The first sounds Kardys could remember were the rolling waves as they slapped against the ship. He had no memory of his early childhood and the memories gained while working alongside the Blackwater Pirates were not what you would call pleasant.
He had been the cabin boy of this crew since his fifth year and was now approaching the age of thirteen. He had witnessed horrible acts from these men. The plundering, assault and murder of the innocents that came with pirating was something Kardys never grew accustomed to. Something never sat right about this type of cruelty. The crew knew this, and made sure to make him known to these acts all the more because of it. Occasional snaps from the frustration or any words back, usually ended in a beating and additional duties, so Kardys tried to internalize as much as he could, at least until he reached a point where he lost that control.
It was a normal attack by night. The darkness afforded the crew a good chance to circle the dock and slip on to the merchant vessel by row boat without being noticed. Taking out the watch quickly and murdering much of the crew in their sleep afforded the group an easy victory. When the first sounds of battle began to sound, it was much too late to stop this massacre and it quickly died down before really starting up, another sickening win for the Blackwaters and Captain Milwall.
Plunder came back to the ship as it normally did. Sacks filled with riln and fine jewels, imported spices and about any form of alcohol that could be found. There was one distinct difference this time around, impossible not to notice, as a young woman was dragged mercilessly up to the deck by her hair and tossed to the floor.
She was young, not as young as Kardys, but likely had not yet seen her twenty’s. Light auburn hair dropped to her lower back, her skin was fair and she had piercing green eyes which shown brightly even in the dark of this night. It was apparent the crew had battered her a bit as there were some marks around her arms and any filth that lined her clothing could be tied to them as well. Kardys had a hard time keeping his own control in check as he watched the parade of mocking laughs and slaps.
The spectacle on the ship continued for what seemed to be most of the night, before the girl was thrown in the brig below deck. Kardys slipped in soon after, fairly sure the crew had gone to sleep off their alcohol induced stupors. However, when he approached he soon realized that the girl was not alone.
He could hear her sobs and her look of terror as a very filthy pirate worked at the lock for the cell. His intent was obvious and Kardys felt a surge of rage erupt from within him. Just as the door started to open the pirate was hit from the back. Kardys had struck out with his vegetable dagger, not a real weapon by any means, but effective nonetheless. Unfortunately, the death was not instant and a loud cry went out from the pirate before he slumped over bleeding.
Kardys swung the door wide and helped the girl to her feet. He motioned her up the stairs and helped her in to a rowboat. Movement was all around him and time was running out.
“You need to keep quiet. No matter what happens, keep quiet. When things have settled back down, and they’ve gone back to sleep slowly pull that rope to lower this boat and be gone. You understand?”
She nodded and Kardys pulled a canvas sheet over the boat to block her from sight. He quickly ran across deck, picked up a cannonball and tossed it over the side. Not several seconds later a hand caught him by the back of the shirt and pulled him around. It was Captain Milwall.
“What’s going on boy?!” He exclaimed
Kardys attempted to make an excuse, but he knew it was only a matter of time. The girl was gone and a crew member was dead, by Kardys’ dagger, his hands still red from the blood. He managed to convince them that the girl had jumped overboard and swam back towards the docks but that would not save him. There was only one fate for traitors and he would not be the exception.
“How fitting an end for you Kardys,” Milwall said “to die by the same hand that killed your mother and father. I may have had issue with killing so young a child before, but you’ve grown enough that I have no issues now.”
Kardys felt waves of anger and sadness welling within him at that, though there was nothing he could do. He was beaten savagely before being tossed over the side, a cannonball chained about his left ankle; just to be sure he would not be coming back.
He sunk fast and hit the bottom floor with air still in his lungs. He managed to open his eyes long enough to stare out in the empty abyss. Dark, silent and hopeless, how fitting a death for one born of the sea to also die by it. As he struggled to remain conscious he could have sworn he could see the shadow of something swimming towards him, perhaps a shark or some other beast. The thought crossed his mind of how he would die first, but that was answered almost immediately as everything went black around him and he floated in to the abyss.
Kardys’ eyes opened. He was no longer surrounded by the waters of the ocean and looked up in to the morning sky. He was not dead? He sat up immediately and found it odd that there were no aches or pains from the beating he had suffered only moments ago. What had happened? The cannonball chain lay to his side and had been detached from his leg. This made no sense at all, but he was indeed alive. All the better too, as he now had a reason to go on fighting and decided then and there, that he would not rest until all of the Blackwater Pirates paid for what they had done.
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Several years had passed and Kardys had done much to prepare for this quest. He honed his skills daily through combat training and undertaking any mercenary work he could get, all the while gathering what info he could about the whereabouts of the disbanded Blackwater Pirates. He unfastened flail, that had been made from the same chain used to drop him to his death, and walked up to canyon walls outside the town of Shadgard.
He smiled as he spoke to himself, “Found you.”
Thank you for sharing.