“...no...”
“...I com...command...”
“...pira...”
Aloette tossed in her bed, unconsciously tangling herself in her sheets, before her eyes shot open and she stared at the window, realising it was already morning.
She slowly pulled herself up, rubbing her eyes, before going and collapsing back onto the bed with a tired thud.
“...meeting Nyra really got to me...” She let out. “...I dreamed about our encounter again...”
Aloette lifted herself from the bed, before stretching her arms out. “Thankfully, Evans didn’t notice my missing wallet...mother would have had a field day with that...”
Aloette managed to pull herself out of bed, before getting herself ready for the day, including staring out at the wonderful view of Intide her window gave her.
She made her way down the main hall and down the stairway, before noticing Evans standing by the door, slightly more dressed up than usual.
“Ah, Miss Everday. Do you happen to know where Penelope might be?” Evans asked, as Aloette rolled her eyes.
“I don’t, and stop calling mother that.” Aloette insisted. “It’s weird hearing you use her first name instead of ‘Miss Everday.’”
“But that’s how I refer to you.” Evans pointed out, as Aloette decided to give up arguing the point, just as the clicking of heels started emanating from the hallway upstairs.
After another minute, Aloette turned to see her mother coming out from the hall, arms out and welcoming.
“Aloette, dear!” Penelope let out, before taking her time down the stairs, making a great effort to carry her luxury coat. “Just who I wanted to see.”
Aloette noticed the bags she was dragging behind her and raised an eyebrow. “Are you travelling somewhere?”
“Yes, my presence is needed in Pelaga. Apparently, there’s some transport deal being discussed...” Penelope mentioned, waving her hand around. “Anywho, I’m letting you know since I’ll be out of town for the next couple weeks, meaning you’re the head of the house.”
Penelope pointed down at Aloette. “Can I trust you to take care of this place in my stead?”
Aloette looked back at her mother, before saluting back to her proudly. “Yes, ma’am!”
Penelope rolled her eyes, before putting down her bags and stretching out her arms to hug Aloette.
Aloette accepted the hug, as Penelope squeezed her. “I will so miss you! Make sure to treat Evans well, alright?”
Penelope broke the hug, before caressing Aloette’s arm with a slightly forlorn expression. “I know...it’s been hard without your father around. It’s been...but, as long as you keep your head on straight, then the world will bow down to your brilliance.”
“I don’t know that they’ll bow, but I’ll try!” Aloette insisted, as Penelope quickly pat her head.
“Of course you will.” Penelope let out, before looking to Evans. “Can I get a hand here, Evans?”
“At once, Pe...Miss Everday.” Evans corrected, glancing back at Aloette, who gave him a thumbs up.
“Have fun in Pelaga!” Aloette called out, just as the front door shut, letting her stay alone with her thoughts. “Now, what to do today. All of a sudden, I have no keepers.”
Aloette tapped her chin and wandered on the spot, before raising a finger, only to come up with nothing. “Drat. I’m all out of ideas...”
Aloette sighed out, before heading out of the door regardless. “...perhaps I should find something to help me deal with anymore ‘Nyra’s’ in the future. Does Intide have any bodyguards?”
~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
“I can’t believe it...King Syrille’s barely lifting a finger.”
“Well, what’s he meant to do? The restrictions on sea faring are already ironclad.”
“Yeah, but we can see the ship. We all know that Nyra’s parked in the docks.”
Aloette comfortably strolled down the street, passing by the many storefronts lining the streets of Intide, idly window shopping as passers-by muttered to themselves about this and that.
“But he can’t confirm it until she’s actually on the ship.”
“She’s in town! Her crew’s just wandering around in broad daylight! That should be cause enough! And they’re not the only ones either. I swear, there’s more pirates around town these days.”
“Hey, take it up with the guard, not me. I don’t like them being around either.”
Aloette kicked her legs back and forth, trying to at least make her walk more entertaining for herself.
Just as she made her way further down the street, she stopped herself right outside of a clothing store, as an outfit in the window managed to catch her eye.
She stopped and turned toward it, as the bright pink coat on display stood out proudly and drew her in.
