Lorne fought through his discomfort, braced himself against the wall, and slowly stood up.
Looking at the panicked Danitz and Lucky, whose fur stood on end, he said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Careful. A calamity is coming."
"A calamity?! What calamity?" Startled, Danitz immediately pressed him.
He pointed at Cattleya, who was still curled up on the floor in agony, a trace of fear in his voice. "Is it her? Is she about to lose control?"
Lorne shook his head. He walked over to the cabin's narrow porthole and looked out at the boundless sea, a bitter, self-mocking smile crossing his face.
"I really panicked and lost my head. I actually came somewhere I couldn't even escape from."
He glanced at the terrified Danitz, then at Orange Cat, who was making low whimpering sounds in her throat.
He slipped the black Silence ring onto his finger, forcing his mind, muddled by excruciating pain and fear, to calm down again.
He turned around and glanced at Cattleya as she struggled in agony on the floor.
He had intended to activate Spirit Vision again to see what exactly was affecting her. This time, however, his spiritual intuition screamed a warning, stopping him from taking that dangerous action.
Left with no other choice, he called directly to Cattleya, "Ma'am! You're Cattleya, the Admiral of Stars, right? You must have some way to handle this, don't you? Where are your crew? Where's your flagship?! We're... about to be in serious trouble!"
At his call, Cattleya's pain-racked body trembled slightly. She slowly raised her head and looked at him, but still could not stand.
Pirates really were unreliable!
Lorne cursed inwardly. Then he abandoned his wishful thinking, pulled Phantom from inside his coat, and cocked its hammer, ready to fight at any moment.
"Brando,