The Reaper's Revenge

Chapter 11

All alone in the dark, tired and weak, Alex silently mumbled the passages from the book that she retained from memory. "Oh great Tylassa I ask of thee, to bring back one who was lost to me, I pay this debt, my debt be true, an earthbound soul I give to you." Over and over again she silently recited the incantation she had studied so many times. The words that needed to be spoken in order to summon the goddess herself and awaken the Pool of Souls. She did this for hours.

"Oh great Tylassa bring back the one named Piper Chapman….bring back one…lost…Piper." She had to keep her mind active, fight the deliriousness, and distract herself from hunger.

"Beware Tylassa's gills for they protect her…the temple that kisses the clouds."

Another week had gone by with nightly visits from Desmond. Kubra had kept his word about the food, leaving her starving and her stomach aching painfully with hunger, and when he did send her food it was so very little, dried bread crust that she devoured hungrily, no meat, nothing filling. When Desmond came to watch he would make a show of eating a leg of mutton and his own crust of bread. Over time Alex noticed that during his visits his meals look to be getting thinner and thinner, by the looks of it there was no more meat and he too only had bread to eat. She took mental note that food supply had to be running low. Wouldn't be long before the whole crew began to starve. At this rate they would all die from starvation before they ever got to the island. Alex hadn't really planned ahead when she infested the food supply with dead bodies. Now, not only were the men going hungry but now so was she.


"We have to make a slight…detour in our plans" Kubra said as he held a meeting in the captain's quarters with his men. Stella watched the frustration on his face, the wrinkles in his forehead more defined than usual. She could see that he was very short tempered at the moment and decided it would be wise to just listen. She could tell Alex's behavior was getting to him, what with his temper flaring up more than usual. And thanks to Alex Kubra was angered at the fact that they needed to divert from their course.

"Supplies have gone terribly low and the fleet isn't doing so well either. Problem is this cuts into time from our journey. So unfortunately we have to double back and restock. Thankfully though we can restock by means of hitting this…" Kubra tapped at the map with his finger "…Common trade route not too far off from here, an ocean channel called the Ofray about two days away. At least this way we won't be diverging too far out from our planned course."

"So what are you saying captain? We be goin' fishin'?" Haluk asked.

Kubra grinned "Precisely, being that it is a common trade route, we're bound to run into some ships filled to the rim with precious cargo, we simply need to net ourselves a good one."

"Only one sir?" Desmond asked.

"Well only one if the score is big, I don't want to dwell on this too long. Frigates should do and of course any of the small merchant ships we possibly run into along the way. But I don't need to tell you all, the bigger the ship, the bigger the haul. We immobilize the ships, gut them for all their spoils, and kill anyone who's left standing. I have no interest in hostages. Is that understood."

"Aye sir." They all said collectively.

"Very good, dismissed. Stella change course."

"Aye sir."


The Jackal arrived near the Ofray much faster than planned, by nearly a day ahead of what Kubra had thought all thanks to Stella. She had been able to spot some of the currents that would give them the extra boost in speed that they all needed to get there. She had explained to him as such shortly after turning the ship around. His response was short and dismissive "Do it." he had said without even bothering to look up from the map he was studying. And Stella turned around without so much as another word.

The Ofray channel split down the middle between two large islands. As they came closer and closer towards their destination The Jackal started to creep slowly across the water with Kubra's instructions to pull up behind one of the large land masses where they would wait. It wouldn't be too long until something showed up, if it was such a common a route as Kubra had said. And indeed it was. But the ships they were getting weren't exactly like the "bigger fish" they had hoped for, small merchant ships and such with very little cargo on board but still ripe for picking. So they did.

After a few more hours Kubra finally saw his big fish as did the man stationed atop the crows nest. He hollered down to the men below "Galleon ship dead ahead sir!"

Kubra hollered back "How long?!"

"They'll be coming around the rocks in about ten minutes, coming round our starboard side."

Galleon ships were huge, slow in their movement, and a perfect vessel for shipping cargo but very well armed. Kubra gave orders for the men to ready the guns and slowly ease the ship out of hiding. Just as soon as the enemy ship started to come around one of the rock formations the Jackal pounced and speared itself into the ship's broadside with a roaring crash of wood snapping and breaking against each other. It hit so hard that the Galleon ship listed over to it's other side. With no time to correct itself Kubra yelled orders to open fire and an enormous blaze of cannons ruthlessly tore into the meat of the ship. Men took to the swivel guns and immediately started blasting at large groups of the Galleon crew, lowering their numbers, and making it a lot easier for them to board.

