Eduardo scowled as he snuck through the castle. He still couldn't believe that not only did Russell and Thomas get arrested, they were placed in the prison under the castle. Now, he and the rest of the crew had to come in and rescue them. Now, while the island was small and there weren't a lot of people, the royal family achieved great wealth from natural resources. With all that money, it was able to form a strong, though small, army and castle guards. To make it simple, it would not be easy to get them out, or even if they did, they'd have a lot of trouble getting back to the ship. Sighing, he and Nathan continued creeping along. As they passed a ballroom, he slowed down at the sound of singing.
"Oh, sing sweet nightingale
Sing sweet nightingale
High above me
Oh, sing sweet nightingale
Sing sweet nightingale
High above"
Though it was a simple tune with repetitive lyrics, he felt himself being drawn in. The voice seemed to belong to a young woman, and her voice carried a lulling, yet melancholy sound. Nathan seemed just as curious as he was, so they both peeked through the slightly open door. There, they saw the island's queen, an older woman known for being cruel and merciless to those who she felt had wronged her. He had overheard some of the villagers at the tavern talking about how she would order any pretty maids in her small castle to be disfigured. She was coolly watching something hidden by the door, presumably the singer. Moving on before they were noticed, he and his crew-mate crept by, the girl's voice flowing behind them.
Eventually, they made it to the prison's opening. By the time they'd taken care of the guards, Captain Morgan and Christopher found them.
"Geez, Eduardo. Yer slowin' down." joked the captain.
Rolling his eyes, he followed him down the steps. After a nasty fight with the guards and a couple wounds that Christopher would handle later, they had the keys. Stalking over to the cells, he growled at the pair.
"I told you you two not to fight those men." he coolly glared at them, "Now look at where we are!"
"I-I'm sorry, Eduardo,." stuttered Thomas, who did seem to feel very sorry.
"Yeah, sorry." added Russell, though he seemed to be a little less sincere.
Sighing, he unlocked the cell door. As they turned to leave, one of the guards pulled himself up. He took one glance at the pirates before sounding an alarm. The crew froze as they realized it was going off all around the castle. Christopher took one shot at the guard and he fell down, unconscious. Now pressed for time, they ran up the steps. Going down the path he and Nathan had followed earlier, they ran. As they were about to turn another corner, they heard guards coming from both in front, and behind them. Now that they couldn't run, the crew looked for a place to hide. Russell looked into the nearest room, then gestured for the others to follow him in. Closing the door quietly behind them, Eduardo realized they were in the same ballroom as before, though it was now empty.
Or so he thought.
"Who's there?" asked a voice.
No matter where they looked, they couldn't find the voice's source.
"Well, who's asking?" responded Christopher.
"A bird locked in a cage." answered the voice, with a dismal tone.
Exchanging a look with Nathan, he figured the voice belonged to the singer from before.
"Well, Miss Caged Bird, where are you?" asked the captain.
"Above you." she told them.
Looking up, they found what seemed to be a silver birdcage, elevated about ten feet above their heads. White fabric, that he assumed was a dress, flowed out between spaces. While he couldn't make out her facial features, he could see pale arms and elaborately styled hair as black as the night.
"Now, who are you?" she asked again.
"We're the Sir- oof!" started Thomas, before being elbowed in the stomach by Russell.
"We're just a bit lost." answered Captain Morgan, "I don't suppose you know the way out?"
"Alas, I've only been through the halls once, and it was a couple moths ago." she said.
Before any of them could ask another question, they some of the nearby rooms being opened and searched. Frantically, the crew looked around the room, trying to find a good place to hide. Unfortunately, the small ballroom had pillars and the throne at the back, so there seemed to be nowhere to go. Seeing there struggle, the caged woman called out.
"Mister with the black bandanna? There's a tunnel that opens up on the floor to your left. The guards shouldn't look there." she whispered.
Looking down, Nathan found it. Surprisingly enough, there was a trapdoor. Without any other option, they all crept down. Hidden by a pillar, they left the open to a tiny crack.
In marched soldiers, armed and looking very annoyed. They searched around the room, checking behind the throne and columns. When they thought it was clear, they froze and saluted. In walked the queen, dressed in a blood red dress. She was followed by a small court, dressed in more faded colors. Taking a seat on the large, elaborate chair, she addressed the soldiers.
"I suggest you find the escaped prisoners and their friends. I want them hanged in the square tomorrow, and I've found it's a great deal easier to hang pirates, if I have pirates to hang." she coldly stated, "You're not paid to be beaten around. Now go! If you can't find them, you'll be hung instead!"
The soldiers bowed before quickly returning to their search. When the doors closed behind them, with a couple staying inside, the queen directed her attention to the girl in the cage.
"My sweet little bird, you haven't seen our escapees, have you? You would tell us, wouldn't you?" she asked sweetly.
