Chapter 8
The Wvicker Man
Morning came soon enough and Vriska, along with the rest of the crew got up and got to work on the deck as the Captain took his place upon the helm steering the wheel. Vriska was assigned the task of helping a few other crew members load gun powder into the cannons. The familiar scent of gun powder made Vriska think of home; she had a talent of building explosives and doomsday devices which she made quite a hobby of. She always built bombs for Eridan, back when he was going through his 'KILL ALL LANDWWELLERS' phase, but she always made them defective so he would always fail, it was very amusing.
As she loaded barrels of gun powder into one of the larger cannons a few of the men watched her. Most were surprised that such a young girl could carry her own weight like this, and some where just watching her for the simple fact she was a woman, an attractive woman. One of the crew members kept a particular close eye on her; it was a while since he had seen a woman. He continued to watch her as she effortlessly went about her work, one of his companions noticed and laughed smacking him square upside his head with a stupid smirk.
On the other side of the ship Dualscar's first mate was tackling a task of just directing some of the crew who were moving around a cannon. The wind was pretty heavy out today so the ship was rocking quite severely causing those who didn't have the best grip on their sea legs to stumble about which made for harder work than it ought to be. Up from the crow's nest a rope had gotten free and it was now swinging fast about the ship causing most to duck and cover. Although it was just a rope, if it were to hit someone at the speed it was swinging it could inflict some serious damage. Dualscar just laughed at his men who were cowering, calling them all 'A bunch of pussies.'
Seeing as no one else was planning on doing anything about the swinging rope of death, the first mate went off to wrangle it down so work could get back on track. As he got closer to it a big gust of wind came and blew the rope in his direction causing it to make contact with his neck. It felt as if he had just been hit with a whip and his neck was bleeding profusely now. Regardless of his injury the man managed to grab hold of the rope and tie it down to the mast, in a knot that he knew wouldn't get loose. Dualscar noticed the blood streaming from his neck and walked over to check on him, after handing the wheel over to someone else.
"Oi, ye alright?" he asked walking up to the first mate who was now clutching his neck in realization that being hit with a rope really did hurt like a bitch.
"Who's the fucking sonuvabitch who let that thing get loose?" he chuckled lightheartedly, but it was obvious he was hurting.
"Let me see it?" Dualscar commanded wanting to see the severity of the wound.
The first mate hissed moving his indigo blood covered hand from his neck. It was a pretty sizable and deep gash the rope had inflicted on his neck and it wasn't a clean blow either. The flesh was ripped about in different ways and thick nasty jagged rope fibers littered the expose blue meat, splintering it. Dualscar reached in towards the cut pulling out a rope fiber that was about an inch long, the first mate hissed at this. The Captain flicked the bloody fiber from his fingers and sighed at his first mate.
"Go to the infirmary, ye need stitches. Ye are relievwed from yer wvork for the day," he stated.
"But what about getting the job done, Captain?" he asked putting his hand back over his neck.
"Put yer hand dowvn, ye got em' rope fibers in there and ye are just pushin' them in further. Ye need to go nowv before infection spreads. Those ropes are filthy, covered in dirt, lusii blood, rat piss, and cod knowvs wvhat else. That filth is getting in yer blood stream and ye need it cleaned nowv before ye get sick…." He hissed. "As for yer wvork, don't wvorry about it. I care more about the wvell bein' of my crewv than just chores. Nowv go."
The first mate removes his hand and nodded running off to get to the infirmary. Dualscar sighed shaking his head before looking out to address his crew who was watching the first mate to see if he really was fine. He stood to where he could be seen and pointed out to where his first mate went.
"Nowv that ain't a pussy. Ye all should be more like him. Back to wvork, wve wvill havwe break in twvo hours. This wvind is goin' to kill us all," he grunted before going back to the wheel of the ship.
