The Raiders of the Scarlet Sails (IC)

Red, Jura, and Blade

What Jura did not know and would soon find out … you do not spit acid and melt demons in front of Red’s eyes without inspiring her to start saying a few puns.

“Jura … I did not know you were so caustic! You really “burned” those demons; I mean they melted before your mouth.”

“Captain please stop” Jura grumbled

“Oooohh, just two more … Jura are the spitting image of a bull. Or how about, after that performance, I have great expectorations for you!” Red finished a big smile on her face.

Just then Blade showed up.

“Oh there you are …” Red commented when she saw Blade. He had been strangely absent these last few days. When she did see him, he had made an excuse and disappeared again. “I have been trying to talk to you for a few days now …”

Jura interrupted “More demons!” He growled lowering his battle axe.

“Not more demons … MORE FUN!” Red giggled in excitement as she got ready. The demons took no chances and attacked in larger numbers this time. Jura, Red and Blade met them head on. Red's sword flashing back and forth as she had gotten the hang of defending against tridents.

Jura was not nearly as sophisticated he swung his battle axe in a wide arc before him. The demons all stumbled backwards, bumping into each other trying to get away from the monstrous killing machine.

“Jura … You are taking up an awful lot of space, watch how it is done" Red laughed as if she was having the time of her life. She leapt to one side of a rushing demon giving Blade a nice display of her shapely female backside in her cargo pant like breeches. She acted as if she was going strike the demon from her left hand … but instead she tossed her cutlass to her right hand and drove it through the demon’s skull.

“See … now you try” Red said as she parried several trident attacks. Jura grunted “Ok … Captain” as he swung his axe … slamming into the blocking trident and bending it horribly. At the same time he rammed his Black Dragon horns into the demon face. Killing it dead.

“Good job now keep practicing!” Red commented. She glanced over to Blade. He was lucky enough to have the leader of the 10 demon squad advance on him. The creature was bigger and stronger than the other demons and it had a shield.

“Blade … I have been meaning to ask you about the gift you gave me the other night at the pub” Red said as she kicked a trident out of a demon’s hands and removed its head a second later.

“Now? … you want to talk about that now?” Blade asked a bit surprised as the huge demon was raining blows down on him.

“Yes … you can’t run away … so why did you give it to me? If it is private … whisper it to me so Jura can’t hear” Red asked as two more demons moved into attack her.

Jabnil

Jabnil was kind of surrounded now. Actually, not kind of … she was most definitely surrounded now.

“Ok swords … this is getting bad … what do humans do in a situation like this?” She asked her two swords as she parried trident thrusts.

“They usually die” The healer told her

“Not helpful” Jabnil pointed out as she parried another attack twisted and kick a bug in the chest making to stumble backwards.

“My supercilious animadversions confidante is simple and crude but she is accurate” The beacon said.

“Really not helpful … what else do human do besides dying?” Jabnil asked as she grabbed a trident and thrust her other sword into its open snapping mouth. The point of the sword came out of the head of the demon.

“Inquire about assistance?” The Beacon suggested.

“Now that sounds like a more helpful idea” Jabnil said.

“Hello … anyone want to save to hot naked chick with the wings? Need help over here … all surrounded … in trouble … HELP” Jabnil yelled louder.

Blade, saved by the...yell?

Why did he give Red the gemstone? Well obviously she could use it, but why did he, a thief, steal from a disgraced thief to give the spoils away? "Uhm...well..." Just then a cry for help went up. Blade caught the words hot, naked, wings and help, that was enough for him. He ducked a blow, twisted away from another, slashed the fingers off of the hand of the follow-up strike, parried and burried the blade in the demon's throat, "My name is Blade for a reason monster." He darted to a couple of stacked crates, from there he could see Jabnil and she was right, she was naked and needed help. He threw the daggers he held in his hands, it was a long shot and with his luck...it killed two demons.

His hands now free, he scrambled, ducked, swung and dodged, using his sleight of hand skills to steal or grab weapons, throwing them with unering accuracy. He landed outside the group of demons surrounding Jabnil and for a moment appreciated her well-proportioned body and of course abundance of...chest! Throwing darts, throwing knives, spikes, slivers of steel flashed from his hands, all over the group demons fell. "Having fun? Yes I am!" With a fierce laugh he drew his long fighting daggers and attacked the thinned ranks.

Chandra Bristlewick

Chandra Bristlewick climbed up onto the top of her hut. The Steward of Rickety’s Squib had seen many things attack the village in her time here. But this attack was clearly the worst. Sea Devils were deadly in groups of two or three … there were at least 50 attacking from the jungle. She had already seen many of the villagers ripped apart by the monsters in their gruesome feeding frenzies. However, the battle would have been over already, had it not been for three things; the massive light spell, the horn of warning and Red’s pirate crew. These three things had fouled up the attack and given the villagers enough time to arm themselves and establish defensive positions. However, if Red’s pirate crew did not receive relief soon this battle could still be lost. It was time for the villagers to carrying a larger burden of the battle. She decided upon her most powerful spell. She waved her druid staff in the necessary patterns as her long brown ponytail danced behind her. Her expressive blue eyes shined in malice as she finished the last chant.

The Jungle, itself, suddenly groaned and creaked. It was a sound that rumbled through the village. As vines and tree branches came from the jungles edge and ensnared the sea devils crushing their bug like bodies.

“TAKE THAT YE … JELLY FILLED CRUD BUCKETS!” she yelled at the demons from her roof top.

Sea Devils

Kracluz from the middle of the river, the attack had not gone according to the plan. Somehow the element of surprise had been lost. Even more puzzling was the horn sounding the alarm and the illumination of the village. The shadow demons attacking from the jungle were no longer advancing. A crude defensive line of villagers and pirates seemed to be just enough to prevent the slaughter he had hoped for. Even more troubling was the jungle was now attacking the remainder of the troop. An old woman was standing atop her hut. She was casting druid spells to awaken the forest against the invaders.