Noticing her reflection, she tried matching it to the clothes, before looking around her cautiously and heading inside of the store.
She immediately ran up to it excitedly, running her hand over the fabric, before the store clerk cleared his throat.
“Hey, no touching the displays.” He let out, his feet propped up on the counter with a book in his other hand. “And no messing with the fabric. If it tears, you pay for it.”
“Oh, so sorry!” Aloette let out, letting go and checking the price tag idly, before her elation got the better of her. “...can I try it on? Just to see how it looks?”
The store clerk lifted his head, before sighing and pointing to the changing room.
Aloette’s giddiness took over, as she grabbed the clothes off the mannequin and ran to the changing room.
She held the coat up to herself, loving everything about how they looked, before she stopped herself briefly.
“Remember, we’re not purchasing this.” Aloette said to herself, still holding it up. “We’re just looking.”
Right after, she started changing into the outfit, before stepping out of the changing room a few minutes later and immediately getting a look at herself in the full body mirror.
My word... She let out, as she balled up her hands and nearly squealed. I look incredible!
She spun around a few times, loving the fit on her figure, just as the clerk lifted his eyes up and rolled them, going back to his book.
After a couple more minutes of fawning over it, Aloette eventually pulled herself away from the mirror and went back into the changing room.
“...I wish I hadn’t lost my wallet...” Aloette admitted, putting on her regular clothes again. “...and I’m sure mother wouldn’t approve of such a purchase...”
Right before she took it off, Aloette gave herself one last look at the pink coat, running her hand against it again, before taking it off.
“...maybe another day...” She sighed, stepping out of the room, right as the door to the store opened.
Aloette turned her head, only to instantly recognise Nyra and a few members of her crew coming inside, as Aloette hit the deck and hid behind the clothes rack, panicking instantly.
She slowly ducked her head around the rack, getting an eyeful of Nyra, as Nyra wandered up to the counter, pushing the clerk’s legs off.
“Hey! Watc...” The clerk said, only to realise who he was talking to and hold his tongue.
“Yeah, I figured.” Nyra said, before leaning down. “So, here’s the thing. We’ve got some clothes that need to be replaced, and we were hoping to get a discount.”
“A d-discount?” The clerk managed, as Nyra propped an elbow on the counter.
“You know, no questions asked.” Nyra clarified, winking to him, as her other crewmates started looking around. “We’ll tell you when we find something we like.”
Aloette quickly hopped over to the other clothing rack, just before Nyra’s crew started heading toward her. She hid herself inside of it, before slipping out and crawling underneath one of the lines of tables, going almost as far as the front door.
She headed as quickly as she could for the exit, only to find Nyra’s red coat right next to her head and nearly scream out, before covering her mouth.
“Hey! You guys like button ups?” Nyra yelled out, as her crew shook their heads. “Really? Archie, I thought you liked them.”
“They’re too formal.” Archie replied, as Nyra shook her head.
“Too formal. I’m never gonna understand your tastes...” Nyra remarked, just as Aloette slipped out of the store the moment Nyra’s back was turned.
She just managed to get outside of the store, before hiding around a nearby corner to catch her breath.
“That...was close...” She let out, wiping some sweat away, before nearly wiping her sweat with the coat by mistake.
…
…
...the coat?
Aloette shot a glance at her hand, as she realised she’d left with the coat she was trying on.
I didn’t pay for this.
Aloette held the coat in her hands, before blushing profusely, as she sank to the ground.
I just stole this from the store.
She turned her head back around.
I could go back in and pay for this.
She thought about it for a second, before returning to panicking.
I just stole this from the store. She reiterated, as she held it to her face, getting used to the feel of the fabric.
Before she could deliberate any further, her excitement started to get the better of her, as she stamped her feet in joy.
This is just like what a real pirate would do! Aloette admitted, swinging it around happily, before realising Nyra could probably spot her in the window and deciding to duck away.
Right as she knew the coast was clear, she hid the coat away in her bag, before excitedly dancing to herself.
“Okay...okay...calm down...” She said, taking a steady breath. “...this goes in the back of the closet. No one else sees this...”