The enemy ship started to fire back once it got it's bearings and returned it's own vicious assault that made the Jackal tremble from the impact. The cannonballs that came through the air broke through men's bodies in an eruption of blood, meat, and bone. Wood exploded and splintered into random faces of those caught in the crossfire.

While some of the men stayed behind to keep working at the swivel guns the other men hollered their loud battle cries as they latched on to their ropes and swung aboard. They were hard up for battle and ready for a fight, having been at sea for weeks with nothing to do left the men bored and irritable, and with no thanks to Alex, fearing for their lives. This bit of fun was exactly what the men needed. They all needed to relieve the stress. Stella knew she needed to.

Ever since Alex had been brought back things had not been going the way Stella had hoped they would, in fact things have gotten a lot worse. She just couldn't understand Kubra's obsession with Alex and she was starting to wish that she had just went on and killed her aboard the Widow when she had the chance, then Alex would have her wish and she'd be with her dead girlfriend right now. Kubra would have never had known the truth. And now here she was, all of her hard work and position being threatened and Alex didn't even want it, which made it all the more insulting. They didn't need Alex, Stella was just as capable of finding Tylassa as she was, they didn't need her. If anyone deserved the title of quartermaster it was Stella. And if Kubra needed further proof of this so be it.

With that in mind, with adrenaline and fury rushing through her veins, Stella led the charge on board the ship with vicious resolve shouting orders over the loud hollering voices of the men and the gunfire that exploded through the air. She swung aboard the ship and landed with a frontward roll then quickly whipped out her dagger and threw it into the head of the first man she saw, a precise hit, all the way to the hilt.

She took out her sword and engaged another man, twirled around to dodge his attack, parrying his sword and then taking out her other dagger to stab him in the eye. It felt good to let out some of her anger, she was almost enjoying just as much as the other men were.

Kubra was nearby switching weapons from guns to twin swords alternating between them. Without even turning around he caught the attack of one sword charging at his back and with his other sword he gutted the man in front of him spilling out his intestines. With ease he unsheathed his sword from the man's stomach and came back around to slice both blades to the back of the neck to the soldier that attacked him from behind, leaving him headless. Kubra took a moment to catch his breath. His bald head was shiny with sweat and blood, the glow from the fiery embers reflected off of it. The entire ship's deck was scorching hot and muggy with the heat of the fires that were eating away at the wood.

"Kill them all! Leave no one, grant no quarter! Find the food stores and supplies now!" Kubra roared.

The men cheered loudly in response as they continued their fight. It gave them the extra boost of bloody fury and satisfaction that they needed. Stella scavenged around the ship for any more of the opposing forces. She scaled up and down the ships steps, leaped on top of the ledges, flipped over barrels and scaled tall beams, throwing her knives and reclaiming them, slicing off limbs and severing heads. She personally climbed up one the tall spars to go after one of the marksmen that shot down at the men from up high. Stella caught the man from behind and slit his throat before reclaiming his rifle and used to slide down the rope and back on to the deck.

With the bayonet rifle now as her new weapon she rotated its use from spear to gun. She speared a man right under his chin and fired a shot right through his skull and watched as blood and brain matter exploded through the air.

Before long the remaining soldiers on the ship were calling for mercy and the ship's last remaining leading officer begged for a ceasefire. They all dropped their weapons to emphasize this plea, to say that they no longer wished to fight. Kubra granted them the mercy Stella thought that he would, the mercy of swift death. The ship was now fully theirs to claim.

Kubra gave the order to scourge the ship of all its useful belongings and a gangplank was lowered to connect the two ships. Like the others Stella rummaged through the different cabins from top to bottom until she stumbled upon a room that had been securely locked. Naturally Stella thought that there indeed had to be precious cargo inside for the crew to have locked a second thought she took out her knife and jammed it in the lock until she heard a loud click and the door came open.