It was time to end this while the defenders were still focused on the jungle. Kracluz turned the second subcommander and made a series of bug like clicks. The subcommander nodded and disappeared beneath the river. The second much larger force in the river quickly advanced. Kracluz smiled … it would be all over soon enough.

Red

Red could not believe it! Before Blade answered her question about the gem, he darted off through the demon‘s attacking lines and had gotten away from her. He was avoiding her questions. There was no doubt about it. That could only mean one thing! He liked her as more than a friend. She was so surprised at this realization that a trident thrust at her pinned her free hand against the side of the wooden dry dock building. Her hand was not injured just trapped between the tongs of the trident. This situation was bad for her as she could not move very much … but it was actually worse for the demon holding the trident as it had no way to block Red’s cutlass as plunged through the demon’s fat neck and out the other side. Killing it.

More demons however, saw that she was trapped and moved in to finish her off. Before they could reach her, an old man jumped in front of them. It was Rickety!

“Ye pox-faced Devils ... Ye will not get Red … prepare to meet my sword point!!” Rickety yelled and engaged the sea devils. Red had no trouble see why Rickety had been first mate on the Beard Whore. He fought with guile and grace. He gutted one of the demons before it took a single step. The second one was retreating before Rickety’s sword thrusts. For a man his age and condition, it was amazing to watch. Red yanked the trident out of the wall and threw it at Rickety’s opponent. Scoring a hit and killing the demon.

“Thanks Rickety … Ye be as skilled as in your stories!” Red complimented with her pirate accent as she now fought alongside the former pirate. They were soon joined by Jura and the demons around them were in trouble. Within a minute, the attacking demons in this section were wiped out. Rickety was leaning against a crate afterwards breathing heavily.

“Take a rest Rickety. Jura attack the demons facing the village. I’ll clean up the north side of the dry docks.” Red ordered as she raced around the corner to finish off the remaining demons. This however would be a huge mistake as she rounded the corner a massive group of demons came out of the river.

She tried to stop herself, but she had been running too fast. She ran right into a net two of the demons were carrying. Entangled in the net she still managed to cut the hand off one of the demons … but the other still held the net. She had almost no way to defend herself as tridents were thrust at her!

Jabnil and Blade

"Having fun? Yes I am!" The handsome pirate asked as he drew his long fighting daggers and attacked the demons with gusto.

“Hey that worked!” Jabnil told beacon “calling for help … worked!”

“Madam, your reservation of my vast acumen is mystifying” The beacon said back but Jabnil ignored him.

“Let take the fight to these bastards!” Jabnil yelled to Blade as she flapped her wings powerfully and smashed into a group of demons and bowled them over. Her swords flashed as she ended their existence in the material plane. This attack allowed her to finally see Amlugeth. The redheaded elf had her back against the wall … and was surrounded by a semi-circle of demons. Jabnil was about to help her …when the forest started to groan and creak … and then two vines sprang to life and snatched up two of the demons crushing them in an instant!.

“Cool!” Jabnil said. However her mood changed quickly as out of the corner of her eye … she saw movement at the water front. The objects making the movement stepped into the light … and she saw that it was a wall of Sea Devils coming out of the river! “THE RIVER … BEHIND YOU … LOOK AT THE RIVER!!” She yelled.

Blade

Well she wasn't just good, but she looked good doing it as well. That would be Jabnil, if he had the luxury he would have stood aside and watch her fight, but there wasn't time for that luxury, so he waded into battle along with her. He heard her say something was cool or cold, but was too busy killing a darn demon that he didn't really have time to focus. As he added more demon blood to the ground, her cry made him look over to where Jura and Red was fighting not too long ago. He could see Rickety fighting alongside Jura, as the two of them tried desperately to get to Red who was trapped by a net and surrounded by water demons.

He froze, it was just wrong, it wasn't happening to her! He turned and ran, almost forgetting about the demons all-together as he raced to make it in time to at least try and save Red's life. He was caught up in the press of demons, his blades glittering, shimmering and flashing as he laid in about him. He saw a trident rise and then lightning arched from one demon to the other, shocking the shit out of the first line of attackers. He finally made it through the press of bodies, sweeping down, his blades flashed and he cut Red free from the net. But his motion was too late, another demon came at the two of them, its trident aimed at Red's back.

Blade didn't hesitate, he shoved Red aside and took the trident full in the chest. The sudden piercing pain was very unexpected, driving the wind from his lungs as the driven trident sent him to the ground and pinned him there.

The Narrator

Hi … I’m the narrator. This is a spoiler alert. Stop reading if do not wish to know facts about the future of one of the main characters in this story. You have been warned.

The next passage is from a book titled “How to avoid trident stabbing wounds” by Free Captain Isabelle “Red” Lental

“Most of us recognize that defeating a group of Sea Devils armed with tridents by your self is no easy task. If you are also trapped in one of their nets with little ability to move your arms and legs this task is almost impossible. Nonetheless, follow the steps I list below.

Step one: Assess the situation.

Trident-wielding opponents will use both hands for balance and maximum leverage for stabbing. Typically this is with the “hand over hand” grip so while this situation is really dire, you can expect no other form of attack besides the tridents aimed at you. So that is one positive in a bad situation. The group of Sea Devils will attempt to thrust their tridents into your face, throat, or upper chest. If possible, the group of Sea Devils will stab you multiple times, with potentially fatal consequences. Then, most likely, they will eat you.

Anyone who's ever read “Surviving Edged Weapons” by Paladin Owine the Resolute will knows how difficult it is for an unarmed person to deal with a committed edged weapon attacker. Using his recommend approach with my own personal modification based upon the Sea Devil situation described above, I suggest the following sequence to survive this ordeal.