When break time came the wind had died down some and instead of going to a designated area, the crew dispersed about the deck of ship. Some dropped where they were and took a nap, others pulled out some fishing rods and began casting out lines over the railing, a few groups huddled together and started gambling while Vriska just stood there not sure what to do. Dualscar chuckled to himself and walked over to the confused girl.
"Not sure wvhat to do, aye?" he asked with a smirk.
"No… it's not like I really have a particular group of allies to hang around," she replied.
"Wvhy don't ye go to the infirmary and check up on me first mate? See howv he's doin'. Besides I wvould like it better if ye shelter yerself from the wvind wvhile ye got the time. Ye are so thin and yer delicate form might just blowv awvay, and that wvould just be a shame," he teased.
"Yeah yeah, is there a problem with being thin?" she scoffed.
"No but there is a difference betwveen bein' thin and looking like if ye turned sidewvays ye disappear," he laughed.
"Oh shut up," she laughed crossing her arms. "I am not that bad lookin'."
"I knowv, but ye really do needa beef up," he laughed smacking her in her arm in a playful manner. He leaned in to whisper in her ear, "Wvhy don't ye go grab a snack before ye go? I generally don't condone takin' food at a non-meal time, but ye'vwe earned it and ye sure as hell need it. The chef should be in the kitchen, but he is no trouble at all."
She smirked and nodded at him, "Aye aye Captain."
"Just don't eat any fruit. That is properly shared amongst evweryone. For reasons of scurvwy. Ye knowv?" he said in a soft tone.
She gives him another nod and walks off to go below deck, getting out of the wind. The man who was watching her work noticed her part ways from everyone else on deck and followed after her when no one was looking. Vriska made her way into the kitchen, being greeted by the jolly chef who was getting lunch ready.
"Oi, Lassy. What brings ye into my kitchen? Witty lady like yeself is lost?" he asked chopping up some vegetables.
"Uh no… I am here for something to snack on," she replied giving the chef a small smile.
"Oh… Captain doesn't exactly approve of snackin' ye know?" he chuckled turning to face her.
"Funny thing is... Captain ordered me to get something to eat. Apparently I am as thin as paper," she said with a laugh.
"Wouldn't put it past him. He always tries an' put up that stone cold demeanor but he is a good man, but don't take his kind pleasantries for granted. He will crack skulls when he needs to. I've seen that man pull off a gator lusii's bottom jaw with his bare hands. Oh the way that bone snapped was awful and spine chillin'," he said with a shudder. "But ye should be fine honey as long as ye behave."
Vriska thought about what he said about Dualscar breaking off a lusii's jaw with his bare hands. Imagine what he could have done to her neck if he used full force when choking her last night. She shook the thought from her head and looked at the chef. He put a hand on her shoulder and grinned down at her, causing her to tense up and back up.
"Oh sorry, Hun…. Didn't mean to make ye uncomfortable. Ye see…. Ye don't got to worry about me tryin' to get with ya…. Ya see… ye aren't exactly me type…. I play on a different team, if ya know what I mean," he chuckles.
"Oh…. I get what you are saying. The other crew members don't give you a hard time… about your choices?" she asked.
"Ah some are bothered by it but ye know I can't spend me life tryin' to make every ass hat happy. I am goin' to live me life the way I want and if people don't respect that then they don't get to eat…. Everyone minds their own fuckin' business, everyone eats. The chef on a ship is what helps the ship run, if the chef is pissed off, no work is done because of hunger and ship falls apart. Everyone has learned that the hard way so me choices are no longer an issue. Plus I am like one of the biggest guys on the ship, it's not like they are gonna kick me ass for bein' different….. As for ye bein' a woman. Ye need to show the men that ye aren't to be messed with. Ye are as strong as them," he laughs.
"Yeah I get it, but some men just don't know limits," she sighed.
"What about the Empress? Do ye see any man tryin' to fuck with her? Or even Mindfang…. No man is messin' with that bitch. Ye need to show these men why they should fear ye and then they will respect ya," he replied. "But before ye do that, Captain is right, ye need to eat somethin'. Bein' all tiny isn't helpin'" he laughs handing her four butter rolls in a napkin.
