It was a reasonably hot day in the early morning, and the gentle drafts of wind originating from the North Blue made the humidity bearable at the ports of the infamous "White City". Sean stepped off a moderately sized transport vessel, offering a firm nod to the ship's crew. A few sailors and dockworkers glanced towards the six bottles of hard liquor fitted into holsters on his belt. In his hand, Sean held a rolled up poster. Business brought him all over the North Blue, hunting bounties to ensure that his insatiable thirst for cheap booze would be satisfied.
"Hey," Sean greeted an older fellow who was piecing together a box with a hammer and nails. "I need to know where the nearest bar is." The old man groaned a bit as he stood up and rubbed his lower back, pointing towards a set of steep concrete stairs leading upwards.
"Downtown there is a place called Deja's Drafts," he glanced towards the rolled up poster in his hands before resuming his work. "You'll find what you are looking for there."
Sean wiped the sweat from his thick brown eyebrows, nodding in thanks. The docks were busy and admittedly, a bit harder to traverse than he would have expected. People were moving things all over the place all the time. It took him longer than he would have expected to reach the stairs, but once he did it was smooth sailing from there.
It looked like any other townhouse one might expect to see in downtown Flevance. Once inside however, the atmosphere was completely different. The bar was filled with travelers, pirates and the likes. Trivial arguments and obnoxious belly laughs filled the air. One pair of voices, however, demanded Sean's attention. He sat down at one of the available seats and glanced towards the bartender, a voluptuous dark-skinned woman with a shaved head and hoop earrings. She was talking to another person who was on the opposite side of the bar with her.
It was dark young man with an afro and a headband. But those, perhaps, were the least intriguing parts about his appearance. Sean raised an eyebrow upon noticing his arms, which were openly exposed along with his chest due to the young man's choice of attire. From his forearms up to his biceps, he bore tattoos of strange dots and interconnected lines.
"Baby, is' like I saaid! I jus' need a little more time, and then I can get us both outta' here," he leaned forwards and grabbed one of her shoulders with his hands. She brushed him off.
"Shut up, Connor! Ever since we've been together you've done nothin' but loiter up around in my bar and twiddled your thumbs. You done been leeching off me for far too long. And I see the way you been lookin' at them other girls!" The bartender started to slap at him with a wet dishrag, shooing him away. She shook her head, rolling her eyes while muttering something that sounded like 'trick' or maybe 'tick'. It was hard to tell.
"Whatchu' need honey? We got all kinds of beer from all over the world here, pick your poison."
Sean looked at the shelf behind her. She wasn't kidding. He ultimately decided on something simple. He was at Flevance for business, not for pleasure. He'd have to keep it light. "Some rum," he said. "Two shots will do. But I'm here for something else. I need some information, if you can indulge me."
"Sure thang baby, lemme' pour you your liquor then we can talk business." The woman turned around to grab the glass. Connor rushed over to where she was once standing, leaning his arms against the table. He smiled and nodded his head towards the rolled up poster that was still resting between Sean's fingers.
"So, you're a bounty hunter huh? Let me let you in on a little secret," Connor looked from side to side and leaned forwards a bit. "That woman ain't gonna' tell you anything if you don't give her some motivation.. if you catch my drift. Money. Green. Cash. Paper, you feel?"
The bartender smacked her teeth, pushing Connor to the side with her free hand. "Boy, hush! This man right here looks like he knows what he's doing. I'm sure he knows that already. Right, honey?" She asked while pouring him his two shots of rum. Sean didn't say anything in response. He simply downed the two shots, and removed a few slips of beli from his pocket.
"Now lets see who your after," the woman smiled and tucked the slips of paper into her cleavage. Sean handed her the poster. A gentle hum resonated in her throat as she looked back up at Sean. Before she could say anything, Connor snatched the poster out of her hands. He looked at the poster, then to Sean, then to the poster again, then back to Sean.
"Well, well, well.. I'll be damned. You wouldn't be the first one to come in here today looking to claim the bounty on 'Red Knuckle' Corban Anderson." The bartender slapped Connor repeatedly on the shoulder with quite a bit of force. "Boy!" She quickly snatched it back, handing it back to Sean.