Step two: Blind the group of attackers.

A potentially fatal error at this point is to be concerned with defending against the tridents. There are too many and they can attack you from too many angles. If you focus on the tridents rather than the opponents, you will always be a step behind.

Regardless of what the Sea Devils are doing with their tridents, you've got to immediately seize the offense. This can be accomplished by head butting … kicking … throwing dirt in their faces … or my favorite … ordering your pet Shock Lizard to attack. The situation I described here, I faced in Rickety’s Squib, a small village, a few years ago. My pet shock lizard Lennix jumped on nearest trident and shocked the hell out of the attacking Sea Devil group. This also had the added benefit of blinding them for a few seconds.

Step two: Break their hold on you.

Immediately after blinding your opponents, pull the Sea Devils that are holding the net towards you. In my situation I had already reduce that to one Sea Devil. I yanked my whole body backwards and the sea devil came right at me. My cutlass was aimed in this direction and I instantly killed the holder of the net. However, this is not necessary as holder or holders will naturally bump you away and all those tridents formally aimed at you will now plunge into the net holders. This should increase your ability to move. If possible keep the now dead Sea Devils as a shield between you and the attacking Sea Devils.

Step three: Cutting the net

This is the most dangerous and tricky part of this defensive sequence. As the tridents are reoriented at you, your increased movement ability will allow you to direct where the tridents land. This requires split second timing and careful positioning of your body parts. In my personal example two tridents cut the netting off my legs and a third aimed at my chest cut the netting free from my chest and arms. I must emphasize careful placement of body parts. I have a large chest. The middle tong of the trident actually went between my cleavage with the left and right tongs brushed the outsides of both of my breasts. Had I missed placement of my boobs … it could have been bad. As it was, the netting had almost been cut away from me, although I was now topless.

Step four: Recover and control

By now, the Sea Devils are probably wondering what the hell just happened. They will be pissed. So be watchful of attacks from every direction. This is where I almost made a fatal mistake in Rickety’s Squib situation. I had missed an attacker who was behind me. The love of my life, Rodriguez Eduardo Emmanuel Caldrovonio Tre Correia, came to my rescue however. His blades cut the rest of the net off me and he managed to push me away from the trident that aimed at my back. He unfortunately he took the trident directly in his chest.

Now that you are free, use the techniques I describe in Chapter 3 for defeating the remaining Sea Devils.

Hi … it is the narrator again. If you are interested in buying the book “How to avoid trident stabbing wounds” by Free Captain Isabelle “Red” Lental, tell the book merchant you saw it in this story and they will discount the price by 3 copper pieces. Now back to the story.

“BLADE NOOOOOOOOOO” Red screamed as her partner and friend for some many years took the trident meant for her. She had no time to say more than that … as the remaining Sea Devil moved in to kill her. She would have none of that. She became a “hell cat” of revenge. Jura and Rickety could only see pieces of shadow demons that went flying into the air as if they had been placed in some kind of mixer with the lid off. Within a minute, the demons on the north side of the dry docks were all dead and Red was pulling the trident from Blade’s chest. Tears pouring down her face, she was grief stricken.

Jura, Rickety, Reaver and Flitter could no longer watch as the demon from the south side of the dry docks had their full attention. The four fought a slow fighting retreat. It was a delaying action waiting for reinforcements. Reaver was particularly heroic in this phase of the battle. His half demonic nature gave him power a human his size should not have. Time and time again his pure Mithral rapier sliced off the heads of tridents. Once defenseless he made quick work of the demon. It was not done without a price. Reaver’s favorite hat, with the gold grinning skull, was stabbed off his head and then eaten by a water demon. Villagers and crew members moved from the jungle side to the river side, shoring up the defense provided by the 4 fighters.

In amongst all this chaos, Jabnil took flight. A few flaps of her wings and she landed next to Captain Red. The Captain was hugging Blade’s body … asking him over and over “Why … why did you do that … WHY??”

Jabnil had seen grief before and knew Red needed to go through this. Although she was a powerful cleric she could not bring Blade back from the dead. The skillful man from the crow's nest appeared dead ... there was a massive hole in his chest.

“Red ... we are needed by the river. There are more demons attacking” Jabnil said quietly to the pirate Captain. Red lean down and kissed Blade right on the lips.

"Blade ... why did you do that?" She asked one last time.

Blade

It wasn't the pain that was the worst part. The intense numbness, he could sense rather than see or feel arms around him. The Red's voice, that beloved voice, spoke to him. She was most likely telling him to get his lazy ass from the hamock and do some work. But he wasn't on the hamock, he heard fighting and another voice speaking. His eyes fluttered open and there was the most lovely sight any man could wish to see. In fact his vision was narrowed down so much that it was the only thing he could see. Red's face. She was crying though. Why would she be crying?

Then she asked him why he did it and the memory flashed through his mind, he managed a crooked and weak little smile, he was dieing, practically dead. No sense in fearing to tell her his secret. His voice was barely more than a whisper, "Easy....I did it...because...I...love you." A wet cough brought blood to his mouth, he was so tired, too tired to draw another breath and the last thing he saw as his eyes fell close was Red's face, the most beautiful sight he could wish for.

Sometimes Luca was too nice for his own good, too charitable to those he felt less capable when in a time of crisis, basically, Luca was just too nice of a guy. After waking the town he had made his way towards the docks, intending to assist in the defense of the town, on his way there he encountered a small mob of villagers all armed with various improvised weapons. 'Perfect' he thought to himself 'more reinforcements' when they started shouting and pointing behind him though, he became worried, was one of the demons behind him? had the forest defense already failed? Had Jabnil somehow fallen? He quickly span on his heel and raised his staff in a defensive posture, but... there was nothing there.