"Oh thank you, but I don't need four," she replied looking at the warm yummy looking rolls.
"Shhh… It will be our little secret Lass," he chuckles.
She smiles in thanks and walks off to the hall near the galley shoving an entire roll into her mouth and devouring it. It was sweet and the creamy butter added so much flavor, she missed food like this. She took another roll ripping the flaky warm goodness in half, expecting to take her time savoring this one but ended up just shoving both halves in her mouth at the same time. She looked at her last two with her cheeks still stuffed with rolls. She would save those for the first mate so she wrapped them up in a napkin and shoved them in her pocket.
Proceeding her way to the infirmary, she stopped at the sound of someone nearby. She turns around seeing no one which causes her to furrow her brows in concern. She started walking a little faster in her search for the infirmary, the sound of footsteps got faster as well. She growls stopping and turning around seeing a man come out of a nearby room.
"Quit following me," she snarled before resuming her walk.
He came up and grabbed her by the waist leaning in to whisper in her ear, "No… I don't think so…"
He tosses her in the nearby room entering after her and closing the door behind him. She growls standing up putting up fists prepared to fight, she wasn't going to let this happen again. He snarled his lip, scoffing at her pathetic effort to seem menacing and approached her.
Dualscar decided to go check up on his first mate and see how he was doing. He entered the infirmary surprised to not see Vriska in there, maybe she went up on deck, or was still in the kitchen, the chef did love to chat it up. He shrugged walking over to his first mate, who was sleeping in a hammock. He smirked grabbing the ropes that hung from the ceiling and flipped the hammock making him fall to the floor with a loud thud.
"Ouch! You dick!" he yelled sitting up before laughing. "Oh fuck you too Dualscar."
"Howv ye be?" Dualscar asked with a smirk crouching by the first mate.
"A lot better, I needed seven stitches. Good call on getting my wound clean, it was pretty bad," he replied rubbing the bandages on his neck.
"So did Vwriska come in here?" he asked raising an eyebrow.
"No… why?" the first mate stated.
"I told her to come vwisit ye after she got a snack…. I guess the chef is holdin' her up… I wvill be back in a minute, let me just check to see if she's alright…. She might havwe gotten lost. It is a big ship after all and she is such a small thing," he chuckled.
He started down the hallway heading to the galley to see if he could find his cerulean blood castaway. Vriska was in a rather sticky situation at the moment, as the crew member had her pinned down behind some crates that were in the room. A hand was over her mouth to muffle her screams, but that didn't stop her from trying to make the loudest sounds she could muster. Dualscar stopped as he heard something, was that screaming? He thought to himself. Then there was the sounds of scuffling as she struggled, which he followed until he found the two of them behind a crate of thyralian sapphires.
"ATTENTION!" He snapped in a voice colder than the blood in his veins. "Find yer wvay above deck nowv!" he roared.
He picked the bastard up by the collar of his shirt and hurled him out into the hall; clearly pissed he was so openly defied. When he was thrown he had blood on his chest, but it wasn't Vriska's but his own thick burnt orange blood. Vriska's hands were also covered in blood, from scratching and clawing away at the flesh on his chest. When the brute was off her, she stood, running up to the sailor and began beating him senseless. His face was becoming battered, literally caving in some, and she was punching so hard the flesh from her knuckles was ripping off.
Dualscar watched on indifferently, he warned there would be punishment, this was it, or at least was her form, he wasn't done with him yet. He could definitely see the relationship to Mindfang now, as she mercilessly beat him. The cerulean from her knuckles was mixing in with his burnt orange colored blood. When the man was lying on the floor bleeding relentlessly, she got off him and delivered a strong kick to the groin before turning to face Dualscar.
"Hello Captain," she muttered looking up at him.
"Hello Vwriska, are ye alright?" he asked looking her over.