She stepped inside to find that it very well wasn't cargo but it was in fact very precious. It was a young woman, about in her twenties. She was startled, hyperventilating in fear as she and Stella made eye contact. The woman looked to be torn as to whether or not it was appropriate for her to scream because Stella seemed hesitant in what to do. Stella's thoughts came together and realized that the ship must've been acting as an escort and here was the ship's most valuable asset.

"Please.." the woman said in a trembling voice "Please I beg you. Mercy."

Stella stared at her completely stone faced and took her gun from her belt. She aimed it right at her. Captain's orders were clear, no man left alive, no hostages. The woman flinched and continued plead for her life, trying to play on Stella's gender and perhaps gain sympathy from her. It wouldn't work. Stella had killed just as many women as she did men and this woman was no exception…or perhaps she could be.

Gun still raised and aimed right at the girl's face she noticed the woman's pretty features, her long hair and her eyes and she looked to be just about the right age too. This girl very well might be useful to them somehow.

Just then coming up right behind her was Haluk, jolly and exhausted from battle, his lean torso was exposed and covered with streaks of blood. "There you are! And look you found a stray!" He shouted in excitement when he laid eyes on the girl. "Well go on then kill her."

The girl, realizing that things were certainly not about to work in her favor stupidly decided to make a run for the door. Without missing a beat Stella quickly back handed her with the gun and knocked her back into the closet in which she was held. "Don't move from that spot!" Stella berated her. The girl looked up at her in fear and blood formed on her bottom lip. "Please, Please I'll do anything you want!"

"Good, now do as I say and don't move."

Stella turned her head back towards Haluk "Go and fetch the captain, bring him here, tell him I have something for him."

"What? But the captain said—"

"I said fetch the captain, tell him I might have something that might interest him. From there we will decide what needs to be done."

Haluk left her alone and after a few minutes he returned with Kubra only Haluk and Desmond was tailing right behind him, matching his powerful stride.

"Stella, this had damn well better be important. You know I don't like having my time wasted." Kubra growled.

Stella moved to one side to show him the woman sitting inside the storage closet. Kubra took one look at her and frowned at Stella "You summoned me here because you require assistance in killing this wench?!"

"No sir, you miss my point." Stella said.

"Then speak and make it already. Why is she not dead?!"

Kubra made a face at her that said he was listening and it had better be a damn good reason.

Stella looked back at the girl and then back to her captain. "Sir, I think I may have found the solution to our little problem with Vause. This woman could be the answer." Stella looked intensely into Kubra's eyes to emphasize what exactly she was getting at.

Kubra looked at Stella and then over at the young woman. She was beautiful little thing. What he really noticed were two distinct features about the woman, her hair and her eyes. A slight smirk came upon his lips as understanding began to flow through him. "I think you might be right about this one. Very good, Stella, very good."

He chuckled as if to have read Stella's thoughts "Perhaps that's not a bad idea at all. Maybe, we can make the exception for one hostage."

"Desmond bound and gag her we're taking this one with us."

Desmond came in filling the entire closet space and gathered her up. The woman immediately began to put up a fight, kicking her feet in the air and throwing her arms about. Then she started to scream. He clamped one of his big meaty hands over her mouth and they became muffled.

Kubra laughed "You're quite a little scrapper aren't you?"


Alex was finally relieved that the fighting had finally stopped. Lack of sleep made the sound of cannon fire seem far louder than usual and left a ringing in her ears. The entire time the fight was going on outside she sat by in anxiousness half expecting a cannonball to blow through and possibly even kill her. All the commotion that went on at the surface shook the whole ship. She went back to trying to calm her nerves and once again went right back to muttering the incantation.

"Oh great Tylassa I ask of thee, to bring back one who was lost to me, I pay this debt, my debt be true, an earthbound soul I give to you." By the third time she recited it the door from the upper decks opened and Kubra led a group of his men down the steps to Alex's prison. His boots clunked on every step and Alex could hear the smile in his voice as he spoke. "Hello, Alex. Are we sleeping well? I imagine you weren't, what with all the commotion up top."

Alex looked up at him, groggy and pale."What do you want?"

"It's good to see you too. We've gathered quite the haul and luckily have managed to replace the entire food supply that you have successfully destroyed with all of your murderous antics."

"Congratulations." Alex said flatly. "I'm so thrilled for you. Forgive me if I'm not leaping for joy. My legs are kind of cramped."