It was at this point that Luca felt a familiar tingling sensation between his shoulder blades and everything became clear, they were pointing at him, he hadn’t hidden his horns and they thought he was the demon that caused the warning sound and lights. Luca spun again, just in time to take the basket hilt of a cutlass to the temple and reel backwards, he back flipped on instinct rather than falling and quickly flourished his staff where he guessed they might be to buy him some room, but it was just a delaying tactic, the mob was surrounding him and he wasnt going to win this fight without blood. Speaking of blood, blood was now flowing down his face and effectively blinding his left side, whoever had hit with that swing was strong.

If fighting was off the table, and he knew from experience that diplomacy was more effective on wild animals than a mob of angry and fearful humans, Luca was left with one last avenue of action, it was time to employ the better part of valor, running the everloving fuck away. Luca enchanted his staff with the power of storms, causing it to crackle with lighting and he waved it in another completely harmless but flashy flourish, butting that extra fear in them to get a few more feet of breathing room. Now, one thing Luca cant do is fly, he can levitate other people and things, but not himself, because reasons, magic reasons, don’t question it, what Luca can do though, is launch himself really well.

He formed a ball of pure force before his feet, invisible to the naked eye but very real, then dashed forward on to it, making the mob think he was about to attack, but just as the bravest among them rallied to strike back, Luca rapidly expanded the ball, throwing himself in an arc over his attackers and landing about ten meters past them. That little trick had gotten Luca out of them mob, but he hadn’t escaped them yet, mobs were, as far as Luca had learned, quite persistent, so now it was time for the running part, Luca bolted off down a narrow alleyway to slow them down and the the chase was on.

As far as angry mobs go, the best Luca could give them was a six out of ten, they had started strong and gotten lucky on the timing, but they just laked momentum to finish the job, it barely took more than a minute for Luca to duck round a corner to break line of sight before he acrobatted his way on to the roof and completely lost them, amateurs. That detour out of the way, it was back to the matter of the towns defense.

Luca sped off to the Docks and was there in no time this time, however as he arrived he realized he was far later than he had hoped. Red was crouched over Blades bloodied and limp form, poor bastard, worst part is he never even got to say what he wanted to before he... Or maybe not, Luca sighed as Red kissed him, it was painfully obvious to Luca by the second day that those two were one push away from being permanently attached at the crotch, and now it looks like they figured it out just before the end.

Whoever said that it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all clearly never went though a situation like this. If only there was a way to bring him back...

Well, one that didn't have a chance of turning him in to an abomination of immense power and concentrated evil, as much as he would love the romantic end of it, Luca was hesitant to suggest a plan like that. On the other hand, they wouldn’t have the lovely pool of easy sacrifices that was the shadow demons for long, and the less time the soul has to wander from the body the higher the success rate, so really this was the optimal time to attempt such an affront to natural laws.

Luca bonked his head against his staff and drove the thoughts from his mind, dark magic was a no no. He walked over and placed a hand on Jabnils shoulder, whom he noted was still naked, not surprising “Come on, we should leave, there’s no...” Luca saw Blade up close, he was dead no question, its not like anything Luca could do would make him worse. “I mean we shouldn’t...” Dammit now he was curious, the situation was far more favorable than the time he saw that sorcerer do it years ago “We should just go now” Luca quickly turned and started walking off towards the river, hopeing his very poor attempt at lieing would go unnoticed as emotional weakness.

Red and Blade ... sitting on the ground K-I-S-S-I-N-G

Red heard Blade’s quiet whisper, "Easy....I did it...because...I...love you." Then he made a wet cough which brought up blood to his mouth. He stared at Red's face.

Jabnil was about to leave with Luca when she heard Blade. She gasped “SHIT … he is still alive!” She cast her most powerful healing spell. Her hands glowing white as she placed them on Blade’s chest. The trident wound healing closed as Red watched.

“There is a lot of damage …” Jabnil said with a worried voice. She pulled out her silver sword, named “The Healer” placing it on Blade’s chest.

“Healer … can you repair this human?” Jabnil asked.

“Honey, this …is no big thing” The sword said as Blade punctured heart and breast bone was magically repaired. “He’ll be chasing bitches again in a few days.” The sword explained. “Unless the Sea Devils kill him first”

“Right … I need to go …” Jabnil said pulling out her other sword and pulling back The Healer. She was thinking about what Luca had said … and she was about to say “don’t you give a flying fuck …”but the words “flying fuck” put an idea in her head. She grabbed Luca by the shoulders.

“Hang on” She said and then she launched herself and him into the air. Below them Red was crying. That was something few people had ever seen. "I love you… too." Red said and kissed Blade passionately.

Airpower

In warfare, holding the high ground provides an important tactical advantage. Jabnil and Luca were now flying over the attacking Sea Devils.

“This is going to be easy! Just hold your staff down … if it breaks grab my swords!” She said to him as she placed herself into a steep dive. “Beacon, please turn off the light spell on my command” She told the pompous sword. She had just pulled out of her screaming fast dive and leveled out head high flying straight at the Sea Devil attackers. “NOW” She told her sword and Luca.

Suddenly the village was plunged into darkness. Luca knew exactly what she was doing … and held the staff down with both hands. The darkness only lasted two seconds. The sound of wood SMACKING into demon heads could be heard across the small village. It was a sick wet sound. As the lights came back on the path of the staff was clear and filled with dead and bludgeoned Sea Devils. Their bodies littered the front lines. It was like a close air support “strafing run” as there was definite straight lines of dead sea devils. Luca had just held his staff down as He and Jabnil flew over the demons killing scores of them. It was a trick that would only work once … as a trident could have easily knocked them both from the sky. But Jabnil had counted on surprise and the sudden change in lighting to assist their efforts.