"Yeah I am just fine. I was too much for this bastard," she snarled spitting on the bloodied troll.
He nods and began walking to the stairs that led above deck, stopping to grab the pained troll by one of his horns and dragging him up the stairs. He walked slowly enough for her to keep up as she followed him out on the main deck. He leaned the troll against the mast of the ship before stomping on the deck loudly whistling general quarters, causing everyone to run up. She walked up beside Dualscar, holding her bloody hands out in front of her for all to see. He looked at her patting her gently on the back before turning to address the crew who looked from him to her and then to the bloody man.
"Some of ye may havwe thought, like this wvastrel, me wvarnin' wvasn't enough, he can't be serious ovwer this can he?" he pointed to the troll who was coughing up some teeth. "As ye ALL can see he found out the hard wvay that our Lovwely Lady of the ship isn't just a pretty face among us. AYE, she did this to him, not me, HER and I say he got off pretty fuckin' easy, wvouldn't ye?! So let this!" He pulls out a saber and grabbed the man's left hand. In a moment, as quick as lightning, he sliced the man's hand off. "Be a wvarnin' to ye all…. And next time… punishment wvill be wvorse!"
When the blade sliced through the man's flesh and bone there was a blood curdling scream. Dualscar, sheathing his saber, held up the bloody dismembered appendage claiming it as his own, as blood spurted from the new nub the sailor was sporting. Vriska's eyes widened as she watched the punishment Dualscar had inflicted, she hadn't expected him to defend her honor in that sort of way. The troll screamed and groaned clutching his bloody wrist as he was riving in agony. He glared up at Vriska, giving her a look that he was going to kill her for this. Dualscar noticed this and snarled a lip in anger, as a few crew members came to collect the bloody man.
"Wvait!" Dualscar yelled holding his hand up at the approaching men.
"He has gotten off too easy…. He wvon't learn his lesson… Nowv I must make an example for all of ye!" he roared.
Dualscar pulled out a pistol and shot the man quickly, effortlessly, and spot on in the middle of his head. The man's brain matter and blood splattered across the deck and he fell over with a thud. Vriska let out a silent gasp and tensed up as she watched this, blood splattering up on her, even a few drops on her face. Dualscar grabbed the corpse by the horn and propped him up on the railing before letting go of the troll corpse letting it splash into the water, and sink below. He then tossed the dismembered hand over board to join its original owner. He peeked over the rail noticing sharks and lusii swarming the bloody water.
"I hope this makes meself clear on me orders. As I said Vwriska is off limits, unless ye wvant to end up as lusii food." Dualscar tucked away his pistol and wiped his hands together looking to all the world like he didn't just kill a man. "Carry on!" he growled watching them depart.
He turned and sighed looking at Vriska, "I am sorry, I should of came wvith ye."
Vriska was still in a state of shock in what just happened, she didn't know Dualscar was that serious about keeping her safe. She would have never expected him to just slice off the crew members hand like that, let alone kill one of his own men. He sighed wiping the blood off her cheek with his thumb.
"Ye alright Lass? I didn't scare ye, did I? I am sorry, but I am a vwery serious man and unlike some people I don't play silly games," he says looking down at her.
"I am fine," she replied. "… Thank you… No one would have ever done anything like that for me."
"It's no problem. I wvant ye to be happy and feel safe. Ye havwe respected me so far and havwe done wvork like ye should plus ye make for good company. I respect ye in return," he stated pulling out his pipe and smoking it.
"Yeah, you have been the first person who has been nice to me in a sweep. Why wouldn't I respect you?" she said with a soft smile.
"Go wvash up. Plus ye are relievwed of deck duty. Wvhen ye are done wvashin' go to the infirmary and tend to me first mate and keep him company. Also see if the doctor needs anythin'. He is a hard wvorker and he is underappreciated. Yer main goal should be tryin' to get him to smile. Wvould ye do that for me?" he said with a grin.
"Aye aye, Captain," she said and went to his quarters to get the blood off.