Ignoring the situation at hand, he raised an eyebrow in response to the intrusive young man's statement. Sean was under the assumption he, alongside his informant, were the only two people who currently knew about Anderson's whereabouts. Then again, information brokers weren't known to be loyal. They sold to the highest bidder.
"Who else has been looking for Anderson?"
Connor was about to spill the beans, but the bartender covered his mouth with a hand.
"That'll cost you extra, honey."
Sean grunts, removing another stack of beli from his pocket. The bartender, once again, places the stacks of bills between her breasts. The woman turned around and began to wash some glasses. Connor leaned against the bar, the back of his head facing Sean. It wasn't hard to deduce where he might have been looking. "Mm, mm, mm.."
"Boy, stop!" she yelled, turning around to strike him with her dishrag. She briefly glanced back towards Sean, then turned around once more. "I don't know his name. A young guy, like Connor. Probably around the same age. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Had a cigar in his mouth. Was wearing a white tank top with some suspenders, had cuffed jeans and working boots on. He didn't look much like the bounty hunter type."
"Hmn. Thanks," Sean stood up. He paid for the two shots and made his way towards the door. "I should be going now."
Connor promptly leaped over the bar and caught up with the taller, older fellow. He nudged Sean's shoulder with his elbow. "Dude, between you and me? I've been looking to get off this island for a while now," he grips Sean's shoulder and gestures towards the bartender with a nod of the head. "That crazy woman been trying to tie me down, you dig? But me-my people? We was kings, man. An' kings don't settle for no one."
Sean looked towards Connor, then back towards the door. He kept walking. Connor, once again, caught up with him.
"Dude, I'm willing to help you find Anderson. I been chillin' around that bar for a hot minute and people talk. Now, I ain't as well informed as Deja but I've got a hunch where we could start lookin'. All I ask? When we turn that guy in, you and me? We split the reward." By now, both of them were out of the bar and on the busy streets of downtown Flevance. Halfway down the steps onto the road, Sean stopped and turned to face Connor.
"Agree to disagree. We split it sixty and forty."
Connor grimaced. It wasn't ideal, but it was better than nothing. He had a feeling that the man before him wasn't much of a negotiator. Maybe it was something about the way he presented himself. It reminded Connor of your stereotypical, working class dad. The young man extended a hand down towards Sean who was at the bottom step.
"Connor Jackson."
"Sean Thadd."
Connor smiled, disengaging the grip as he gave Sean a slap on the back on the way down the small set of stairs. "So, word on the streets is that Anderson has only been on Flevance for a few days."
"That's what I've been told. My contact said that he needed a place to lie low after getting into it with a Marine cargo vessel. Told me Red Knuckle and his crew, the Black Eye Pirates, stole some unrefined gunpowder."
"Shit man, you took the words right out of my mouth. I was jus' about to say that," Connor said convincingly, which only caused Sean to raise an eyebrow of subtle skepticism in response. Connor smirked. "Alright, listen. I'll tell you what I know and then tell you what I don't know. Based off what I've heard, Anderson and his boys are looking to leave the island as soon as they can. But, I've also heard that they are also plannin' to stock up on some inventory while they are here if you catch my drift. I don't know what they might be after while they are here, or where they'll go after it, but I can tell you this."
Sean looked down towards Connor. He still had that confident smirk stretched across his face. "What does Flevance have that no other island in the North Blue has?"
"Amber Lead," Sean said. "Anderson is looking to get his hands on some Amber Lead."
"Bingo," Connor chimed while taking a few steps in front of him. "I'm not sure how many mines there are on the island, but I'd wager him and his boys are holed up in one of them."
Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the first chapter. First and foremost, thanks for reading! I appreciate any and all feedback.
Before I forget, here is a disclaimer worth mentioning: this series is comprised of an original cast of characters, meaning none of the characters from the canon series are going to make an appearance.
This story can also be found on Quotev where I originally posted it. My reasoning for adapting it to was to attract more readers. Also, we've got a Discord Server! (b4k6THn)
I'd love to have you there. I've created channels for discussion, Q&A, etc. and regularly announce when a new chapter has been released.