Submarine Power?

With these losses, subcommander Kracluz knew the battle was over and prepared to order a full retreat. But before he could do that he noticed the water around him was strangely black. Suddenly an octopus tentacle holding a sword can out of the dark water and when straight through Kracluz head.

Nya head popped out of the inky water smiling “got you … now there is no one to command the demons. Command and control is so important in battles like this … TOO BAD you Sea Devil don’t have any!” She said to herself sarcastically. Kracluz’s 4 body guards now noticed the Cecaelia and head directly at her like hungry sharks. Nya was not worried one bit. She had eight large tentacles and two arms. The body guards were dead and floating around in seconds.

Then she disappeared beneath the waves looking for more demons to kill.

It would still take another 30 mins but the remaining Sea devils were all killed and the village of Rickety’s Squib had survived.

Unexpected Arrival

The sun was brightening the sky and the last of the mop up operations were being completed, as residents of Rickety’s Squib were coming out of hiding. Several villagers and Red’s crew members had been killed during the battle, their bloody bones still lying on the ground, but there were many more dead demons. It seemed casualties were lighter than what Red had thought.

Abbo Woodshaper was the first person to shout out in alarm and point to the river. A Cherlish galleon could now be just seen anchored in the cove and an armed party was clambering onto the docks from their launch.

Cheliax Navy was ruthless towards pirates and would kill everyone in the village. But the people getting out of the launch were not in naval uniforms … they kind of looked like pirates themselves. One of them was clearing the leader, a human with long dark hair and the tattered remains of an Andoren Naval uniform. He was a striking figure with two great swords on his belt. The only weakness was his lower part of his left leg was missing. A peg was there in place of his leg.

Red was still caring for Blade when she heard the yell from Abbo. She had also repaired her top with a quick knot. So when she stood up she had a decent appearance. She saw the man with the peg leg and said to herself, “Captain Merrill Pegworthy”

Behind Captain Merrill Pegworthy, another man came into view. Capt Peg’s main muscle, a giant human over 7 feet tall and huge in size, a solid mountain of muscle. His hair was like spun gold, and in a single braid. His beard was in twin braids. The man looked like he was killing machine. A giant two handed Warhammer was hung over his back.

“and Wulf Sternhammer” Red stated as the man came into view. Red walked over to them quickly.

“Parley!!” She said her hands up in the air to show she was no threat.

“Red?” Captain Merrill said a bit surprised.

“Captain Red …” Red corrected with a smile “I no longer work for Harrigan. I’m my own free captain.”

Both Merrill and Wulf seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Merrill put his sword away.

“I hate Harrigan ... he is a drunken Jelly Fish!” Merrill cursed. Then he looked around asking “Sea Devil attack?”

Red nodded “Pretty big one too … over 100 of them. But we gave them the ends of our swords … and we whooped them good.”

She turned to the giant man “How are you Wulf?” Red asked.

Blade

Well then...if this was Paradise...it was cobbly and quite a let down. If it was the Pit...it was not as bad as the preachers had said. There was no torment, no burning, the smells though...phew that was quite bad. Now if only his eyes could open then he could see where he was. And finally his eyes decided to play along and he found himself blinking up at a canvas. Now why would he be under a canvas? He took a breath, there was no pain. He was thirsty though, very thirsty.

Managing to get himself rolled over on to one side and saw that he was not in Paradise or the Pit, hell he wasn't even in Davey Jones' locker. He was still in the docks. He wasn't quite sure how that was possible, he had died, he knew that he did. Or wait...did he? He didn't see the light, he did see the tunnel though, but there wasn't a light. His life didn't flash past his eyes...he was...alive...

He groaned out loud and fell back on to his back, he recalled exactly what he had told Red and the trepidation which crept over him was absolute.

Wulf looked down upon the pretty woman and smiled. Here was one of the few women he actually admired. Easy to anger, tough in a fight and a fine sight for the eyes. He had seen far less of her than he would have liked though since she had come under Grim's control and thereby Harrigan's. Grim had once been a decent Captain but had gambled one time too many and Red had refused to abandon him. Her and her stubborn pride. Well he was glad to see that had all been taken care of now.

"Come here you little firebrand," he said striding over and picking her up with ease. "It has been too long Red, but it is good to see you again, and a Captain now are you. Well haven't you come a long way." He put her down again and looked around the town his face becoming very sombre. "Damn if only we had been here a little quicker we may have been able to help you out with this, although from the looks of things you did a remarkable job. My question is what the hell are sea devils doing here in the first place, and then why where they coming from the forest?" He turned away from Red and looked at his own Captain.
"Sir I have never heard of them doing anything like this before. Attacking a village this size in itself is somewhat remarkable, but their tactics. Something is going on."

Red, Peg, and a Wulf?

Red had not expected Wulf to pick her up. The strain on the knot she had used to reclose her top was almost too much. But luckily the make shift repair held.

“It is good to see you too Wulf.” Red said with a smile on her face. Lots of men lusted after her, but some liked her for more than just her looks. Wulf was one of them and he was easy to read. No way the big happy go lucky guy could hide it.

Wulf’s question to Captain Pegworthy made Red think. It had been an unusual attack. The size of it was unheard, at least in recent history. There were stories folks told to their children of Sea Devils wiping out an entire city. When a clever child would ask … what city? The parents would say the city was reclaimed by the jungle, and lost forever. But she had never seen evidence of such a city or attack.

Why would Sea Devil attack in such large numbers she wondered?

“Aye … you make a good point Wulf. This smells like a trick the Cheliax would use. Perhaps they are in league with the Sea Devils. Trying to use them to take over this part of the world. Deny people their liberty!” Captain Pegworthy suggested.