Right after calming herself, she felt the desire to open up her bag again, before getting another glance of the coat and excitedly squealing again.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“This is the best day ever!” She let out, before heading into town once again.
~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
The heat was getting to Sadashi.
He was starting to see shapes that weren’t there...
...his eyes could barely focus on what was in front of him...
...he was...
...he...
…
…
...right before nodding off, Sadashi used as much strength as he could muster to stamp his foot down.
“NO!” He let out, ignoring the constant smell of food around him, trying to keep himself from fainting. “I refuse to let them win...scum survives, Syrille...”
“Hello, Sadashi!”
Sadashi lifted his head up, before spotting an incredibly happy Aloette waving to him through the grate.
“You’re back again.” He let out, trying his best to conserve energy. “This is the fourth day now.”
“I know! I’ve been counting too!” Aloette let out, reaching into her bag to pull out some food. “And what a lovely day it is. I bought these lovely sourdough loaves from the market tha...”
Aloette gave it a moment, before pulling her hand back out. “...actually, it would be cruel to eat in front of you. I only wish I could share it with you somehow.”
“Unless you can fit it through the bars.” Sadashi said. “And learn how to long-distance lockpick. And incapacitate all the guards.”
Aloette chuckled to herself. “For someone as starved as you, you’re quite funny.”
“It helps me forget how my body’s slowly dying.” Sadashi admitted, before Aloette lay against the wall again. “...I need to know.”
“Yes?”
“You could be spending your time doing anything...” Sadashi said. “And yet, you drag yourself back here, over and over...just to talk?”
“That’s the idea.”
“I’m not convinced.” Sadashi said, as Aloette blushed slightly. “You’ve got an ulterior motive.”
Sadashi weakly pointed up to her. “You might as well admit to it now and get it over with.”
Aloette hid her face, as Sadashi groaned and readjusted his body again.
“You’re really a spy for King Syrille, aren’t you? Trying to get information from me before killing me?”
Aloette was visibly offended. “N-No, of course not! Even if I was for some reason, I would never do something so shameless.”
“So you do have a reason?” Sadashi asked, as Aloette realised she had nowhere to go and bolstered up her confidence.
Pumping her fists, she faced Sadashi again.
“...I wish to become a pirate.”
Sadashi stared back up at her, no expression in his eyes, before sighing out in an expected sort of way. “...of course you do.”
“It’s just the idea always seemed so romantic!” Aloette elaborated, leaning on the bars and holding her bag to her chest. “Sailing out into the ocean, no care in the world, exploring to your hearts content with the sun as your guide and the wind at your back!”
“Uh huh...”
“And gathering a crew! A hearty crew of comrades! All living and caring for the ship, swashbuckling with other crews, enjoying drinks together after a successful plunder!”
“By swashbuckling, you mean barely surviving...”
“And the loot! The treasure! The vistas a plenty! What could be out there? What is it King Syrille doesn’t want us to see? What’s yet to be discovered?”
“Common sense.”
“I just can’t let the idea go!” Aloette admitted, feigning exhaustion and sinking to the bars again. “It’s ever present. I stare at the ocean and want nothing more.”
Remembering her earlier plunder, Aloette rustled around in her bag, before pulling out her coat. “I even bought this earlier today!”
Sadashi took a side glance at the coat. “You bought that?”
“...well, technically I...stole it.” Aloette admitted, before feeling fairly proud of herself. “Much like a pirate would, in fact! What do you think?”
Aloette held it up for him to see, as Sadashi had to squint to see through the bars.
“...it looks like a costume.” Sadashi admitted, as Aloette giggled.
“I know, right? It’s just perfect.” Aloette beamed, as Sadashi shook his head.
“No, it looks like dress up. No pirate’s gonna treat you seriously wearing that.”
“Mother always said confidence is in attitude first, appearance second.” Aloette noted, carefully putting the coat back in the bag. “And I’ve got plenty of the first.”
While he couldn’t tell whether it was from hunger, tiredness or annoyance, Sadashi felt a strong headache coming on. “...are you joking? I need to know, are you serious in your convictions?”
