It is early morning, and I'm on the coast of the ocean. I check my supplies before getting into my small boat. The boat is small, but it is also quiet. I am alone here, and that is a stark contrast to when I am in the colony. I feel a sense of community now in my colony, and I do not want anything to happen to it. The colonists have known pirates have roamed the seas, but they do not realize just how close.
I've decided to go it alone and try and catch these pirates by surprise. I am fairly certain they do not realize we are close either. This must be safe harbor for them, as I've seen them here several times, but we have never been raided. They probably come here till the heat dies down on a grand raid. I have left a note in the Gullwing that Jim is to lead the colony if I do not return. A few days without seeing me should prompt them to check my cabin and find the note. My sword is sharp. My bow is taught.
Luck seems to be on vacation. About as soon as I paddle up to the rudder maintanence door, 3 pirates spot me and rush to relieve me of the mortal coil. They are lightly armored and good at swimming. I jump from my boat and come at them from underneath, from the depths of the ocean. It frustrates them.
In the chaos of battle, an accidental blow to his ally turns the other pirates against themselves. I watch as they fight, and wait. Some may say I was a vulture, waiting to pick off the weak. I call it survival. I call it acting in an efficient way to ensure the survival of my colonists back home. I had hoped to pick up some supplies for my raid from them, but sadly their bodies sunk to the bottom of the ocean before I could recover them.
I kill a few more pirates, including one using poisoned arrows, and finally make my way into the cargo hold. In here I come face to face with a professional. This man was not here to man rigging or swab a deck. He was here to kill men. Clad in plate armor and bearing a shield, we fought. With such a heavy set of armor he soon wore himself out as I jumped back and forth across the planks. With the cargo hold emptied, I made my way up to the next deck.
The next floor I instantly meet doors and rooms. It is not open like the cargo hold was. Down a hall that hugged the hull closely, I found the pirate's larder. Full of food, I am surprised the pirates had not guarded it better. I grab all I can carry, including a chest to keep it in, and I break and spoil any and all food I can't carry. I hungry pirate is a pirate that may make mistakes.
For the length of a day I fight pirates in all the rooms and hallways of the ship. I find the bunkhouse full of pirates and when I have dispatched them, I break their beds. Now they will be hungry and sleepy, and that's just the way I need them to be. My endurance is waning, and I need all the advantages I can get.
I next found the prison. I was hoping to find myself with the advantage of gaining an ally, someone I could release in exchange for their help, but anyone who had been captive by the pirates were probably dead and thrown overboard. I would find no help here.
The sun is setting, and I've broken two swords in all the fighting. My armor is holding up, but I am starting to fade. I peek from a safe place and spot the deck, and it is full of pirates. I bar the doors and any entrances. I break glass windows and board them as well. I head down to the cargo hold, and rest. The pirates call to me, and they know I am here. I hear the Captain bellow "to my cabin, he ain't goin nowheres, boys. We'll get him tomorrow". A pirate is posted outside the rudder and the door of the cabin, each with loud bells for alarms. Tomorrow I'll face the worst of it. Pirates that know I am there, and their master, the dread captain.
S.
No comments:
Post a Comment