Captain Merrill Pegworthy was an Andoran. The people of Andoran were fiercely independent. Having freed themselves first from Taldor’s influence, and then from the boot of Cheliax, they were always leery of Cheliax. Fearing that warring kingdom would try to reconquer them. Andoran was a strange country. The people of Andoran declared themselves a free country where all men and women had the right to choose their own rulers. Unique among the kingdoms that Red had knowledge. Andoran was a representative democracy. Red had been told over and over, that the country would fail any time now … a doomed experiment, yet the country seemed to be doing fine. In fact, its influence was growing. Other kingdoms seemed to fear that the power of the Andoran philosophy, might cause peasant uprisings in their own lands. Andorans believed in self-determination at all costs, and hated slavery with a passion. They had even gone so far as to send their glorious Eagle Knights and the Gary Corsairs fleet to undermine the slave trade in other lands. Red had been a slave … captured by Curtis 'Grim Reaper' Salvodor. Grim had been a slaver before turning into a pirate. Red hated slavers too, as much as Andorans and Captain Pegworthy.

Captain Merrill Pegworthy had been in the Andoran Navy. He had been part of the famous Gray Corsairs fleet. He was an eagle knight and that was why he still wore the tattered uniform of that Navy with the golden eagles on his shoulders. The Andoran Navy however made a mistake. When Merrill had lost his leg in a battle, the Navy wanted to take his command away. Instead, he took his command, Bonadventure, away from them and became a free captain. That was some time ago, now he controlled four ships. The Bonadventure, Hound, Drale and now the Cheliax galleon anchored in the cove apparently. The bottom line was Captain Merrill Pegworthy and his crew were men Red could trust.

Rickety Hake came limping over to the group.

“Captain Pegworthy … ye know the rules!! Ye can’t be here while we be squibbing another ship. Ye now know her true identity now.” Rickety complained angrily

“Rickety … we saw no lookout … no long boat came to greet us … combine that with the smoke and we feared the worst.” The Captain shot back.

Rickety looked back towards the lookout tower. He saw no one on the platform just above in the jungle forest . “OH Noooo … “One-Arm”, that drunken bastard, he be in Davy Jones locker!”

Red placed her hand on Rickety’s shoulder. “There is no problem here, Rickety … in fact I was just about to ask Captain Pegworthy to be the christening officer for my new ship. What say you Merrill?” Red asked.

“It would be my pleasure.” Captain Merrill answered with a knightly bow.

Rickety looked around at all the dead demons and the awful rotten fish smell everywhere. “I’ll give you a discount on t' squib if your crew could help with t' clean up?” Rickety asked.

“Done” Captain Pegworthy stated and looked over to Wulf to carry out his orders.

Wulf nodded and began shouting orders. Even from shore his booming voice could be heard on the ship and soon several more longboats were heading for shore. The men who were already ashore began the grim task of gathering the devils in one spot and divesting them of any armor and all the weapons they were wearing. Others went around gathering the weapons that were strewn about. Any villages or pirates they found were treated with far more respect and were moved down to the docks.

Soon with the aid of the reinforcements from the ship, a huge mound of the dead was piled up near the forest well away from the villages water supply. A large mound of dry wood had also been placed near them.

Wulf reported back to Captain Merril, Red and Rickety. "All the devils are piled up sir and their weapons and what little armor they wore is stored near the blacksmiths. The wood is near them and we have brought ashore a couple of oilskin's of lamp oil. The villagers and the pirate dead have been laid out in honor down by the docks." He nodded to the two who had been in charge. "I am sorry for your losses, but it looks like all of them died well."

Red

As Wulf was busy making arrangements, Red headed back to check on Blade. He had been moved to a small tent. He was on a cot on his back staring at the ceiling, a worried look in his eyes. But he was awake and already looked much better as the color had returned to his skin. It was a big relief to Red, it was clear, that Blade would recover.

“RODRIGUEZ EDUARDO EMMANUEL CALDROVONIO TRE CORREIA” Red barked as she walked toward him.

“HOW DARE YOU JUMP IN FRONT A TRIDENT TO SAVE ME! I WILL NOT TOLERATE THAT KIND OF INSUBORDINATION!! ” She scolded him as she now leaned over him. Her lips getting closer to his as she whispered to him “I love you” and she kissed him. The passion and repressed sexual desire of all the year they had known each other was in that kiss! It was amazing … and curled Red’s toes. And it lasted and lasted … she would not stop kissing him. Finally, they separated leaving them both gasping for air.

“Blade … we’ll need to keep our feelings secret from the rest of the crew. It would complicate things.” She whispered quietly. Then she straightened up and shouted at him for the benefit of anyone listening “WHEN YOU ARE BETTER … I WANT TO SEE YOU IN MY CABIN EVERY NIGHT … YOU ARE ON EXTRA DUTY FOR 30 DAY ONCE WE ARE BACK AT SEA. DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR!!” Red said with a huge smile on her face. She was thinking about what extra duties Blade would be preforming!! She hoped his reputation for making love to all the whores in Port Peril was at least half true!

Red needed to return to Captain Pegworthy. She walked out of the tent and returned to the other free Captain’s side. She watched as Wulf quickly got the men organized and started to clean up Rickety’s Squibs.

“He is a fine quartermaster” Red commented.

“Yes … he is excellent. Who is your second?” The captain asked.

“I don’t have one yet. Was hoping to find one here at Rickety’s” Red answered.

“You know … what if I offered you Wulf as a second … I’d need to ask him … but I think he’d say yes” Merrill suggested. Red thought for a moment, why would Merrill offer up such a capable officer?

“Merrill ... what are you up to?” Red asked.

“Well … I have two reasons … first I want to cement our alliance. Second, I want you to be successful. This will drive Captain Harrigan nuts and in effect add another ship to my fleet. and ... You get a powerful ally to help you.” He explained.

