Thank you all for the reviews. And of course, I don't own Vampirates. And Uh, the title/ship's called 'The Salamander' because it was the first word that came into my head. But yeah, that's not important. I know it's a little bit….different, but I hope you all like it.

The Salamander

Another day, another massacre. The pirates were growing worried. Jez realised as he grabbed a man by the arm and dragged him closer when he tried to run. The ships now had more lookouts; there more pirates were carrying their weapons on them 24-7.

Not that it actually made much of a difference. He thought with a snigger, snatching the man's dagger from it's holder and weighing it in the palm of his hand.

"What's your name?" Jez asked, relaxed, like he had done this many times before, which, he reflected, was somewhat true. His captive shook and collapsed as his knees gave out from under him as he reacted to the grotesque casual and relaxed attitude of the vampire while simultaneously be surrounded by the grisly deaths of his comrades. He whimpered, "Spare me…please…I don't want to die! I have a wife, I can't leave her. I'll do anything, just don't hurt me!"

Jez chuckled, "That's kind of you to offer but it wasn't what I asked you. And if you're telling the truth, that you really don't want to die, then I suggest you tell me your name"

He must have caught the fire burning in his Jez's eyes because his voice quivered but he still answered, "My name…my name's John…John Wright"

Jez laughed again. Twisting the knife's hilt through his fingers. Taking his time. . Enjoying the wait. It only made the kill more delicious.

"John, hmm, nice name. I have a friend called Johnny, well Juan actually, but you don't need to know that. You just need to know that today is your lucky day"

He paused awaiting his captives reaction. The pirate only shook and stared at his with fearful wide, unblinking eyes.

"I'm giving you a chance…just the one mind you. I want you to count to three, in Spanish. Can you do that? The Johnny I know can." Jez said, speaking slowly as if he was talking to a small child and not a fully grown pirate, "If you can do it. I'll let you go free, okay."

The man nodded desperately, grasping at half the chance to escape the same brutal fate as the fallen crew. He closed his eyes, trying to block out the screams circling around him.
Jez watched carefully. One thing about piracy was it was very cross-cultural, it wouldn't surprise him if this man spoke a bit of another language.

"Uno…" John said slowly. He pronounced each syllable clearly and precisely despite the shaking, "…Dos.."

He stopped and tuned to look as an unusually loud scream echoed near by, he watched as Johnny -the one Jez knew- grabbed a woman by the neck and pulled her close into a deathly embrace. He shivered, and tried to block out her terrified expression from his mind. He glanced up at the vampire who still held his arm in a vice-like grip and waited patiently for him to continue. He took a deep breathe, desperately searching his mind for the half-forgotten answer he had once learned, "…tres?" He prayed he had gotten them right.

Jez stared as the pirate spoke. In the background he was aware of the other vampires feasting. But he ignored them concentrating on his own soon-to-be dinner. He threw the knife up and caught it with his one free hand, before repeating the trick. As if he was bored or was mauling over the captive's answer. Of course, neither of those were true, but it didn't mind what anyone thought.

"Did…did I say it right" The man asked. As Jez tossed the knife up and caught it expertly once again. Quite a few minutes had gone by and the man was desperate to know his fate. Jez savoured these last moments, drawing out the final pause for as long as his thirst could bear. Then he simply shrugged, "I don't know. I don't speak Spanish"

It was funny watching the man's expression turn from hope to despair to pure terror and Jez pulled his closer and took a deep bite…

Sidorio watched his crew thoughtfully. Particularly his two deputies. Jez drew out the kill, playing mind games with his victim, amusing but rather pointless. Johnny was straight to the point, -to the point of his teeth that is- managing to drain a woman in half and minute flat.

-He had to admit attacking pirate ships was a pretty good idea. These people were much more spirited than the ordinary common folk of the costal towns; some of them actually had the heart to raise a sword to fight despite the hopelessness of the situation. He drunk his fill -more than his fill- swiftly. Waiting until their was only a handful of the living left. He eyed them carefully. Some of them were the toughest and the best fighters, they would be tuned into vampires.
Others were pirates which had tried to hide; some call them the smart but Sidorio preferred to call them cowards. -And cowards, he decided, deserved to be punished. The vampirate crew founded them and dragged them across the 'wish' onto the prison ship where they were to be locked up and left to a much more prolonged death then their already dead comrades.
Lastly, their were a very small minority of people who had simply been overlooked. Sidorio, now gabbed one of these -a woman- and gazed into her grey, fearful eyes for a moment before shoving her overboard. He lent over the side of the ship and watched her struggle in the water below, momentarily wondering if she could swim. Apparently she could as she broke the surface of the ocean treaded water for a moment, to dazzled to do anything else. Sidorio laughed and cupped his hands to his mouth, "Land's that way!" He shouted before pointing in the right direction as she looked up, startled. "And when you get there make sure you tell all the pirates: Sidorio sends his best wishes and that he'll be seeing them all soon"