7 years after the sinking of the Aquila…
The skies of mid ocean were painted a blazing orange by the setting sun as the little ship flew westward, staying high and close to the cloud ceiling, where it would be difficult to spot. Blue pennants attached to the ship's mast fluttered in the breeze, catching the eye of the girl occupying the deck.
Her eyes were the same brilliant shade of blue, and she tore them away from the distraction a moment later to continue scouring the skies around her. In one hand she held a long metal scythe with a translucent blue blade; in the other, a lantern with a merrily-twinkling flame at its center.
Beyond the scythe, a few things stood out about her - her stark white hair that faded into a trio of blue pigtails; the belt full of knives around her waist; and the sharp silvery blades that had been fitted onto the fronts of her boots. Above all, she looked ready for a fight, and as she caught sight of her target in the distance, she knew she'd have one.
"Raiding another merchant ship, Corin? So predictable." She muttered to herself with a smirk as she strode over to the little cabin containing the ship's bridge. She rapped three times on the door before shouting. "That's him! Bring us down!" She didn't hear a response, but she felt the little ship beginning to descend towards the scene below.
A large pirate ship was laying into another, smaller ship with its cannons, and she could faintly see some of the former's crew boarding the latter to begin killing and stealing. This really was the perfect opportunity, she reflected as her little ship descended close enough for her liking.
There were about a dozen pirates visible on the deck of the larger ship, and she picked one at random before slinging the lantern over the side to tumble downwards towards its unfortunate target. There was a cracking of glass, a bloom of orange-red light, and a scream as it connected. The fire slowly began to spread over the deck.
She saw several of the pirate crew stop to stare. One or two began to look towards the source, and she took that moment to make her entrance, leaping over the railing before her to land neatly on the deck of the larger ship below. Her scythe lashed out to impale the nearest pirate a moment later, and as he collapsed the remaining men turned to face her. "Hello, boys." She said with a smirk.
"Kill her!" One of them shouted as all of them began to come at her. She hurried to one side to get out of the way of the initial crush of bodies before turning and slashing another in the chest with her scythe. One more pirate who'd tried to blindside her got a knife in the neck from the collection at her belt before he could the remaining distance to her.
The element of surprise was gone, now, however, and the remaining pirates, though their numbers had been thinned, now surrounded her with hate in their eyes. The largest and most grizzled-looking one stepped forward to scoff at her, looking back and forth between her and the flames spreading over the ship. "So, you must be the 'angel of death'. I'm afraid you've underestimated us." He gestured to the fire. "Someone put that out while the rest of us kill her."
The girl's grin returned as she shook her head. "Deathhound!" She shouted the word with one hand cupped to her lips to make sure it'd project. The pirates had a moment to stare at her in confusion before a massive green feralisk hound landed on one of them and began to tear into him with its claws.
All the pirates, except the grizzled one, turned or flinched. She took advantage of the distraction to surge forward towards the group. "Good boy." She said under her breath as she whirled her scythe. Two of them managed to get out of the way, but the rest were cut down before they had a chance to react.
"Son of a…!" One of the two survivors began, only to be tackled down by the hound a moment later, crying out as he got a taste of its claws. That left the girl alone with the large pirate who'd scoffed at her a moment ago.
"Corin the bloodletter. The angel of death has come for you." She said as her smile faded. Her blue eyes turned icy as she stared him down.
Corin, for his part, glared right back at her as he levelled his scimitar in her direction. "You'll pay for this." He spat before lunging at her.
She sidestepped his swing, arcing her scythe towards his back. He managed to anticipate it and ducked under the blade before aiming another slash of his sword at her legs. The girl was out of range before his sword was halfway there, and she drew a knife from her belt and flicked it at him as he rose. He let out a pained cry as it struck him in the leg.
She charged him, but with his mobility reduced he couldn't avoid her anymore. He stopped one swing of her scythe with his sword, then another, but the third bit into his side. He stumbled back as he clutched the fresh wound, staring at the girl in disbelief. "S-stop. I'll give you whatever you want, just let me go." He said, brandishing his sword at her in a now-pitiful show of defiance.
The girl scowled at him. Her scythe lashed out at him, and he managed just barely to catch the blow on his sword. A smirk spread across the girl's face a moment before she flicked one leg out in a kick aimed at his chest. The blade attached to her boot cut a deep gouge in his chest, and he stared at it for a moment before collapsing.
The girl looked around her. The fire was beginning to spread faster now and had engulfed half the deck. The merchant ship looked like it was dealing with the few pirate stragglers that had been left out, and it was beginning to pull away. Her work here was done. She turned around to find that her little ship had descended to be level with the deck of the pirate ship.
"C'mon, Deathhound." She said, waving to the dog as it continued to scratch or prod at the corpses littering the deck. It barked before following her as she leapt across the divide back to her ship. Once her pet had made it too, she rapped her knuckles on the cabin again. "Let's go."
She leaned over the railing to watch the pirate ship burn ever brighter as it grew smaller and smaller in the distance. Once she'd had enough of admiring her work, she knelt down to scratch gently at Deathhound's shaggy green fur. "You did good today." She said. Deathhound's tongue lolled out as he panted at her.
She gave his head a pat before standing and opening the door to the little ship's bridge. A man in a purple coat with dark hair stood at the helm, staring out at the skies ahead with a bored look on his face. "You sure don't waste any time getting your work done." He said.