“Of course I am.” Aloette insisted. “I’ve no reason to lie.”
“...right.” Sadashi let out. “So the daughter of a noble is fantasising about starving to death out at sea, getting slaughtered by much deadlier pirates, all while capsizing and drowning for good measure?”
“Well, when you frame it like that, it sounds terrible.” Aloette remarked, as Sadashi tried to pull himself up to face her.
“Aloette, I’m serious.” Sadashi declared. “No one is ever ready for this, but you’re the furthest from a pirate I’ve ever met. If I have any chance to steer you away from this, I won’t hesitate.”
Aloette could hear the seriousness in his tone, as she lowered her eyes and lay on the ground. “Coming from a real pirate, that sounds disingenuous.”
“Look at me.” Sadashi said. “I spend my life pursuing this, and I’m stuck where everyone else ends up. I might as well have been caught purse snatching for all it’s worth.”
Sadashi looked away from her. “This is where it gets you. Your life doesn’t begin with this, it goes on hold. It’s escapism, and a cheap one at that.”
“You sure are crabby.” Aloette remarked, as Sadashi sneered. “You’ve only so much longer to live. If I was in your position, I’d want people to carry on my legacy. Continue my grand adventures.”
Sadashi chose not to reply, as Aloette started kicking her legs. “Well, if I can’t become one, at least tell me what it was like to be a pirate.”
“No.” Sadashi replied, as Aloette pouted.
“Come on! Please, tell me of one of your adventures!” Aloette insisted, grasping her hands together.
Sadashi slowly shook his head. “I can’t do that to you. If I were to tell you anything, you’d become an accessory to my crimes. The guards might press you for information if they found out, and I despise the thought of putting an innocent in harm’s way.”
“Do you really think I’d talk?” Aloette insisted, leaning in and pressing a finger to her cheek. “I’m an innocent young woman. I’ll just flip my hair and feign ignorance. They always fall for that.”
Sadashi stayed silent, as Aloette started knocking on the bars.
“If being a pirate’s so terrible, shouldn’t these stories scare me off becoming one?” Aloette reasoned, as Sadashi shook his head.
“...dammit...” He realised, before trying to face her again. “Alright...you get one story, but that’s it.”
“Yay!” Aloette exclaimed, crossing her legs and listening.
“...so, a few years bac-”
“Wait.” Aloette said, frustratingly holding him up. “Does the story have a title?”
“A titl...?” Sadashi went to question, before giving up and thinking. “...I suppose. It’s called...”
The...uhh, the Great Trial of...the Fire and The Flood?
Is that good enough?
...alright, I like that. Go on, Mr Pirate, captivate me with your words!
...please stop talking. So, a few years back, I was part of a crew. We hardly knew each other, but we had a simple goal. Retrieve a chest of gold from the bottom of a cave and pull it all the way back up. The problem was that whenever it was high tide, water would flood the cave entirely, meaning the chest couldn’t be retrieved, and pulling it back up was near impossible since the only path up was a spiraling one traveling around the centre of the cave.
Where does the fire come into this?
You can ask questions at the end. So, we had managed to get to the bottom...
----------
“Sadashi, you got it?”
“Yeah...just a...” Sadashi managed, before nearly dropping it on his foot. “Are either of you gonna help?”
“On it.” Said Pirate A, running over t-
----------
Wait, don’t they have a name?
They do, I’m just not telling you. And don’t interrupt. So Pirate A was helping me with the chest, while Pirate B was scouting the path back up.
----------
“How’s the tide looking?” Sadashi asked, as Pirate B tested the winding slope leading to the top of the cave.
“It’s already getting wet. We’ll have to be quick.” Pirate B said, leading Sadashi and Pirate A up the slope, before helping to push the chest up. “This...better be worth it...”
“Hey.” Pirate A said, before turning to Sadashi. “...this is kinda fun, right?”
Sadashi smiled back at them, before glancing back at just how much further they had to travel. “...let’s...save the fun for later...”
BOOOOOOMMM!!!!!
“What was that?!” Sadashi let out, as Pirate B hurried over to the ledge.
