Alrighty! Now where am I? The stench of fish and, ugh, a large expanse of sea in every direction, and a ship with white cotton sails! Seems I've even landed in the crows nest-

"What- How did- Who are you-?"

"Oh?"

Oh shit, this scrappy little guy can see me? Hah, that's hilarious! And surprising. I didn't think I would get here and have anyone able to see me right off the bat! Unnaturally colored eyes, black sclera's, magic maybe?

"Don't worry about it!"

Let's make me disappear and get rid of him with a 'little push' in the right direction. Can't have any witnesses of my arrival!

"AHHHHH!"

Oh! Wow! Would you look at that! He really did go splat like the books say! The blood really doesn't do anything for the color of the wood, though. Is this a trading vessel?

"Did he just fall? How the hell?"

The red’s a bit too similar to the ship. And what's with the get up on all the mortals? So drab and unflattering. It’s always just shades of brown in these stories, isn’t it? Even with the vague draft, the shades of browns still got an entire note to themselves!

"You're tied to the mast of my ship, and you almost get killed by one of your own falling men. Really not your day, is it?"

Except that captain guy though, it fits him quite nice. The blue coat is a bit much.

"You're right, I'm not having a good day, but if you'd like to make it better you could release me? You know, do a guy a favor and unbound him."

Snarky little captive, isn't he? How fun.

"Cute, but not happening."

Hah.

"See, I stole this boat, you're just part of the deal apparently. So until we, me and you, that is, make it to land shore, you're stuck behind that rope."

Oho? The backstory unfolding already?

"Yeah, well the guy you stole the boat from, stole it from me first, so it's my ship, not yours. And what the hell did you do to my crew?"

Oh my, quick to talk this much as a captive, hmm? And double thievery? Really down on his luck, how interesting. Must be the protagonist. Lucky to fall right into the fray, aren’t I?

“Oh please. We’re too far from port for you to even run anywhere, so unbinding you is useless to me. And your crew… well. Just a little bit of magic is all.”

That coat is really bothering me. Far too nice for some common thief commandeering a trading vessel.

“You brainwashed my crew?”

What a tense tone their mister captive! Be careful when picking your battles! You're still tied up!

“And?”

Maybe this one’s the first antagonist? A thief dressed in, what’s likely to be, royal navy cloth, yet without a sword? A little concerning, yet not out of place for magic users.

“RELEASE ME! HOW DARE YOU! DO YOU FOLLOW NO CODE OF CONDUCT?”

OH MY! Quick to anger as well! Now how will the other respond?

“Release you? So you can try to kill me, just cause I don’t follow your code? I’m starting to question why you’ve been bound instead of being thrown overboard!”

Asking the right questions, all in villainous fashion! Maybe if I redo all this, make the scrappy guy's knife cut on just the right angle of the bound rope, this could be a bit more fun? Really spice things up? Oh, or-

“Oh please, what do you even get out of all this? Safe travel? You’re magic’s bound to run out before we reach Albat Port.”

Hm? Now that sounds like classic foreshadowing.

“So that’s where your ship is headed? How convenient!”

Oh? And where do you need to go- wait, don't just walk off! That’s it? You just get a couple lines in, and you walk off? He’s right there! Why don’t you just- UGH! I refuse to do your bidding for you, just to make this entertaining! DON- wait. Mr.Captive was far too silent in letting him walk off. I understand that he’s bound, but not even a scoff? Really? A mastermind play, perhaps?

“Dammit, of course I tell him where we’re going.”

Oh.

So he’s just dumb. Alright. Plot convenience I suppose.

Now what? I can’t just sit around and do nothing but ogle him, can I?

OH COME ON! DO SOMETHING! GET A POWER UP, PLEA TO ONE OF YOUR GODS FOR STRENGTH! YOUR JUST GONNA SIT THERE? BOUND? IN ROPE? WHAT, FOR THE REST OF YOUR DAYS ON THIS SHIP? I HAVE SPENT TOO LONG JUST WATCHING A DAMN BRAINWASHED SHIP CREW FOR YOU TO JUST FALL ASLEEP BEFORE NIGHTFALL!

