“So they’re just scammers, right?” Dianna said between sips of her drink as the four once again convened at Cinder Stove.

“Oh, definitely,” Mina said as she devoured an entire chicken breast and three chicken wings.

“Looks like I was wrong about the whole pirate king shtick,” Lawrence wheezed as he downed another glass of water. “Just a bunch of brats with guns and gullible rich folk.”

“Did your guys get threatened by guns?” Dianna cocked her head.

“Nah,” Lawrence replied, “they said something about flooding the place.”

“That’s weird…” Simon added, “mine did too.”

“So at least that part’s consistent,” Mina said as she ate another chicken.

“So they’ve got a consistent threat,” Simon groaned as he bit into his lobster. “Big deal. Worst case scenario, let’s say they do have water magic, and let’s further argue that they’re strong enough to actually flood somewhere; so what? Lawrence, you can do that too, right?”

“I mean I can’t flood a whole field,” Lawrence answered. “But sure, I could probably cause some flooding. What’s your point?”

“I mean that we probably match these guys, the four of us combined. Granted, it might be a whole crew of pirates, but how many of them do you think are leveled? And what level could their captain possibly be?”

“I see what you mean,” Dianna nodded. “They seem like small-timers. Low level. Not that my level is particularly high, either, but they’re not on the grand scale we thought we might be dealing with.”

“Right?” Simon said as he finished his lobster. “We know where they are, we know they aren’t all that, I say we march over there tomorrow and get what we want from them.”

“We don’t even have to fight them,” Dianna added. “We can just coerce them, or hell maybe even pay them, to get the location of their bismuth supply.”

“We could,” Lawrence nodded, “but I’d feel bad about leaving this town at the whims of these pirates. I mean, weak or strong, pirates are still pirates- who knows what they might do if left unchecked.”

“Dianna’s right though,” Simon said, “we don’t have to clear out all of them like a hovel of Golins on an adventurer’s first quest. We can take out their captain, get what we came for, and move on with our lives to find this artifact.”

“And let’s say that their captain does have water magic,” Mina added through a mouthful of chicken, “that means that he might be a tougher fight, but now these pirates can’t even threaten to flood some crops.”

“Sounds like light work to me,” Simon smiled. “Let’s get a good night’s rest and kick some pirate ass tomorrow!”

“You’re gonna kick my ass tomorrow?” Lawrence made fake puppy-dog eyes at Simon, and they all (minus Dianna) laughed.

The following morning, the four arrived, fully armed, at the outskirts of the ship’s graveyard, exactly where the guard captain said it would be. A small settlement made from the hollowed hulls of countless ships, decorated with numerous lanterns, banners, and furnishings. On the mast of the largest ship proudly hung the colors of the pirate crew: a red swan.

The four approached the entrance to this settlement, a flimsy gateway made from old planks of wood ripped from the discarded hulls. On either side of the gateway stood two surly men, one of whom appeared to be of elven descent and another who appeared to have the head of a bull and the body of a human- a Minotaur.

“How goes,” Simon hailed the two men.

“‘How goes?’ Who the bloody hell do ya think you are?” the elven man asked in a shrill voice.

“Got quite a pair on ya to walk right up to the Red Swans,” the Minotaur added in his deep voice.

“Easy, fellas,” Lawrence said as he stepped to the front of the group. “We’re just here to see your captain. Got to have a word with him.”

“Yeah?” the elven man stepped close to Lawrence, and pulled out a flintlock pistol, burying it at the old Morro’s chin. “Why the hell should I let you see him? You landlubbers ain’t worth the man’s time.”

Charisma check: 20

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Lawrence passes.

“You know,” Lawrence sighed as he placed his hand on the man’s weapon, “a lot of people look down on the gun. It’s often called the weapon of the weak, requiring little training or skill to use, unlike magic or a weapon.” Lawrence stepped even closer to the pirate, whose grip softened and began to shake. “Don’t bother- your shot would miss anyway.”

Lawrence stepped back again. “We’re just here to visit Rufus, ask him a few questions.”

“We also need to pay our tributes,” Dianna lied.

“Y-you coulda just said you needed to pay…” the pirate stepped backwards, defeated, as the Minotaur raised a single eyebrow at him. “Go on in. Rufus is in the quartermaster’s tent, the ship with a red hull, and your tributes go to captain Finn in the main hold, the one with the flag overhead.”

“Much appreciated,” Lawrence said and briskly stepped between the men and walked into the pirate camp. The other four followed behind, and without saying any words they all thought the same thing- Rufus isn’t the captain?

