I remember only two things, in particular, from my past. They were possibly the best and worst things to happen to me. I lived with my aunt and uncle, in Tortuga, for most of my younger years. My parents, I was told, had died when I was still too small to remember. I didn't know them, and I really don't care. I am not one to dwell on the past too much. My aunt and uncle weren't ever very rich. They were always very common and never nice. They would always beat me; even if I had done nothing wrong and never let me forget how much of a 'burden' I had been on them. I tried my best to do everything they told me to do, but I would still get a beating. It didn't matter.
One day, when I was about ten years old, I had gotten away from my uncle's abusive grasp and I was roaming the streets alone, crying. Of course, in Tortuga, no one would have even looked twice. It may have been a good town to trade in, but almost everyone was drunk and no one cared much at al about a child. As I was walking, I was occupied with staring at the ground and wiping my tears. At one point, I looked up and before I could stop myself, collided with the leg of a man, probably nineteen or twenty. I stepped back a few steps and looked down at the ground again.
"I'm…sorry," I sobbed. He knelt down on one knee.
"Why is one so small traveling this dangerous place, alone?" he asked. He put a hand on my head. "What is wrong?"
"Don't bother with her," a woman said, a few feet away. "She's a no-good orphan. Her aunt and uncle are always saying how she never does anything she's told."
"Excuse me, madam, this is none of your business," he said. She turned up her nose and walked away. "Now, little one, don't be sad. I, too, am an orphan. I know what you must go through. From now on, don't let gossip or anything get into your way from getting what you want. Don't let their abuse get to you." He stood up. When I finally got the courage to look up, all I could see was his back, as he walked away, towards the docs. At the time, it didn't register with me that he knew I was being beaten and I didn't think about this meeting for years afterwards. I would almost say I forgot about it.
When I was fourteen, I started to sell myself to earn money to get off this rock and travel somewhere else. Most of the men were pirates, I would assume. Never in the same place for very long. I would always have to be drunk to do it. I didn't dislike the taste of rum, but I had tasted better. And that brings me to my other memory.
I never regretted any of it until I met my last customer. I suppose you could call him a customer, anyway. He didn't fuck…but he did pay, and not with money. I was sixteen, standing outside, by myself, with the other women, who were considerably older than me. The others would stand in groups, talking about the latest gossip in Tortuga. I was always a loner, though. I didn't care much for gossip and, at the time, didn't know why. I had a bottle of rum with me, but I hadn't really started on it. This man, most likely around twenty-five or thirty years old, came up to me. I'd seem him before, every once in a while. He would always sit across the street and stare, but never took any action. He was definitely a pirate. He grabbed me, by the hand, rented a room in a nearby inn, and took me up. When we got behind closed doors, I started to unlace my bodice, assuming that's what he wanted. He walked up to me and took my hands away from the strings. I looked up at him, confused. He shook his head.
"What is your name, child?" he asked me, still holding my hands in his.
"Michelle," I said, looking down. "But, why does it matter?" He let go of one of my hands, put his under my chin, and forced me to look up at him. He looked into my eyes. His eyes were kind even though he was a scalawag.
"You're so young…" I didn't understand why he was talking and not pounding. Most of the men didn't talk at all. He took his hand from my chin and stroked my blonde hair. "How did you get sucked into this way of life?" I forced my hand away from his and turned away from him.
"I'm trying to earn money to get away from this place." I couldn't tell what he did next, but I heard him move to another part of the room. I turned around to find that he had sat down on the bed. He looked over at me, sternly.
"This…" He pointed at me, at my clothes, "… is no way to live." All I could do was shrug. This is all I'd really ever known. He held out his hand. "Come here and sit with me." I did as he commanded and sat next to him on the bed. He looked at my bodice, which was halfway undone. "Why don't you lace that back up? I'm not going to do anything to you." I ignored the remark about the lacing.
"Then, why did you bring me here?!" I exclaimed, standing up. "I have work to do!" I started to head for the door, but his hand caught my wrist.
"Do you want to know how your parents died, Michelle?" I turned back. He smirked. "I see, that sparked some interest…"
"How would you have known my parents?" He opened his mouth to respond, I assume, but the door burst open. I jumped, scared. Soldiers stood in the doorway of the room. Before I could even think, the man had pushed me on to the bed and unsheathed his sword.
"Captain Jet Randell, you are under arrest."
