Reina’s head slammed against the wall of her captain’s quarters. Stars burst in her vision as she gasped for breath. Her father’s massive hands enveloped her throat in a death grip. 

“I gave you one job.” Her father, Marion, growled into her ear, though the anger and fear that braided through her made it hard to hear his words. “And you’ve failed me. You will never be the pirate princess.”

There was a loud thunk and shouts arose from above the cabin. Suddenly the door to her room burst open in an explosion of bolts and splinters. Marion let go of his daughter, causing her to drop to the floor in a crouch. Reina put her arms up to protect her face. By the time she lowered them, her exposed forearms were raw and bloody. And she stood at sword point. 

The cell was small and dark and smelt of rot. 

“This is all your fault,” Reina said angrily to her father. 

Reina’s mortal enemy, Captain Armando, had boarded their ship while she and her father had been arguing. He had put them both in the brig. Chains tied to both of their wrists hung them from the ceiling a foot off the ground. Marion moved his legs around, trying to loosen the hooks that held them to the ceiling. 

“That’s never going to work, you’re just hurting yourself,” Residual anger from the earlier fight with her father could be heard in Reina’s voice. After a few moments of hearing her father struggle, she said quietly, “I have a plan to get us out.”

Marion stopped struggling and laughed, “Like the plan you had for the failed mission?”

Rage flared inside Reina. “It wasn’t my fault. You didn’t listen to me when I said that I wanted to choose my own crew. You sent Caleb with me, and he messed up the plan. But who cares about this right now? My ship has been taken, and I think we both just want to escape.”

Marion paused for a moment, considering. “Truce?”

His daughter nodded in reply. “You didn’t listen then, but please listen to me now. The next time a guard comes in, I’ll choke him until he faints. You grab the keys to the chains.”

Half an hour later, a guard entered the dank cell to check on the prisoners. Reina needed him to come closer. “Hey! Armando is a big baby, you look sort of smart enough to have realized that by now. You can join me, and I'll pay you triple what he's offering.”

The guard came closer, anger taking control of his common sense. “I would never betray my Captain! How dare you imply–”

In one swift movement Reina wrapped her legs around the guard’s throat like a steel band. The guard couldn’t scream, much less fight, and in a few minutes he went limp. Reina strained to keep him upright as Marion reached out his foot to grab the keys off of his belt. Once he got them, Reina let the guard’s body drop. Marion put the keys in his mouth and swung his legs back and forth, bumping into Reina, and essentially tangling up their chains until he was close enough to insert the key into the lock. One chain fell open with a soothing click. Reina hissed when her weight was pushed onto a single wrist. Marion hurried to unlock it. She landed in a graceful crouch and rubbed her wrists. 

Marion let the keys fall from his mouth, “Now free me.”

Reina stood up and started coughing—no, she wasn’t coughing. She was laughing. 

Marion stared at her in confusion, there was no time. Someone would be coming to check why the unconscious guard was taking so long. “Reina, hurry up!” He whispered urgently. 

“No, father. I want you to know that I’m a great pirate. I don’t need you or your help to rule the seas. When I defeat Armand, and tell everyone how you died as we escaped, I’ll be a hero. I’ll be the Queen of the pirates. I hope you rot in here.” Reina said, and she had never been more serious. Reina picked up the keys and walked out of the cell, ignoring Marion’s cries of protest.

“No! Reina! Come back! Let’s talk about this! No!” Marion called out desperately. His pleas were left unheard.