A silent night fell on the port of Blackrock. The town got its name after its quarry of volcanic rock, which was the main resource the island traded with. It was also a well-liked port town among travelers, soldiers, and traders alike because of the hot springs found throughout the island.
As the island was situated in the central region of the Thousand Isles, the British Navy had patrols going through this sea route every day. And during the night, the island's rocky harbor provided people with a sense of safety from pirates and other sea thieves. It was hard to navigate among the underwater rocks even during a full moon, and if a helmsman wasn’t alert (or sober) enough, then their ship could meet her end near the harbor without ever reaching it.
That night was just a few days after the new moon, and the giant rock orbiting our planet had just entered its waxing crescent period. There wasn’t enough light for anyone to dare try to navigate among the rocks.
Nobody sane, that is.
The coastal guards were already half asleep or sleeping soundly by the time the Bloody Princess approached the harbor. As a schooner, she sailed swiftly among the rocks without worrying about getting wrecked. Made of mahogany with black sails, it was already hard to notice her during the night, and it was even harder when nobody looked out for her. The Bloody Princess had nearly reached the harbor and dropped her anchor by the time someone heard the sound of the approaching vessel. The harbor had torches all around it, and in their light, the figurehead on the ship’s prow became visible: a harpy with a regal crown on its head. The sight made one of the dogsleeping guards fully awake and start shouting, "It’s the Princess! The Bloody Princess! The Moon Raiders are here!"
He rang the bell set up at his post, but it was too late. The pirates were already jumping off their ship, looking for crates and barrels they could pillage. They started laughing and making loud noises, not caring anymore who saw them. The hard part was getting there without notice, after all. Now that they were there, they could pillage the market and storage facilities as much as they wanted. It didn’t take long until they knocked out the guards who were on duty, and some of them were already anticipating the backup, while the others started looking for the loot they needed.
Meanwhile, a shadow also leaped through the walls, jumping through the roofs towards the city center with an exact destination in mind. Nobody saw her running above the streets, except for a little girl, who stayed up to admire the stars. She saw the cloaked figure dashing through the night sky with the speed of a shooting star. Yes, she felt the cloaked figure's speed was no slower than a shooting star she saw now and then, and her mother had told her to wish for something if she saw one. So she did so yet again, wishing to meet the cloaked figure she just saw moments ago. Because she thought a person running like the shooting stars could talk to her about them, too.
Unfortunately, her expectations were only half-accurate. Although the cloaked figure did not know much about the stars, she knew a lot about the moon. She knew its phases and how it affected their sail routes and targets, but most importantly, she knew how they affected her body.
The cloaked figure jumped onto the balcony of a mansion on the main square and kicked in its door. She found herself inside a study, just as she expected. It wasn't her first visit, though it had been under different circumstances the previous time. She rummaged through the documents until she found what she was looking for.
But at that moment, the door to the corridor opened and a man entered the room with a sword in his hand. He was in his mid thirties, his brown hair reaching down to his neck and his facial hair hiding half of a scar he received from the cloaked figure in front of him.
"I wouldn’t have thought we will meet again, Casey "Arms" Doves. You should have sent a letter, I might have made some tea in advance." He started approaching the intruder slowly. The figure just smiled and removed her cloak, making her moss green eyes and ginger hair visible. She also pulled out her sword, seemingly ready to face the lord in a duel. They started circling around the room.
"I thought a gentleman is always ready to welcome his visitors, Baron Lytton." One clash. Then another. "Oh, and I’m called Casey "Legs" Doves these days. But I might change it again. Who knows."
"Viscount Lytton. Your capture helped my standing among the nobility tremendously. And I see you change your nicknames like sailors change their lovers, Sea Witch. Did you give up on your swordsmanship already? Or is it true that you have twin sisters with different specialties?" Two more swings, as if they were following the beat of a dance.
"Who is to say, my dear Viscount?" she said that last word with as much wittering in her voice as possible. "One of me is not enough for you? Then how many do you desire?" A swing. "Four?" A thrust. "Maybe five?" Then a jump.
"One is already one too many of you in the Thousand Isles. Didn’t you think of retirement yet? It would be better for everyone." A clash while holding the blade with both hands. "One less headache for me." Pushing on one side and jumping on the other.
"No can do, my viscount. But I might consider it after my current goal is done. You and your pedantry were a massive help to me. The least I can do is leave this region for... 8 months? Maybe a year? How does that sound?" Another clash and a kick.
"Not enough. Sometimes I feel like even if I killed you, you would still cause me headaches for decades to come." Another swing. "What are you trying to achieve anyway? I keep the trade records in my bedroom." A thrust and roll on the floor.
"Wouldn’t you want to know?" A mischievous smile and another clash. "Thank you for the info though, next time I will check in there, too."
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"I will make sure there is no next time!" Three angry swings and a backflip to the balcony.
"I’m afraid it’s not up to you to decide." A laugh. "I hope you will become a count until then!" Then a jump and silence.
Quentin Lytton punched his balcony’s wall in fury. It was the second time Casey Doves escaped from him. And he didn’t even know what this female pirate’s goal was with the traveler's log he kept record of. There were more than 200 names on the pages she stole, and determining her possible targets was nearly impossible. He never knew what that pirate girl was thinking. But he knew or rather, felt that it wasn’t the last time they crossed paths. He poured a little brandy for himself as he heard the pirates’ dim howling and laughing from the harbor.
The Bloody Princess set sail after just a little more than an hour’s worth of fighting and pillaging. The sailors collected as many crates and barrels as possible and loaded them into their vessel, which flew through the water.