Alright, that’s it! I’m leaving to see what the other protagonist is doing! Say goodbye to any hope of me having favor for you being a good protagonist! OR EVEN A HERO! UGH!

Blue coat must have taken the captain's room, easy enough to find. He seems like the arrogant type to do so.

Now you- are asleep as well? Really? What is wrong with these mortals? It’s barely even sunset and they’ve fallen asleep? Are they sleep deprived? Unbelievable. Should I go and have that bastard hero unbound? No, I doubt he even has the balls to try to cut down an antagonist. What now?

I could get used to the faces of the protagonists, seems I’m stuck with them anyways. Wait, what if they're not the main characters? Surely they must be, they had the banter, they have the looks, and both lack the smarts to be antagonists. I suppose they will just have to do. Anyways, I got off topic, now what does he look like?

Long brown hair with white wispy bangs, a bit too well cut and trimmed for someone who just commandeered a trading vessel for fish. Luckily he took off that awful coat, so now he’s wearing a muddy-, high grade cotton shirt? With a lace collar? What even- Is he some kind of aristocrat? A prince of some kind? He looks skinny, and not the healthy kind. And those pants are far too clean for the peasant grade that they are. Wha- He stole those boots off of the same guy he stole the coat from, surely! This isn’t even- why? Well at least my concerns are quelled, no one who dresses like that is just some background nobody. Ugh. How typical. What about his face, hm? No scarring, manicured eyebrows, cherub lips, straight pointed nose, and way too pale for his own good. His face screams typical nobility from these stories, how did I not notice this earlier? Oh- wait. It was because of the other man's sailor charm. Okay, no, that- that makes sense. Regardless, I should check out the other man as well! That isn’t creepy, I’m just getting to know them so I don’t lose them in a crowd, that's all, I have nothing I need to prove to myself anyways, so what if I check them out?

Now you, Mr.Hero. What is with that charm of yours, hm? I can appreciate a good face when I see it, but this is just unfair. Is this what all protagonists are supposed to have? A sense of subtle charm and a good face? Sounds like a rigged game. Now you have audacious dark red hair. And a cute little pony tail. Reminds me of something, now what is it? Water, and red hair… OH! A strawberry! Yes! That is what I am thinking of! An aquiline nose, furrowed strong brows, plump lips, and sun kissed skin. Can’t get that good of a look at the clothes under the layers of rope, but it seems like a tan cotton shirt, a brown captain's coat, and black sailor pants? Boots as well. Oh! Pretty earrings! Pearls with gold dangling chains. Along with some scars, most likely from fishing, magical game maybe?

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Hm. Not bad looking at all. Oh look, his eyes are opening! A pretty shade of black, too. Now will you ask your brainwashed crew for help- Oh, their scleras are no longer black! Come on! Ask them for help!

“Hey. Woodsworth. Think you could untie me?”

YES, FINALLY! SOME ESPION- wait a minute. His step paused but none of them stopped moving, where are they going? The magic surely wore off by now, their eyes no longer seem to show it. Is there an after effect? I mean, for the magic to have worn off so quickly? In just a day? What are they doing?

“Woodsworth? Crajeon? Nostri? Guys? Can you hear me?”

They're just gonna leave him? I know they can hear him, the waves aren’t loud enough to drown out his voice. Are they planning something? Mutiny? Why wouldn’t they involve their captain? Hm… Ah, fuck it, who cares about the rules, I’ll just possess that old guy with the peg leg. Hope I don’t draw the attention of the gods of this little story.

“AHEM!” Wow, this is a weird feeling! So many memories as well! Surely, something here will come in handy to prevent a mutiny, can’t have them overthrow that runaway noble. He’s far too interesting.

“Falstred, you alright?”

“Perf- I’m- I’m fine” Oops, almost slipped there, luckily were headed to the belly of the ship, unlikely for them to question anything over the stench of fish.

