her right hand, delicate and precise. She turns her wrist deliberately and then holds it up, eyes lifting to Jack’s across the space between hulls, and she smiles at him—sweet, bright, almost playful—as if she’s just shown him a new ring instead of the mark of a vow that binds them both.

you're under the feeling like teenagers in cars
it ain't robbing or stealing if the moment is ours

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

When enemies are at your door, I'll carry you way from war

The moment his fingertips make contact with his own personal star, it flares brighter for a moment before light and heat and cold alike all shlorp up his arm. As with most things that include Safrin, or gods as a whole really, it’s an intense feeling, as if ever muscle briefly bends agfaints his will to the magic, to the bond. When it’s all done, the inked on star appears as a reminder on the bottom of his ring finger, like a cord tied there to remind him there’s something important he ought not forget, and it’s inexorably mixed with his devotion to Flora.

He exhales steadily, feeling the new weight that has settled. Nothing heavy, far worse than that, it’s something small and vulnerable. This will require caution and care, as all promises do. Flexing his hand where the mark sits he glances up and around, revealing that they’ve all done the same, and their vow is complete before the cosmic goddess. There’s relief in that. This safeguard they’ve built lets him breathe easier than he has in some time.

His hand remains woven with Flora’s, the clasp of his fingers folding in a little tighter now. ”It’s done, then.” Which as much of a let’s be on our way as he’d outright say. He has little desire tp linger in Jack’s presence longer than necessary, no matter the protections put into place.

Kaisel

If you need help, I'll shut down the city lights

JACK

Jack watches their respective stars find their new homes with only mild interest once it's clear everyone has signed the proverbial contract, head tilting up to see Safrin leave their company. Her presence lingers like a dazzling afterimage behind his eyes when he blinks, and he's content to let it burn there as his gaze drops back to the happy couple, to Kai looking sullen and mildly constipated, to Flora and her middle finger held up like a carnival prize. "Sure is," he says. "'Fore we kiss and say goodbye, though, I've really gotta know."

Shifting on the rail to lean his elbows on his knees, when Jack lets his attention settle on Flora again this time, the swagger has dropped entirely from his expression like the facade it always was. There's hurt and bemusement and a strange sort of victory swimming in the ocean of his eyes, - because this is still a win in his book - but mainly, he just seems tired. "What'd he say to you," he asks, nodding towards Kaisel, "to turn me to poison in your mind? 'Cause I don't believe you came up with it all on your own." Glancing up and over his shoulder, Jack gestures to the sails and masts and rigging.

"The crew worked for days up in Stormbreak braidin' flowers across this ship while I waited for you," he says. "You wouldn't know, 'cause you never came back to see 'em. You just sent a letter. And what'd I do in retaliation, Flora?" The question isn't harsh or bitter; the Captain's voice stays steady, almost conversational. "I left my home behind. I cut ties with all my businesses. I avoided you, best I could in any case. And when I couldn't - which wasn't planned, by the way, up at the Draig - all I tell you is that I don't accept your apology and suddenly all this?"

Jack's laughter suggests that if there's something genuinely funny at play, he doesn't know what it is. "If I were gonna do anythin' to you 'cause you knew 'bout me - to you or to your beau - do I seem like the kinda guy to wait for a bad situation to get worse? Step up here if none of this feels true - I'd love to see how your ring reacts to it."

Sitting back up now, Jack slips off the rail back onto the deck to start hauling up the rope ladder. "I think I get it now, though, after all these theatrics in your head and on your boat," he adds. "You need to hate me, or for me to hate you. 'Cause if there's hate, there's still somethin' between us that ain't over for you." He tilts his head towards Kai.

"And ain't that a bitch?"

we've gone way too fast for way too long
and we were never supposed to make it half this far

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

flora

For a moment after the light brands her skin and settles, Flora feels almost lightheaded with the certainty of it, with the clean geometry of vows made beneath a goddess who delights in spectacle, and when Jack’s gaze settles back on her she meets it easily, chin lifted, the small star inked along her middle finger held like a private joke between them. There is triumph there, bright and sharp as shattered glass catching sunset, because she has secured what she came for, because the threat coiled around the throats of everyone she loves has been forced to lie down, because she has played this hand and come out ahead. The sky above still glows bruised violet and ember-gold, Safrin’s afterimage lingering like champagne fizz behind her eyes, and for a heartbeat Flora feels almost untouchable.

Then he speaks.

The warmth drains so quickly it's like watching the tide rip out from under a shoreline, leaving the sand cold and exposed and slick with ruin. Each word lands not as an accusation but as a detonation, controlled and deliberate, and the sparkling canopy of her thoughts gutters and collapses inward until there is only smoke where there had been stars. Her fingers tighten in Kaisel’s, the pressure almost bruising, because Jack’s voice is steady, conversational, and that steadiness is what makes it cut.