Perception check: 15

Simon, Mina and Lawrence fail.

Dianna passes.

“I don’t know what came over me, man,” the elven pirate whispered as the four left, his words heard only by his Minotaur companion and Dianna. “He was way to confident- it freaked me the fuck out. Guess that’s what happens when you’re old, you don’t fear death anymore. It was kind of hot though.” Dianna shuddered as she heard that last line.

“So,” Simon said as the four arrived at the center of the pirate camp, “Rufus or the captain first?”

“Good question,” Dianna replied. “I wouldn’t mind going and getting our map from Rufus while you all deal with the captain.”

“A good idea,” Simon nodded, “but I’d be worried about splitting up.”

“Don’t think I can handle myself?” Dianna cooed.

“I’m sure you can, but in the event you can’t- let’s not talk about it.”

“Bah,” Lawrence laughed, “you really think she can’t handle some random pirates?”

“Maybe?” Simon said. “I don’t think I’ve seen her in a fight.”

“I’m not a fighter, that’s why,” Dianna reminded them.

“All the more reason,” Simon said.

“No, I mean, I’m not a fair fighter, but I can still- okay, I’m like a rogue. Get it?”

“Oh, that’s what you mean,” Simon nodded. “Still a little worrying to leave you on your own.”

“I was thinking,” Mina chimed in, “if we dealt with the captain, we could use that as leverage over Rufus, no? Beat the captain, show up to his friend, and now he’s way too scared of us to put up a fight, rather than fight Rufus and then fight the captain.”

“That’s… a pretty good idea,” Lawrence said.

“And if we roll the captain over with no effort,” Simon added, “all the more impressive. I say we do that.”

“If that’s the plan, I see the merit,” Dianna confirmed. “I’ll tag along.”

Mina smiled at having a good idea, and the four set off towards the captain’s quarters.

The captain’s quarters was luxuriously furnished, with gold-encrusted desks and chairs lining the walls. Well-dressed pirates stood on either side of the hallway towards the quarters, standing at attention. They gave the four no trouble as they passed through, expecting them to pay tribute as all those who pass through do.

At the far end of the quarters sat a young, tall and muscular Morro man, reclining in his fabulous chair with his legs up on the desk in front of him. He was smiling as the four entered, a wide smile that showed his eagerness to receive his next tribute.

“Kneel before Captain Finn!” a nearby pirate official barked at the four once they entered into the room proper.

“No, I don’t think we will,” Lawrence calmly replied.

As he said this, Finn’s smile disappeared from his face, and he promptly stood up, nearly hopping to his feet.

“No? And why the fuck not?” he yelled.

“Cause we don’t owe you shit,” Lawrence laughed. “You’re just some low-level pirate boss, not worth our effort. You don’t scare us!” Lawrence and Simon laughed, while Dianna and Mina chuckled.

“Oh… I see what’s happening here,” Finn slowly walked over to a wardrobe nearby. “We’ve had this before. A couple adventurers come by, thinking they can make a difference.” Finn clicked his teeth, and shook his head. “My dimwit fucking crew lets anyone in. I am not them.”

Finn opened his wardrobe, and out fell twelve dead bodies of various races, blue and bloated from a death by drowning.

“You just keep those in your closet?” Lawrence asked.

“This is what happened to the last handful of dipshits that thought they could stand up to ol’ captain Finn, and I’m about to add you all to the pile.”

“Maybe we should have asked if anyone had challenged this guy in the past?” Mina stepped backwards, fearfully.

“Frankly, mister pirate,” Simon began as he unholstered his halberd, “I couldn’t give a shit about your pile of bodies. I’ve racked up more kills than that in a week.”

“Have you?” Finn laughed. “Were they level threes? No, let me guess: they were Golins, weren’t they?”

“Level… three?” Mina took another step back.

“That’s right motherfucker, level three. Now, what level might you all happen to be?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Lawrence laughed. “I’m this close to leveling up, and you look like just enough Experience, bitch!”

“Wow, never heard that one before.” Finn shook his head. “Let’s see you make good on it.”

Finn made a hand sign with each of his hands, and slowly floated off of the ground. A ring of a thin veil of water formed around him, cascading off of his shoulders and into the cabin below. The pirate officials inside dashed out of the room, and Dianna heard the sound of furniture being placed on the other side of the door.

“Maybe this was a mistake,” Dianna said quietly.

“Sink or swim, motherfuckers,” Finn chuckled ominously.

Finn casts Destination: Abyssopelagic Zone