Kubra smiled to himself. "Well, as always everyone is rewarded for their efforts and given their fair share. Even you Alex."

"I'm sorry, but what role did I play in this because as I recall I've been down here for the past week."

Kubra ignored the comment and continued talking. "We managed to find a little something for you. Something I think you might appreciate. You see, I've realized my mistake and I think I may have figured out a way to fix it. You've made quite the demonstration with a lot of my men since your return and I can't afford to lose any more. And since hurting you doesn't seem to be getting the message through your head, I thought we might try a different approach."

Alex frowned. "And what exactly would that be?"

"You were absolutely right Alex, I can't hurt you, not anymore. I personally ripped out your heart and now…. I've decided that I'm going to give it back to you."

"What the hell are you talking about? I have a headache could you please start making sense."

Kubra turned to Desmond. "Bring the girl down."

Desmond came back with a woman in his arms writhing and fighting Desmond's grip on her forearms that were tied behind her back. The girl was gagged and let out muffled angry cries. Desmond was dragging her down like a rag doll. He yanked her forward and they all stood outside Alex's cage looking down at her.

Alex scowled at all of them. "What the hell is this?"

"This my dear, is insurance. From now on, whatever you decide to do to my men, I'm going to do to her. Didn't manage to get her name but no matter, it's not important. What's important is, her safety, her life now depends entirely upon you. And if another man dies on this ship and I find out that it is by your hand…well, let's just say things won't go very well for her. I will personally start cutting off limbs. Maybe a finger, maybe the whole arm, maybe an eye, who knows."

She scoffed at him "And just what makes you think I care what you do to her?"

"Because I know you Alex, despite how cold and ruthless you can be there is still a part of you that has a sort of weakness for the innocent, no matter how small. You don't enjoy the blood of innocents on your hands. Besides I thought you would appreciate this. She is all yours, your responsibility. And I thought she might be your type, long blonde hair, blue eyes. She may not be the real thing, but if you squint your eyes a little she might pass for a pretty similar replica. Insurance for me and my gift to you."

Alex, well beyond caring about Kubra's wrath, practically spat out her words that were coupled with anger and fatigue. "You're disgusting."

"I take it that means you understand. She's your responsibility now. No one will lay a hand on her so long as you don't lay a hand on any of my men. The girl lives so long as you cooperate. You fulfill your end of this bargain, not only will I not harm her but she'll be free to go once we get Tylassa."

Alex said nothing and just glared at him. Her eyes looked up at the young woman. She was breathing harshly through her gag and seething with anger but her tears betrayed her fear. Kubra yanked away the gag from around her mouth as Desmond opened the cage and he violently shoved her inside.

"I'll leave you both to it. How's about a couple more days in the hold huh Alex? That should give you both a little bit of time to bond and get to know each other."

Kubra smiled at her as he and his men began to file out. First Kubra, then Stella, Desmond, and then last was Haluk who held back a moment to throw a taunt at Alex.

He grinned at her showing all of his teeth, gums swollen from scurvy. "Do you mind if I stick around for a bit and see how it's done?"

Alex shot him a deadly look that made Haluk inch back a step.

"Nevermind," he said with a laugh "Just thought it wouldn't hurt to ask."

After he left, Alex inched her way back into the corner of her side of the cell as if she were trying to inch herself further and further away from the woman. She curled in her lips, rolled her eyes, and huffed out a breath through her nose. She started to turn away from the young woman but then briefly turned her eyes over in her direction. The woman had locked herself in a fetal position, knees drawn up to her chest. After a while she started to cry silently to herself, her whole tough-girl demeanor now gone. Long blonde hair, now wild and filthy, rested just past her shoulders, blue eyes, makeup smeared and running down her face from sweat and tear stains, she looked close to her middle twenties by the looks of it. Even though her dress was now torn and covered in grime Alex could tell by the fabric that the woman came from a wealthy home. Alex found herself staring at her a lot longer than she had intended to and immediately turned away to look through the bars.

This woman was not going to last very long and Alex was sure Kubra was going to kill her either way. It would only be a matter of time. Maybe if Alex were lucky enough the woman would get herself killed. But still, Alex found her looks to be very distracting and she hated her for it.