"Things have gone from bad to worse!" Liliana sputters angrily at her crustacean friend, Spot. "He refuses to admit that I am captive here, and now he tells me I am to turn into a hideous creature the same way he did!" Her hand covers her forehead in desperation as she paces the room. "Oh, if I don't calm myself, surely I will suffer from the vapors."

Her bottom lands hard on the wooden floor. She needs her hand to support the weight of her head. Well, at least she has the freedom to move now, she thinks to herself. Breeches allow for much more comfort. Men are so fortunate!

"Stupid men!" She hisses bitterly. "They always get the better deal in life. And apparently so in the afterlife. I'm telling you, Spot, if that bloody captain ever lets me die and reincarnation exists; I am coming back as a man!"

"If ye come back as a man, then ye will have to do a man's job here on the ship."

Jones' voice causes her to jump slightly, but her anger still boils deep within her. "Spying on me again, are we, captain? You always seem to pop in at the most opportune time. For yourself…"

His footsteps shake the floorboards beneath her as he walks to where she sits. "I have no need to spy. Apparently I own ye, so I can do whatever I want!" Jones sends a hateful look to the little crab and it scurries off into the darkness.

Liliana rolls her eyes in disgust. "So you finally admit that I am your prisoner?"

"Ye were the one to say it, not I." Jones rasps harshly. "Ye are the one with the foolish notion that I actually want ye here!"

The girl spins around and glares at the captain. He towers above her but she shows no fear to the bitter stare he sends her. "Would you make up your bloody mind already? Why the hell did you save me then? For the love of all things sacred!"

"Such vulgarity!"

"You swear all the time…" Liliana mumbles, looking to the floor. She has decided to be as spiteful as possible.

"That is me! I am a man! And a sailor."

"Well, I am on a ship. Therefore, I must be a sailor too. Therefore, I must be allowed to swear just like every other soul aboard this ship."

"Bah! Ye are no sailor! And ye do not have the bollocks like the rest of us to allow for such language!"

Again she rolls her eyes. Jones sees this and swats the hand out from underneath her chin, causing her to fall forward.

"Must you yell at me in here?" She hisses up at him.

Jones looks around the room in shock. "I own this cabin! I can yell at ye wherever I choose, woman!" His voice rises to a higher level.

"This is the only place of solace that I have! You allow me no other private space. Why can't you just leave me be while I am in here?"

"No one else on this ship has a place to hide! Why do ye assume ye would get such a luxury! And need I remind ye again, that this is MY cabin! In fact, YE are the one encroaching on my privacy!" He yells into her face, his hand pounding on his chest to prove the point.

"Here we go again. You're the one that saved me. So this is YOUR fault, Captain Jones. If you didn't want to share your living space, you shouldn't have rescued me. So you need to figure out why you brought me here, so we can both learn how to live with one another."

His anger is palpable. "I should just toss ye overboard right now, ye insolent little brat! How dare ye speak to me in such a manner? I have told ye that I don't know why I saved your pathetic little ass!"

"Well, surely you did not take me aboard just so that you can have someone else to yell at. I could have sworn there were plenty of others here that already have that joy in their lives…"

Jones loses his patience and grabs her. He pulls her to her feet and shakes her roughly. The crustacean claw clamps tightly on her upper arm, pain shoots through to her body. Ignoring the fear in her eyes, he snarls, "Ye are treading on dangerous ground, missy. Do not assume that ye have any special treatment over anyone else here!"

"You are a monster! A bloody, cold-hearted beast! You have brought me here to torture me, there is no other reason! Just be off with me already! Hell would be a thousand times better than being stuck here with you! I hate you!"

A sharp stab of pain catches Jones in the chest. His grip loosens and the girl writhes free. "No…" He mumbles to himself, his blank stare unable to follow her as she races for the door. Motionless, her words wound him deeper than he ever thought possible. "I did not mean…"

"Leave me be! You do not care for me! Do not pretend that you do!" Without thought she exits the cabin, leaving the emotionally crippled captain behind.

Blinded by the burning tears that form on her eyelids, Liliana races out into the sunlight. Breathless, she slams into the side rail, gasping for air as angry words sputter from her lips. Below her, the water splits underneath the burdensome weight of the ship. She is sailing at an incredible speed; surely the waves would carry her away if she jumped off.

"Fucking bastard!" She yells viciously, not sure where the swearing is coming from. But the words spew from her mouth naturally as if she were commenting about the weather.

Suddenly, a cold chill creeps up her spine once she realizes where she is. A hard knot rolls over in the pit of her stomach. Her body begins to tremble as she realizes she is not alone on deck. She can feel the burning gaze of many probing eyes upon her. She swallows hard at the feeling of pure evil surrounding her from every angle. Perhaps she was safer with the captain.

"Looks like we have a stowaway!" A sinister voice cackles from behind, causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand on end.

A chorus of malevolent laughter springs up around her. Liliana digs her fingernails into the wooden rail, desperate for something to hold on to, for something to protect her. A cold hand makes contact with her arm and spins her around to face her nightmare. A scream tries to escape from her throat, but is unable to find its way past her horror.