"Stay there," he commanded, without looking down at me. I turned away from the battle. I heard the clanking of swords and a single thump on the floor. "Michelle…" I turned back to see 'Jet' on his knees, facing me. There was a sword through his chest. The soldier who had done it, pulled the sword out and the pirate slumped against the bed, just barely alive. I gasped, tears starting to form in my eyes. With whatever strength he could muster, Jet grabbed my hands and pulled me close.
"You have a living brother," he whispered. My eyes got wide and the tears fell. "You've met him…told me to tell you not to cry. He's the First Mate on my ship, love. The Black Oblivion…already left this town…" I nodded, grasping his hands tightly. "Find him…" Another soldier came up behind him, obviously annoyed that he was taking so long to die, and sliced off his head. I don't remember screaming, but I remember hearing it…
"Michelle?" The voice of my fellow crewman broke me of my thoughts. I blinked and looked around. My boots were wet, and so the was the mop I was leaning against. The bucket I was using had gotten knocked over and the water was flowing everywhere. The man walked up to me and looked at my mess. "Day dreaming again, I see." I sighed and nodded.
"Sorry…," I said, bending over to pick up the bucket. I set it on it's bottom. "I won't do it again." He laughed and leaned up against the side of the ship.
"You say that all the time, my dear." I shrugged and stood back up. "The Captain is not going to be very happy if he hears that you've been slacking on your work, again." I nodded again.
"And I've appreciated you not telling him." I reached into the small, leather pouch that hung from my belt and pulled out a coin. I flipped it to him and he smiled at me. He put it in his pocket.
"Now, get back to work," he commanded and winked.
"Yes, First Mate Bonny," I said with a playful smile.
"Ah, there you are William," the captain said, walking over to him, holding a rolled up map. "Is something the matter with Michelle, here?"
"No, Captain," Bonny said, looking down at me. "I was just having a little chat with her." The captain nodded.
"Well, then, William, put these maps back into storage." The first mate took the paper from his superior and walked away. Then, the captain held out his hand to me. "Now, Miss Michelle, would you please join me in my cabin for a few moments?" I set the mop against the side of the ship and took his hand.
"Of course, Captain." He escorted me to a room that had a poorly made bed, a large desk, a lot of candles of the desk, and a bunch of random things hanging and lying about. He let go off my hand and sat down at his desk. He took of his hat, laid it on the desk in front of him, and pointed to a chair for me. I sat down and looked at him. "Have you heard any news, Bryant?"
"I have, actually," the captain, said, laying back in his seat. "The Black Oblivion fought a battle with The Red Dread. I'm not sure why they had it out…but, I do know where the Black Oblivion is recuperating."
"Where?" I asked, sitting on the edge of my chair.
"They are in China," he said with a smile. "And luckily for you, we're heading not too far away from China, so I think we can make a fast stop there. We need supplies, anyway." I nodded. "Now, Michelle, this could be just like last time."
"I know," I said, already aware that he might not be there by the time we got there. "I know, but it's worth a shot…" Bryant nodded again.
"Captain! Captain, you should come up here and have a look!" someone from above called. The captain looked stood up quickly and hurried out of the room, forgetting his hat. I followed close behind him. Before we got to the deck, something shook the ship so hard it knocked me into the wall. Bryant stopped to help me up.
"Are you alright?" he asked, standing me back on my two feet. I nodded and pushed him forward so we would get out sooner. We got outside and immediately saw the red flag of the ship who had fired upon ours. "The Red Dread," the captain muttered next to me. "Pray we get out of this alive, Michelle." I looked at him, my eyes wide open, and then looked back at the other ship. It wasn't any bigger than our ship, but that ship…had it's own reputation.
"Captain!" William Bonny called from the helm of the ship. Bryant grabbed my wrist and rushed over to his first mate with me in tow.
"William, hide Michelle," the captain said, holding my wrist out to the other man. Bonny took it from him and started to pull me towards the ladder that led below-deck. Before we got very far, I pulled my arm away.
"I'm not a child!" I yelled, back at the captain. They had been hiding me ever since I joined their crew, almost 11 months ago, just after Jet died. "I can fight!" Bryant looked at me, his expression serious. He thought hard for a few seconds and nodded.
"You have a sword, yes?" he asked, looking at me in the eyes. I nodded. "Alright. Stay close to me and William, Michelle. And if you get stuck, call for one of us. That's an order." I nodded.
"Yes sir." I unsheathed the Arabian-style sword on my belt and looked over to the enemy ship.