She can feel arguments rising hot and immediate, thick on her tongue, ready to spill out in sharp, precise rebuttals, but perhaps for the first time in her life, she doesn't let them loose. Whether it’s because she knows the game he’s playing, because she refuses to feed the version of her he’s describing, because she will not give him the satisfaction of proving that she needs hatred to keep something alive between them, or because she has simply learned what silence can do where fury fails, even she doesn’t know. The heat in her chest burns white-hot, a contained blaze that leaves her cheeks flushed and her fingertips cold, and she lifts her gaze to him, where he stands a dark, roguish silhouette against maroon sails and dying light.

"Kai didn’t have to say anything," she says, and her voice is steady, though it has the texture of something forged too quickly in flame. "You’ve always been the most dangerous man I’ve ever known." Her lips curl, not kindly, not softly, something sharper than a smile and less forgiving than a sneer. "I’ve watched you enact vengeance that started years before. Sometimes longer." A breath leaves her that might be a laugh, though there’s nothing warm in it, and she shakes her head slightly. "I’d be a naive idiot to think a year away, especially after packing up and leaving your home and your businesses behind, meant I was in the clear."

She had once been a naive idiot, though, for sure. She had once believed proximity was protection and affection was insulation. Jack, of all people, had disabused her of those illusions, had shown her how long a grudge could smoulder, how quietly a blade could be sharpened, and she'd learned those lessons very well.

"The only somethin’ I hoped was between us," she continues, the word tasting strange in her mouth, "was the idea that maybe some of what you once felt for me would make you not a complete asshole to deal with." Her shoulders rise in a small shrug that costs her more than she lets show, thinking of the petty barbs, the swaying decks, the way he dangled threats like charms. Her brow lifts, almost conversational. "But I guess not." Her fingers squeeze Kaisel’s again, but her eyes don't leave the Captain. "Goodbye, Jack."

you're under the feeling like teenagers in cars
it ain't robbing or stealing if the moment is ours

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

When enemies are at your door, I'll carry you way from war

A stiffness snaps through Kaisel like a chill in the wind the moment Jack’s tone parts the air for far too long. His lips crease deeper into the neutral line of someone trying very hard to retain composure, and for a moment, the grind of his teeth against each other is enough noise to swallow up some of Jack’s acrimony. The lower portion of his eyes pinches in, narrowing his copper gaze into something more like burnished flint.

What Kaisel sees though, isn’t a man poised to strike, dressed up as he is with a sharp smile trying to pass off as a dagger. This is a man who’s trying to shield his own hurt, and though that makes him no less dangerous, it alters the reach and the angle of how he jabs. That Jack doesn’t offer him much of an eye, much less a name, does not land on his pride like a set of teeth trying to tear through it. It’s confirmation that he’s not the only one who’s been beneath a shadow at times; Jack’s been shouldering one too.

If they’d had this run in sooner, if he’d heard these words before all the other ones Flora had given him, Kaisel is sure he would not have found the steel inside him that he does now. For the first time since Jack had scarred him though, Kaisel is not afraid of the Captain, or what he means. The divine tattoo has its role to play in that, but the force of the grip given to him by the woman at his side deserves most of that credit, and the last bit of it belongs to dear ol’ Jack himself. It doesn’t mean he’s not cautious, or that he’ll underestimate Jack, but it’s like finally stepping out into the sun again.

”You’re blaming Flora,” Kaisel says low and even, gaze watching the Captain start to gather for departure. ”And me. But it’s what you did, or didn’t do, too many times.” The only poison in her mind has always ever been the Captain. If he’s looking for answers, for the why, he needs only find it in his own hands as much as anyone else’s.

Pulsing the lace of his fingers back in response to Flora’s voice, to the steady hold of her, he says the best goodbye he can manage to Jack. Kaisel swivels his full attention to Flora, brushing away the barbs that exist with a wide smile that begs to celebrate what they’ve accomplished. ”Wanna try out that body chocolate?”

Kaisel

If you need help, I'll shut down the city lights

JACK

Jack expects barbs in return - expects much more than what he gets in truth. He hauls the last of the rope ladder up onto the deck, ensures it's coiled so as not to tangle when it's next needed, and straightens up. "I've been doin' my best not to be dealt with at all, if you ain't noticed for the best part of a year," he says. "If you're a naive idiot, Flora, it's for thinkin' that you live rent-free in my head as much as I do in yours."

As Kai pitches in the Captain raises his hands in mock surrender - blame, asshattery, the Accepted being the bigger person, the better man, the right choice. He's heard it all before in his own voice in his own head plenty of times without needing it fired across a skyship at him. And maybe it might have ended that way, with The Ark and the Sugartide drifting apart in the encroaching night without any further parting shots, until he hears the petty needling from Kaisel across the way.

So it's like that.

"Jack," he recites as he starts to stroll away across the deck, voice carrying loud enough to be heard. "I have loved you for years and will love you always." Scoffing, he glances over his shoulder. "That's the gist of how the letter went, right Flora?"

And then the Captain is gone, whistling sharply through his teeth to set the crew in motion and to get them out of the Maw and back into friendlier waters.

~FIN

we've gone way too fast for way too long
and we were never supposed to make it half this far

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!