Before her, a group of horrifically malformed, mutated bodies and forsaken souls. Like their captain, they too are encrusted with sea life. The wretched beings are comprised of barnacles, shells, seaweed and even a ship's wood and iron. The putrid smell of fish makes her gag. Their hideous faces make her want to run, but her feet seem firmly planted to the deck. Should she call to the captain? Would he save her?

No, of course not. He is one of them.

"So dis be da prize da capt'n be hiding." One of the monsters speaks for all. "No wonder 'e wants 'er all to 'imself!"

Trying to escape, Liliana jerks her arm around but is unable to break free from the grasp of her attacker. Her voice shakes with fear as she cries aloud, "unhand me!"

Another ghastly beast steps forward, running a slime-covered hand through her hair. "Shh, love. Do ye know how long it has been since we've had the pleasure of a live woman's company?" His words are soft but reek of malice. He leans forward and inhales the smell of her hair. "Hmmm, 'tis a good one lads!"

Bile begins to rise up in her throat as she realizes their intentions. They begin to swarm around her, hands grasping and pulling on her helpless body. One hand grasps her shirt and tears it open half way, exposing her cleavage. The scream that was building up within her now lurches out of her lungs. "Let me go!"

Her tear-filled eyes scan their disfigured faces. Each carries a sinister and disturbing smile. Liliana closes her eyes tight and sends out a prayer, begging for this to be over quickly. There is no escaping this. Just pray…

An ear piercing growl bellows from behind the group. She opens her eyes to see the majority of the group fleeing in every direction. They scream and holler for mercy as a blurred mass of writhing tentacles pins them to the deck.

Liliana's hope is restored by the sight of the captain now viciously battering her assailants. Without thought, she calls out his Christian name, "Davy!"

His eyes meet hers and the same anger is displaced upon her, "get inside! NOW!"

She does not question his authority. She quickly disappears into the bowels of the ship, seeking the safety of the captain's cabin.

Once he sees that she is safe, another blood curdling scream emits from the depths inside him. "All of ye will suffer for this! Bosun, I want every man responsible to receive one hundred lashes and then it is the rack for each of them for three days! No one will rest tonight lest ye want to be keelhauled!" The captain's rage boils over as he gives a violent kick to one of the crewman he knocked over. "I want wounds! I want broken bones! I want cold blood spilled on this deck!"

He storms away, readying himself to tear into the girl. He blasts through the door and finds her on the floor, sobbing. Her shirt is torn, exposing the same shoulder she playfully flashed to him the other day. Her porcelain skin is scratched, some areas weep with traces of blood. Unable to control his anger, he bitterly mutters, "Serves ye right for not listening to me."

Her head lifts off the floor, exposing the tears that streak down her face. In the mayhem, she received a gash to her lip. It now drips heavily with blood, staining the floor planks beneath her.

His anger subsides at the sight of her turmoil. Jones walks over to her and kneels down. He sighs at the startled jump she makes when he reaches for her chin. "I told ye to stay in here, did I not?"

"Leave me alone, monster!" Liliana hollers, blood splattering on his hand from her injured lip.

"I am fairly certain ye would not want that." Jones snickers to himself. "Ye are scraped up but nothing worse…nothing worse happened, did it?"

"No…" She whispers without looking into his face.

He stands and walks over to the large trunk full of various items. He quickly returns with a cloth and once again kneels before her. A painful position for him to be in, he ignores the cramping of his leg muscles as he grasps her chin again.

Applying the cloth to her lip, he ignores the fear in her eyes. "There. It is only minor. Ye will survive, I do believe. Now, ye have to promise me that ye will obey me from now on."

Liliana takes the cloth and holds it to her mouth. "I will."

A smile forms on Jones' lips. "Ye called me by name. Now the crew will definitely think we are up to something."

"You said the crew didn't know I was here!" She lashes out angrily, not appreciating his attempt at humor.

Jones' shrugs nonchalantly. "I can't hide everything from them. They were bound to figure it out." He pauses as he realizes what she needs to hear from him, something he is completely unaccustomed to doing. "I am sorry for yelling at ye."

Liliana just glares at him.

"Look, ye should accept it. It's not very often that I apologize. Once a century it may happen, if you're lucky. Ye may be the first person I've apologized to on this ship."

"Oh, I am so very lucky…" She snaps.

"Am I forgiven?" He sends her an evil grin, one of a child trying to get away with a naughty deed.

She considers his actions for a few moments and finally comes to a conclusion. "Well, you did rescue me from those dreadful monsters. So I guess I have no choice." Her voice escapes as a harsh grumble. She pauses and looks into his eyes. They are finally soft and hold a trace of compassion in the deep pools of vivid blue. "Thank you, captain."

Jones stands again and snickers. "Think nothing of it. They would have torn ye apart. And I must admit that I am looking forward to the food ye plan on creating."

"You expect me to go back out there after that?" She desperately crawls towards him.

"I will assign you a guard. No one will mess with ye now. Especially since they will each get a taste of my wrath for what occurred." He examines her one last time before heading towards the door. His spine is tingling, his blood flowing faster for the thrill of torturing those who tried to harm her. "Now stay in here until ye are called upon, Miss Liliana. I can't be watching ye forever. And when I come back, I expect a proper apology from ye."

He closed the door before she could reprimand him. Why on earth would he expect her to apologize? Suddenly she felt the crushing emptiness around her. He left her there to waste away in her misery on the floor.