But the ship wasn’t the only one flying at the moment. Some sailors experienced the same, landing on the deck after some furious kicks.
"Idiots! You are all idiots! I told you we need some clothes and oranges! And what do you bring back? Toolheads! What should I do with all those pitchfork heads, huh? Stab your empty heads, you dimwits? You ignoramuses!" The person kicking the sailors’ asses and shouting angrily was none other than the Bloody Princess’ boatswain, Jenkins. "You all want to get scurvy that much? Huh? A seagull has more brain than you all!"
"Calm down, Jenkins," said one of the sailors. "We brought those for Gunner. He needs the iron for maintenance."
Jenkins looked at the nearly 7-foot-tall giant, who watched the whole ordeal silently. Gunner never said anything, and it was hard for Jenkins to determine what the master gunner was thinking. So he looked away and cleared his throat. "Ah, well, if it’s for Gunner, then I guess it can’t be helped... But bring some oranges next time, ya hear me?! And Doc needs the clothes, too!" With that, Jenkins went back into the hold, mumbling under his breath. He was the kind of person who wouldn’t be satisfied even if you did exactly what he told you. The provisions on the ship were also enough for around one more week, but the same couldn’t be said for their equipment. That’s why the captain decided on this quick loot in Blackrock, as the island was always in need of iron and steel exports due to the poor quality of its volcanic metals. They waited until the new moon was over, and the rest depended on Brent, their helmsman.
"Hey Brent!" A hic. "Why dontcha drink with us?" asked one of the sailors, who clearly drank a few more cups of grog than he should.
"You know I don’t drink when I’m at the helm," he replied with a stoic face.
"But you’re always at the helm!" hiccupped the sailor again. "Come on, just a little gulp! They are not following us anyway. And it’s not like the captain mind, right, captain?" He shouted in the direction of Captain Casey Doves, who was discussing something with Stella, their navigator.
"Let Brent be, Bill!" She shouted back. "Unless you want him to sail into a maelstrom for "fun" again?"
Hearing that question, Bill fell silent and locked eyes with Brent. He felt like the helmsman might just do that if he kept nagging him. He gulped. "Forget it." With that, he walked back groggily to the other drunken sailors. Stella and the captain laughed at the scene. Brent just sighed.
"The sun will be up soon. I guess I should head back to my quarters," said Casey Doves. "Can I leave the rest to you, guys?"
"Aye, Captain!" answered the navigator and helmsman in unison, and the captain left the deck.
Roberts, the quartermaster waited for her in her cabin.
"How did things go in Blackrock? Did you find what you wanted at the baron’s mansion?" Asked Roberts. His well-kept hair and beard were not what someone would expect from a pirate.
"You won't believe it, but he is a viscount now. And I sure did." She revealed the papers she stole from Lytton’s office. "Brought some more, just to make sure I won’t leave any leads. Here, he is the guy we need." She pointed at a name.
"Philip Griggs, headed to Sagmis... So north... Are you sure he is the one?"
"Checked through three different intels. He is our best shot at finding the temple..." The captain suddenly lurched forward. "My cane, Roberts."
The quartermaster did as she ordered and handed his captain a wooden cane.
"The sun is just barely up... I guess I played more with that damn noble than I should have." Her breathing became unsteady as she tried walking towards her desk. "Waiting until the new moon was over was definitely a wise choice."
"I told you." Roberts lent her a hand and helped her sit down. "I also told you not to overdo it."
"Right, right. But I couldn’t help it. Now that I got a lead to finally lift this curse, I couldn’t just wait until the trails got cold. And look at this. Our cartographer just left a bit more than a week ago. To Sagmis of all places. Fortuna finally took pity on me."
"Let’s hope he also survives until we meet him."
"Weirdos like him have a knack for getting out of every situation. Just look at Stella and Brent. I’m sure those three will enjoy each other’s company a lot." She smiled wryly while massaging her own legs which went numb.
"Still Casey, that is—"
"Call me Captain Doves, would you, Roberts?" interrupted the captain with a cold voice. "We have one of the greatest helmsmen and navigators in our crew. Add a cartographer, and the uncharted waters of the abandoned regions will be a child’s play to sail through."
"I am not so sure about that."
"Because you worry too much! We will only sail a few dozen isles into the unknown. There were ships that could return from that depth."
"Yes, but they didn’t need to worry about the curse. What will you do if a blood moon or blue moon appears? I think... I think you should tell the crew about the side effects of your curse, Captain."
"Have you gone mad?" The captain wielded fury in her eyes. "We have discussed it before. Do you know what will happen if they find out I become a cripple every time I use my inhuman abilities? Mutiny. At best, they maroon me on some island and tell everyone about my curse. And then my chances of getting rid of it would be zero. Nada."
"You should trust your crew more, Captain."
"It is not a matter of trust," she sighed. "I can’t expect them to follow the lead of a half-cripple woman. Their morale would plummet. It’s better if they think I’m this eccentric, superstitious witch who can do magic and what not. Now if you will excuse me, I will train a bit to get back my legs," said Casey Doves, standing up with the help of her cane.
Roberts sighed. "As you wish, captain. I will wake you up when we return to our cove." Roberts bowed and returned to his duties as quartermaster, leaving Captain Doves alone.
Doves silently stretched her legs, still thinking about what Roberts said. She trusted her crew, really did. And this trust was the reason she didn’t want to commit the same mistake her captain did back then. When she will finally reach her goal, she will go in alone.
She looked at the ragged captain's coat thrown on her chair, full of holes. Yes. She won’t make the same mistake.
She won’t sacrifice anyone but herself.