“You sure? Your eyes look different? Are they glo-”

“No idea what you’re talking about, maybe we should just keep going.” I’ll just speed up his heart rate to keep him from questioning. Such a hefty fear of gods here. Why is that?

“O-Okay.”

And here we are. Now, that man with the mustache seems to be in charge. The old man’s memory says the entire crew is half-assed put together by the hero, and- wow. Poor hero, none of these guys even seem to have wanted to join him. And this old guy just wants to bang a mermaid. I- This stench of fish has to be magical. No way it isn’t. What is wrong with this world? I keep getting off topic, what is with me? The man in charge, loving the mustache, but way too egotistical, you can see it in his strut.

“I refuse to let this ship be run into the ground by hooligans and runaways! That boy had us brainwashed and now we barely know where we are! Who knows how long we’ve been under for?”

Murmurs of agreement? Understandable.

“Corn is right, we shouldn't be fine with being under the control of some royal navy magic user! Let's throw him overboard!”

I was right! The blue coat is from a navy officer!

“Oh no, I’m not talking about him, I’m talking about the sorry excuse of our captain.”

And here it is! The showing of true colors. What an ass.

“What has he done for us? He let us get commandeered, not once! But Twice! In a single trip! Why shouldn’t we just get rid of him?”

“Get rid of him? But what about the wizard? Surely he had training? Wouldn’t we get rid of him first?”

“Not any good if we got out this quickly.”

Correction, you were under for an entire fourteen hours. Most second-rate magic users, from other stories at least, can barely last five with constant usage. For example, mind control. Dumbasses.

“Exactly! Which is why we get rid of Aidren first, then the wizard!”

Seriously?

“But why would we do that? Aidren got us this job, why would we throw him overboard? We'll get paid just the same.”

Good question, why would you try to overthrow the guy. He’s quite nice, a little distant but still nice, at least according to this old guy's memory. You trying to compensate? Can’t bag a girl with that oversized mustache?

“Oh please, don’t you find it suspicious that we get caught up in this mess twice? The wizard even came from our own ship! Our ‘supposedly righteous’ captain could have paid him! The first guy might have been a ruse!”

What? How would that even work? Paying a guy to commandeer yo-

“You know, you might be right, Corn!”

WHAT THE F-

“Yeah! Let’s just overthrow them both!”

THAT'S IT!

“Throw them overboard? Our Captain?” That’s right. Eyes on me. “You think that everything would go fine and dandy if we just throw the captain overboard?” If

you do that, you ruin my fun, and that is not the type of price you want to pay, you overconfident little prick-

“Are the fishes swimming between your ears, old man? What makes you think we shouldn’t?”

This littl- what can I use against him? Surely some well known sea legend or some- AHAH!

“Every good captain goes down with his ship, you want to deny him that?” Go on, question me. Lose your audience.

“Good captain! Hilarious, maybe we should throw you overboard as well! Might just clear your head!”

“-And every good ship goes down with its captain.”

And there’s the chorus! Every sailor here should know that one!

“OH PLEASE! That? You all believe that? That old tale? You’re kidding! Everyo- Hey, no, I’m right here. Don’t look at me like that! It’s just a tale!”

“Um, Corn?”

“WHAT? WHAT IS IT BRONT?”

Ha, now he’s floundering!

“Well, just to be on the safe side, we could, maybe, find out where we are first? Then decide to throw him overboard? So we don’t run down into a reef of some kind?”

Oh, come on! Are you kidding me! You little suck-up!

“No, we wait till we reach Albat Port. I’d rather risk guards on land than risk a watery grave.” There. Are you happy? Will you stop now?

Don’t just go quiet! Say something! Your glares won’t do anything to sway them now!

“Fine.”

Thank Fuck!

“But what do we do about the wizard?”

Aw shit. You were part of the chorus! Don't turn your back on me now!

“We could find out where we are? We didn’t stop to assess our sight of the sea, so we might be closer to port than we think?”

“Good thinking Bront.” Great thinking, actually! The hero fell back asleep when we all came down here, and none of them can see the sky! I can just stop possessing this old guy now!