The Sirius crew held their breaths. If she gave them away, they were done for. There so many tunnels going out, if they tried to escape that way, they were more likely to die in a dark labyrinth than they were to escape. Even if they did go through the right tunnel, they didn't know where they would end up. They had no choice but to trust the girl.
"I haven't seen anyone since you left, your majesty." the girl replied.
"You understand what'll happen if you lie, yes?" the queen pressed, her tone growing colder and she rhythmically tapped her finger, "You don't need eyes to sing."
The girl gulped. It was hard to believe that someone could be so cruel, but he had seen one the scarred maid who worked at the castle. The girl was risking a lot.
"I've not seen anyone, my lady queen." the girl answered, her tone never wavering.
"For your sake, I do hope that's the truth." she said, before her tone brightened slightly, though she kept clicking her bail on the arm of her throne, "Now sing, my sweet little bird. Do a song that has lines in other languages."
"Yes, your majesty."
There was a bit of silence, and Eduardo guessed she trying to find something. After a moment, she began.
"A man came across this old tower one day
It was straight like from a book he once read
He lifted his head up and saw this young lady
And here's what the lady said:
'Moi je m'appelle mademoiselle Noir
Et comme vous pouvez le voir
Je ne souris, ni ris, ni vis.'
Et c'est tout ce qu'elle a dit"
Her voice carried such a morose tone, it foreshadowed a sad ending.
"The man was so scared he could only run away
He ran to the town and then said:
'I just saw a lady with the longest dark hair
And I think she's a living dead!'
The people, so scared, took their guns and their swords
They ran to the tower and then
They saw the pale lady and felt a great fear
When they heard how she said it again:
'Moi je m'appelle mademoiselle Noir
Et comme vous pouvez le voir
Je ne souris, ni ris, ni vis.'
Et c'est tout ce qu'elle a dit"
The queen had gone silent, her previous tapping ceased. The crew exchanged glances. By now, the soldiers should be a ways away, and they could handle what guards were in the room, but the queen and her court seemed too comfortable for this song to be the last.
"The people, they knew what this all was about:
She was clearly a demon from hell
They decided to set her long hair on fire
In the end it would burn her as well
But the lady was no demon she was a lonely soul
Just like in that book they once read"
Eduardo wondered if the girl always sang tragic songs like this, though he couldn't help but anticipate the ending, both to see how it ends and because that would be when they make their escape.
"Still waiting for her prince while her hair was on fire
The one last time she said:
'Moi je m'appelle mademoiselle
Noir Et comme vous pouvez le voir
Je ne souris, ni ris, ni vis.'
Et c'est tout ce qu'elle a dit"
Thomas started sniffling at the tragic story, and Russell smacked his head. Throwing open the door, the Sirius Pirates rushed out. The queen and her court screamed, obviously not expecting them to come bursting from the floor. The guards rushed over, but couldn't overpower them. The queen recovered and grew livid.
"You lying brat!" she screeched at the girl, "I'll cut you into pieces and leave whatever's left to hang with the pirates!"
The girl pushed herself against the back of the birdcage, futilely trying to hide. As Eduardo knocked back his opponent, he scanned the room. Finding what he was looking for, a silver chain, he shot at it. When it snapped, the cage came crashing down, with the girl screaming inside it. While the fall hadn't harmed the girl too seriously, it had popped open the cage. Crawling out while holding her head, her eyes found his. He shouted for her to leave, and she hesitated, watching the fighting. She ran out the door, though, when the queen roared with a rage and made her way towards the girl. The last he saw of her was a white wave of fabric, and then the girl was gone.
The girl ran from the castle, flying through the streets. With her dress flowing behind her, she was sure she must have looked like a ghost. Hopefully that would be enough to discourage them from pursuing her. She ran past the houses and shops, straight to the port. She knew that no matter where she stayed on the island, she would be found, and her punishment would be a cruel one. As she approached the ships, she looked around for one to hide on. She looked around, before settling one. Quietly creeping up the ramp, she looked around. She silently crept through the ship, and when she was sure it was empty, she looked for the kitchen. Walking around, she found a large pantry packed with delicious smelling food and ingredients. Her stomach growled and she wondered when she ate last. That time spent in the cage had made it hard to tell how much time passed between meals. Crawling into the pantry, she grabbed a small piece of fruit and tucked herself into a corner. She arranged the ridiculous amount of extra fabric in a way that would make it look like napkins and towels. Leaning back slightly, she felt muscles that hadn't been used in a long time begin to ache. She felt tears begin to form, partly happy that she'd escaped, partly fearful of what would happen now or what would happen if she was found.
Alone on the ship, she quietly sang to fill the eerie silence.
"Oh, sing sweet nightingale
Sing sweet nightingale
High above me
Oh, sing sweet nightingale
Sing sweet nightingale
High above"
Songs:
Sing, Sweet Nightingale - Cinderella/Ilene Woods
Mademoiselle Noir: A Tragedy - Peppina