A Pirate's Life is Wonderful
Prologue
Thunderheads rumbled ominously above the brightly lit pirate town located comfortably on one of the Canary Islands , but no one took notice. Men guzzled down barrel after barrel of rum as women flirted nonstop, batting their long eyelashes and fawning over the seafaring men that inhabited their saloons. Loud laughter drowned out the thunder, and an occasional gunshot filled in the spaces of silence that the guffawing overlooked. Slaves hurried about the narrow street that separated the two pubs from each other, and they filed solemnly from one boarding house to the other, picking up trash or collecting more rum for their intoxicated owners.
Three women slaves, nervously swaying in front of a boarding house, stopped their motions and their quiet whimpering as a stranger, a man they hadn't seen before, stepped into the alleyway. Eyes widened as the women moved back, as if to hide, as the man before them stalked towards the loudest pub in the port. There was something about him, whether it was his piercing blue eyes that glowered angrily or the dangerous step in his walk, the women couldn't tell. Ominous darkness hovered about him like a shroud, and the slaves slunk back into the recesses of the buildings, feeling safer in the shadows than out in the lamplight with this man.
Captain Aaron Savage was indeed a dangerous man, possessing a black heart even more wicked than the blackness of the Jolly Roger. He hadn't been heard of in years, and certainly not by any of the pirates or their many slaves and wenches. While intimidating, he walked like an Englishman, for he had, at one point in time, been such a person. But bitter hatred for an older brother had led him to murder, and there was nothing left for him afterwards but flight. So fly he did, but not without evil intentions and a lust for revenge that darkened every good character trait he may have had.
The banqueting and drinking pirates had no knowledge whatsoever of Captain Savage's ruthless planning as he stepped into their saloon. Their drunken minds couldn't understand why the piano playing stopped. They couldn't grasp why the women stopped their giggling and pawing and stared at the open doorway, eyes wide and mouths agape. They were thrilled by the intruder's charm as well as mesmerized by his cruelty. In his piercing eyes, they saw a strange beauty. Instead of seeing his figure as being strong and intimidating, they saw it as desirous and exquisitely handsome. His face, dark with a mysterious depth, drew them in, enticing them and luring them like a worm on a hook. They wanted to run their fingers through his dirty-blonde hair, pulled back into a small ponytail at the nape of his neck, and they wanted to hold him close. Had they know the death that he brought along with him, they would have been terrorized.
Captain Savage smiled to himself when he saw all of the boisterous and noisy pirates, and he called, just loudly enough for everyone to hear him, "I'm looking for Captain Jack Sparrow. Do any of you louses know where he is?"
The pirates all laughed at him, slamming their kegs on the table or cuddling their wenches close. Venom glittered in Aaron's eyes as he nodded his head slowly.
"Very well. If none of you wish to help, then I leave you with two options. You may join me and my crew in our search for said captain, or you may all perish in your rum and merry making."
More laughter followed that remark, and Aaron remained complacent and cool, his eyes speaking volumes to the voluptuous women in the building. The women, all strangely enamored with the man, left their pirates and moved to the captain, immediately grabbing hold of him and smiling up at him expectantly as he turned away from the men and made his way out of the pub.
"Excellent choice, ladies," he whispered, turning his head slightly to look back at the pub.
Something fearful occurred then. Captain Savage's eyes slowly changed color from a crystalline blue to a glittering white. An evil smile tugged at the man's lips as he stared at the saloon. The thunder roared overhead, the waves in the ocean began to churn violently, and five immense bolts of lightning struck down from the sky, impaling the pub with their electric power.
Instantly, the saloon burst into an erupting ball of fire, sending flames licking high up into the air and leaving nothing save for a burned black hole in the earth. The women screamed and tried to run, terrified out of their minds by the unearthly spectacle, but Aaron was far stronger than they had believed him to be. His hands locked like iron around their thin wrists and arms, holding them firmly in place. Five of the women escaped, only to crash into the awaiting arms of Savage's crew, rough, violent men with no good intentions whatsoever.
Captain Savage ignored the screams of the women and the burnt smell of the non-existent pub and dragged his prisoners onto his ship.
The Steel Maiden was the largest ship existing in all of the Seven Seas and boasted one hundred cannons. Her crew was composed of one hundred fifteen men, and aboard the ship were prisoners, both humans and animals. It was a proud ship, with an even prouder captain, as Cpt. Savage demonstrated with a smirk as he moved to the helm of the ship and shouted orders to his men.
"Hoist anchor! Set the sails! The hunt for Jack Sparrow continues!"
His men shouted heartily, shooting wicked glances at the women cowering in the corner of the ship as they moved to obey orders. Their captain was not a man to be tangled with, and they knew, if they obeyed and did as told, not only would they live another day, but they'd have plenty of pleasure to go along with it. And if they helped their captain obtain the treasure that he sought, they'd have even happier lives.