“Well … that only works if I give you an officer as well. How about I ask Reaver and Flitter to join your crew? Both are experienced and very capable.” Red suggested.

Captain Merrill was grinning and shook Red’s hand. “I think we might have a deal. We’ll need to check with them and see if all agree.”

A minute later, Wulf was back and reported to Captain Merrill. At the completion of his report he noticed both Captains were grinning.

"How would you like to join Red's crew for a few months?" Captain Pegworthy asked the big man.

Wulf tensed up a little. Was Captain Pegworthy trying to get rid of him or was something else going on here. He looked at both Captains but they seemed jovial enough and he knew them well enough that he could tell that the offer was genuine. He wasn't sure why but the captain truly did want him to go sailing with Red for a time.

He thought about it and looked at it from all angles. He would be stuck here in Port for at least two weeks while the new ship was squibbed out, then at least another week while they got the hang of the new ship before they were once again back to their usual business. With Red though he could cut at least two weeks off that time, and because hers was a smaller ship they could actually train as they moved to intercept a trader or some such, thus gaining another week.

Of course the downside was he hardly knew anyone on the ship and would have to earn their trust and respect. He expected a few fights and power struggles, but he had dealt with them before. His problems could come from the Dragon/Minotaur, the flying lady or several others but he would take his chances.

Red was a friend and early on they had saved each others lives a few times. It was unfortunate that she had been captured by Grim while he had got on the better boat. Maybe he could repay her now. "Aye Captain, I will sail with her and maybe whip her crew into some form of order. Either that or they will be swimming home," he chuckled.

As Amlugeth helped get the bodies of the pirates and town folk ready, she would take whatever belongings they had on them and put them in a pouch with their name on it. She wanted to make sure the families or next of kin got everything back, including any money the person may have had. Sure she could have kept the money, but she knew the town folk didn't have much to spare themselves and could use any extra that was possible, especially if the person who died was the main money maker of the family. Her first thought was to go to Captain Red with the pirates money and belongings, she wanted to ask Red if the pirates had no next of kin if it was okay to give their money to the families who's father or main worker was killed. She wasn't sure if Red would agree to this and may be upset that she even suggest it, but suggest it she would! After all, someone had to stick up for the families who lost more than the pirates did. The pirates would just go on and raid some ships and have lots of money again, these families would suffer terribly until they could find another way to earn money or someone would take pity on them and help them financial, which was very unlikely.

When Amlugeth was done, she headed out to find Red.

Red

Red clapped the big giant of a man on his upper arm. “Wulf … welcome aboard. You’ll find that most of the crew is experienced. Your work will be with the gunner’s mate. His name is Jura, he is half black dragon and half minotaur. He is amazing … but green. That will be your challenge.” She smiled at him and started to play with his twin golden braids from his bread. “Those things are so much fun to play with” She said more to herself then she continued “I plan to take the Scarlet Dragon into harm’s way … so I have scheduled combat drills once we go back out to sea.”

“The Scarlet Dragon … A fine name for a ship.” Captain Pegworthy commented.

“Thank you ... I need to go talk to Reaver and Flitter if you both will excuse me” Red said and then added “Jura is over by the dry docks … should you wish to give him pointers.” She said to Wulf.

Red headed back towards the small village market, where she had last seen Reaver and Flitter, but before she got there. She ran into Amlugeth, the stunning redheaded elf. The elf explained what she had done with collecting valuables from the honored dead and wanted to know about next of kin. What Red was astonished with was the care she had taken to account for each item. Her estimates of their value and the vigilant in tracking each. Red explained about their next of kin. Turns out most of the men had no next of kin. One had a sister in Port Peril. Two had wanted all their worldly possession to go to their favorite whores (Barbie and Sugar) in Blood Cove. All the other dead had provided no guidance.

“I think it is a good idea to give all that to the needy here in Rickety’s Squib” Red concurred. But Red had more to say “Amlugeth, have you ever considered being a Purser on a ship? You have all the skills needed. I need one for my next voyage. You would be an officer, eat in the wardroom and the pay is good.” Red explained. “What say you?” She asked.

Blade

“RODRIGUEZ EDUARDO EMMANUEL CALDROVONIO TRE CORREIA!! HOW DARE YOU JUMP IN FRONT A TRIDENT TO SAVE ME! I WILL NOT TOLERATE THAT KIND OF INSUBORDINATION!! ”

Ok so he was in deep shit, but that didn't stop him from feeling even more horrified about what he had said before he passed...out? That bloody cleric shoved him deeper into trouble than he was before. Next thing he knew Red was kissing him like he could only have imagined in his dreams...no belay that, better than any dream! As she pulled back he found himself flushed and out of breath, he was certain that if she kept that up he would have proved to be a man and not half-drained of blood.

“Blade … we’ll need to keep our feelings secret from the rest of the crew. It would complicate things.”

Her whisper was almost so quiet that he didn't hear her over the roar of blood in his ears, then with that wicked grin of her's she stood up and shouted at him again. Even now that he knew it was an act, it still drained the fiery passion out of his system

“WHEN YOU ARE BETTER … I WANT TO SEE YOU IN MY CABIN EVERY NIGHT … YOU ARE ON EXTRA DUTY FOR 30 DAY ONCE WE ARE BACK AT SEA. DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR!!”

She didn't even wait for him to answer as she swung on her heel and left, leaving him a troubled and elated man. Troubled as she was never supposed to know and elated that she actually felt the same. He manage to struggle into a sitting position and looked out of the canvas tent, he was still way too weak, but he knew that good food and a day or so of rest would have him in fighting condition once more.