“Explosive barrels!” Pirate B exclaimed, staring at the top of the cave, before noticing another one being thrown down. “Keep it steady!”
----------
It turns out one of the crew hands we barely knew, the one minding the ship, was actually hired by another crew. He was making sure we couldn’t retrieve it successfully, so that his crew could come and collect it at another time.
...so he was trying to scare you off?
...well, no. He was trying to kill us. The explosives weren’t for show. The cave started collapsing, and the rushing water from before was getting worse.
----------
“The cave...it can’t take it!” Sadashi let out, right as Pirate A dropped the chest.
“We’re getting out! We’ve gotta leave the treasure!” Pirate A said, right as Pirate B turned back around.
“And get nothing out of this?!”
BOOOOOOMMM!!!!!
Bits of the cave’s roof started coming down, as Pirate B started pushing Pirate A around. “If you don’t want to become a real pirate, be my guest! But I’m taking what I can!”
Right as Sadashi let the chest down as well, Pirate B pushed him to the side and opened it up, grabbing as much as they could and stuffing it into their pockets, only fo-
BOOOOOOMMM!!!!!
With another barrel thrown down, the cave interior struggled to hold together, as the ground beneath Pirate A’s feet fell out from under them.
Sadashi immediately noticed and reached out a hand, managing to grab them right before they fell.
“S-Sadashi?!” They let out, as his strength struggled against the soaked cave floor.
“I’ve got you!” He managed, trying to pull them up. “Hey, I need help here!”
Just as he looked to Pirate B for help, they were already running back up to the entrance, their back to the duo, as Sadashi’s grip got weaker and weaker.
Constantly struggling against the torrent of water, Sadashi’s hands eventually gave out, as his partner fell to the cave floor, sinking into the rising flood, forever trapped along with the treasure.
----------
And...in the end, only two of us made it out...but I was the only one I could trust.
So they didn’t come back for you?
No. I wish I could say it got better, but almost every mission was some variation of that. The successes were scarce, to say the least.
Wow...
~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
“That was wild...”
“That’s treasure hunting.”
“I hope things go different when I’m out there...”
Sadashi felt his eye twitch, before drooping his head down. “I knew it. I didn’t convince you at all.”
“Yeah. Sorry, but that was such a thrilling tale!” Aloette let out, grabbing at her chest. “The action, the heartbreak, the betrayal! Who wouldn’t want all of that?”
“A sane person!” Sadashi yelled. “You’re throwing your life away, and you don’t even need to! What, you think you’ll find the one crew that can stay together? Where all of you are drowning in riches you already possess, noble daughter? Where your captain’s the nicest, bravest person you’ve ever met, incapable of flaws and drowning in heroism?”
“Oh no. I’ll be the captain, of course.” Aloette insisted.
“...sweet lord...” Sadashi let out, as his head hung lower. “To think people would look at me with envy...”
“You’re very self-pitying.” Aloette noted, standing back up. “You must have a crew now, right? What are they like?”
Sadashi went to speak, before silencing himself and keeping his voice down.
“I’m not allowed to speak about them.” Sadashi confessed. “We are still in King Syrille’s palace, after all.”
“...well, if you’re willing to protect them, then they sound worth it. Maybe not everyone’s a lying thief.” Aloette insisted, before holding up the coat. “Some of us are just thieves!”
Aloette waved, before heading to leave. “See you tomorrow, Sadashi!”
Sadashi tried speaking again, only for his words to catch in his throat, before the empty confines of the storeroom that was his prison started bleeding in all over again.
“I suppose I will...”
~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
Just as night started to roll in, a ship pulled up to the shoreline, taking up a good amount of space on Intide’s coast, before unloading its passengers into the surrounding wilderness of the town.
“Well...I guess we’re here.”
“Do you see him, captain?”
“No. I’m guessing he’s in the palace prison. Don’t know where else he’d be.”
“Maybe he’s on display? Just to torture him?”
“That bastard Syrille would do something like that. Let’s give the town a once over. Make ourselves known.”
“And then what?”
“...I say in a few days, we start tearing this place down.”
Flint grinned wildly.
“It’s time for payback.”