Oops, he just collapsed. I don’t think I sped up his death date of a heart attack, did I?

“Oh gods! My head!”

Well he’ll be fine! All I have to do is speed up the ship to get to Albat Port before they reach the deck! Hopefully they're facing the right direction! My fun can start even sooner then!

AND TADA! A PORT CITY! IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT!

“What. We should not be this close.”

Luckily I didn’t crash them in the port, now they just have to guide the ship to dock! Which means-

“WHERE ARE WE?”

Right on time! The wizard awakes!

“Albat. Port? Sir?”

This Bront guy really is a suck up, isn’t he?

“Why aren’t you under my spell? Oh shit that's a knife- Wait no- there is no need for that!”

Is he running around the deck? Half of them are pulling the ship to deck and the others are split between watching and swinging at him. This is… honestly a little pathetic. Poor guy. He probably ran out of mana or whatever these guys call it. I really just had to pick the old sea dog who devoted his life to trying to court a siren instead of possessing anyone else, didn’t I? He didn’t even know anything about the world except port names and places of mermaid sightings!

“HEY! YOU! RED HEAD! WAKE UP! CALL YOUR DAMN CREW OFF!”

“Huh?”

“YOUR CREW! TELL YOUR CREW TO STOP TRYING TO KILL ME!”

“Nah. Ya’ deserve it.”

Wonderful banter, but what is that corn guy doing at the wheel?

“NOWS OUR CHANCE! THE CAPTAINS BOUND, THE WIZARD IS POWERLESS! AND WE’RE AT PORT! KILL THEM BOTH! AHAHA!”

You’ve got to be kidding me, no loyalty at all. At least the fun has started, I might as well get a better view from above. So let's see, the corn man is walking the deck towards our confined hero. And our wizard is running around like a headless chicken, trying not to get stabbed!

“Oh shit, I’m a target? Dammit. Yo, wizard! Grab a sword and untie me!”

“WHAT SWORD? OUT OF ONE OF THEIR HANDS?”

“No, dumbass! From the sword rack!”

“YEAH, WELL, I DON’T LIKE OVERSIZED KNIVES! TOO GAUDY!”

Holy- this is a mess. And he’s complaining? He's a wizard! The physical definition of gaudy!

“Tough Shit!”

This is a little fun, maybe I could join in? Attempt to stab him as well?

“WHY SHOULD I HELP YOU?”

“I’m your only chance of getting out of here without your magic!”

His tone is far too relaxed! Definitely a manipulative tone in his voice there.

“YOU ARE WAY TOO CASUAL ABOUT THIS!”

Exactly! Oh, hero, watch out for the mustached antagonist coming for you.

“AHAHA! FINALLY!”

“Yo, ‘Sup Corn.”

“What.”

HAH! WHAT KIND OF MISDIRECTION IS THAT?

“You know my name?”

“HERE! CATCH!”

Did he just throw the sword at the hero? Oh and look at that! It perfectly sliced the rope without hitting him. How convenient! This really is one of the Creators stories, you’d think they would stop with the tropey nonsense at this point. At least the end of the draft is right after this boat scene.

“WATCH IT!”

“TOO BAD!”

Now they are both running around! OH OH OH! Finally! The hero picks up a sword and directs it at the corn guy- He aims at his face! The man’s mustache barely makes it out alive! He ducks! The hero gets him with a slice to the abdomen! Look how much the mortal bleeds!

“Oh, I think I’m gonna be sick-”

THAT WAS SO COOL! FINALLY! GOOD ACTION!

“Careful there wizard, you still have people after ya.’”

“WELL GET ME OFF THIS DAMN SHIP THEN!”

Oh, come on! I wanted more sword swinging!

“Alright, you asked for it then.”

Oh, he just picks him right up! Come on, make the grand escape! YES! Swinging by the rope down to the dock and carrying the wizard like a sack of potatoes! How dynamic!

“CAREFUL! YOU DROP ME AND I WILL CURSE YOU!”

“Careful there, princess, I might just drop you on purpose!”

And back to the banter! What promising leads! Running off into the city!