Wulf watched Red saunter away and shook his head. He knew she was only kidding about his beard. Well only half kidding. They were more like brother and sister to each other when they met having shared something that drew them together but too tightly to become lovers. They had briefly thought about it when they had been younger but had decided against it. Wulf thought they had made the right decision. Still as he watched the sway of her hips, there were times.

He chuckled as he started walking towards the dry docks. Thinking about it would not help. It was time to meet this Jura and see what he would be working with. He strode onto the dock and looked around. He spotted the minotaur with ease. It wasn't hard as he was the only other person standing at the same height as Wulf himself. It was strange to see the combination of a minotaur and a dragon. He was impressive and Wulf was sure he would make a fine addition to any crew just for his strength alone.

Striding up to him he was impressed when he actually looked him in the eye. He was bigger than him but his height was because of his horns and higher forehead. "Hello Jura, My name is Wulf Sternhammer. I am the new second in command on the Scarlet Dragon. I have been asked by Captain Red to help you out with a few things. Perhaps we can find someplace quiet to talk and discuss what we can do to make you better."

Jura

Jura looked at the big human walking towards him and there was no fear in the man’s eyes. This man had confidence and knew how to fight. Jura’s minotaur side respected that. This man was clearly a leader of a herd, an Alpha male. Jura’s black dragon side looked at the human as a threat and a source of food. It wanted to kill him in a surprise ambush and let his flesh pickle in a pool of acid before eating the offending thing. So Jura was conflicted until the man spoke "Hello Jura, My name is Wulf Sternhammer. I am the new second in command on the Scarlet Dragon …”

Jura was getting ready to attack the man. The last second on the Orchid of the Sea was “One Eye” Adlam. That person had been exceptional cruel to Jura. Jura would not be subjected to that treatment again. He would die fighting before he would be locked up again. But the man with the blonde hair and beard and pleasant face continued to talk “…I have been asked by Captain Red to help you out with a few things. Perhaps we can find someplace quiet to talk and discuss what we can do to make you better.”

Jura relaxed completely. Wulf had said the magic words “asked by Captain Red” to help him. The minotaur part of his brain won. Jura nodded and shook Wulf’s hand in a firm grip as a peer as a respected warrior.

“Jura is my name” The minotaur said then he looked down at the deck in shame as he continued to talk “I don’t not know much about the new weapons they have placed on the ship. How do you use the boarding pikes? Boarding axes? How do you load the catapults? Which shot do you when? Bar shot … or fire shot … steel shot … grape shot? What maintenance do you perform on the catapults? How often? Red has told me about the ballistas but we have more of them and bigger ones. What is greek fire?” Jura looked up from the ground and back into Wulf’s eyes “… and …” He said and paused as this question seemed most difficult for him.

“what is the best way to lead humans? I will have 6-10 crew members working for me. How do I lead them and not eat them?” Jura asked.

Wulf had noticed the big minotaurs dilemma regarding him as he approached but had ignored it and let the big man sort it out for himself. Of course he had been ready to defend himself but he had many years of hard won experience of not letting an opponent know that.

He listened as Jura explained his troubles and his opinion of the man went up. Most may have tried to hide their faults but he had replied with pure honesty and truly wanted help to improve himself.

"Do not worry Jura I will be able to teach you all that you need to know. Choosing the different shot is normally the job of the Captain or myself but I will still teach you that just in case. The pikes and axes are a little tricky but I am sure you will get the hang of them easily and grow to love them. You have the height and the strength to use them well. I myself love them and we are very similar in build although I think you are even bigger than me," he said slapping the big man on the shoulder.

"The ballistas will be the same as the ones you have already fired if you did that before, everything will just be a little bigger. The machine, the bolts and the range you can get. Greek fire is a special liquid that burns and can not be put out with water, in fact it burns on fire. You need sand and lots of it to put it out and that is hard to find in the middle of the ocean. Of course it must be handled with great care."

"As for leading men, that is a little difficult. First you must train so you know what you are doing. Then we will talk about that. Tomorrow we will begin. Get some sleep for it will be a busy day."

Purser Amlugeth?

"Purser? Would I have to kill people for sport? I can defend myself pretty well, but I don't kill just for the fun. What does a purser do? Will you make me walk the plank if I piss you off, because I seem to piss people off without even trying at times." Amlugeth rattled on. "Where would I sleep? Does everyone sleep in the same room? I am not sure I can do that."

As she drew a breath she realized she was babbling and showing fear, two things she was told never to do when facing an enemy. Although Red was not an enemy, she still was a pirate and they seemed to like fear. Amlugeth took a slow deep breath and looked Red square in the eye.

"If I can have my own cabin, an agreement that I will not kill when you attack other ships unless I feel my own life is in jeopardy and a complete job description, then we may have a deal" she stated firmly.

Red

Red took a deep breath. She thought “Elves … they were so hard to deal with! But they made excellent pursers!” She took another deep breath and then answered Amlugeth.

“Amlugeth, a purser is critical to the ship’s function. You will be in charge of many of the supplies such as food and drink, clothing, bedding, candles, etc. You get to charge a 5% commission for anything the crew members buy and eat. Everything needs to be recorded so it can be checked of course. Most of the time the crew will not actually pay you, but you will deduct those expenses from their wages. In addition you get to divide up any treasure found … and buy all supplies when we pull into port.” Red explained.

“The purser has her own cabin, starboard side forward. As far as killing people, The Scarlet Dragon will not be doing that unless it is necessary.” Red said which technically was a true statement. Most merchant ships did not fight back and allowed themselves to be captured. Most pirates would then ransom off the high ranking officials and the rest of the crew would be placed in a neutral port to go on with their lives.

This system worked well, unless some merchant decided to fight back, and then there could be a battle. This however did not happen often. Battles between other pirates and pirate hunters were more common. Red was planning to avoid that as much as possible.