"Neither do you, Lawrence." She said as she strolled over to a simple, empty weapon rack by the door and set her scythe on it. "I'd say you've earned your pay this job."
"I always do." Lawrence said simply. "Where to now?"
The girl tilted her head as she thought for a moment. "Sailor's island. I could use a break from sailing."
Though his expression didn't change, Lawrence's tone grew a touch more concerned. Most people wouldn't have caught it. "There's a lot of things you could use a break from, Piastol."
Piastol rolled her eyes as she undid the threads holding up her pigtails, letting her multicolored hair fall over her shoulders. "You're one to talk, mister mercenary."
Lawrence was adamant. "I just sail ships. How many people have you killed?"
She glared at his back. "Don't lecture me. I don't pay you for that." She said with finality.
"If that is your wish." He replied. "We'll be at Sailor's island within the hour." The little change in his tone was gone now, replaced with professional matter-of-factness.
Piastol sighed as she leaned against the wall and watched the darkness of evening spread out over the skies of mid ocean. She didn't need a lecture from Lawrence, of all people. He didn't know a damn thing about her. She wasn't going to stop until she'd gotten her revenge. When that pirate had paid, maybe she could change.
Until then, she'd stay the angel of death.
The light of the rising sun gleamed off the hull of the Serpent as it made its way through Blue Rogues' territory towards its destination. Half a dozen other ships from Galcian's personal fleet accompanied it, all ready to attack.
Ramirez approached Galcian on the bridge as their destination came into sight in the distance. "We're approaching Pirate isle, my lord. What are your orders?" The young man said.
Galcian pulled his encompassing black cloak a little closer around his shoulders as he stared at the steadily-approaching shape of the small island ahead. "Give them a show of force. Bombard the island and destroy the buildings. Stop before it's completely shelled out, however."
Ramirez nodded as he turned to leave the bridge. "Yes, my lord."
Captain Dyne was sitting at the table in his home, eating breakfast when a noise from outside caught his attention. Normally he'd have dismissed it as typical, except this one had sounded like a scream. His intuition shouted at him to hurry as he rose to his feet and hurried out the door.
Almost immediately he found himself accosted by Luke, one of his crewmen. The young redhead looked frantic as he grabbed the older man's arm and shook him. "Captain Dyne! The Armada is here!" He said, pointing off to one side.
Dyne's gaze followed his direction, and immediately he caught sight of the squadron of black ships approaching. "Get everyone below ground!" He shouted as he tugged his arm free of Luke's grip. "Hurry!"
He'd barely had time to give the orders before the first cannonball slammed into the side of the island's windmill, toppling it with a thunderous crack. More soon began to follow, targeting the houses and making a deafening racket as they blazed through wood and stone alike.
There was panic around him as his crew began to direct the women and children into the tunnels below the island. Though most of them looked shocked or terrified, he was relieved to see that none of them appeared seriously hurt. He soon joined his fellows in ushering everyone below.
Soon, the cannonfire stopped, to be replaced by the roar of a large ship's engine as the largest of the attacking ships drew near. Dyne froze as he recognized the markings on the side. "The Serpent… What is Galcian doing here?" He said in disbelief.
A minute later, smaller ships began to descend on the island, and Valuan troops began to march through the wreckage as they disembarked to surround the pirates gathered on the surface. All of the pirates drew their weapons as they glared at their would-be captors. "Easy, men." Dyne said, and he saw a little of the tension go out of them as he spoke.
None of the Valuans said anything until their leader arrived. A young man with short, silver hair came forward to stand before him, brandishing a deadly-looking sword in the same shade of silver. "Captain Dyne of the Blue Rogues - you are hereby under arrest for attacking a ship of the Valuan armada and stealing property of the Valuan armada."
"Captain Dyne?" Luke said quietly from off to the captain's side.
They were heavily outnumbered. They didn't stand a chance, and Dyne knew it. He'd always depended on secrecy and obscurity to protect him, and now the jig was up. He knelt and set his pistol at his feet as he raised his hands in surrender. "Alright. You win." He said dejectedly.
His crew hesitated for a long moment before following suit, setting their weapons down slowly before raising their hands. The silver-haired young man shook his head. "Disappointing. I was hoping you would resist." He said before sheathing his sword and gesturing to one of the soldiers beside him. "Find the girl. Get the rest of these pirates in chains, and burn their ship."
"Yes, sir!" The soldier said, snapping off a salute before he and several of his fellows hurried to begin cuffing the pirates or heading into the tunnels to search for their target.
Dyne frowned as he found his hands restrained, forced to watch as his crew was carted off to the smaller ships surrounding the island to be taken aboard the Serpent. "Leave this one to me." The silver-haired young man said as one of the soldiers moved to lead Dyne away.
Dyne scowled at him. "What do you want?"
The young man smirked as he leaned close. "You made a grave mistake stealing from the empire, captain Dyne." His smirk faded into a glare as he gripped the hilt of his sword with one hand. "Where is Fina?"
Dyne hissed under his breath. "I knew that girl would be trouble." He said as he looked away from the gloating expression on the young man's face. "We're not hiding her. Your boys will find her soon enough."
"Did you hurt her?" The young man asked. The look in his eyes when Dyne glanced his way once more made him shudder.
"No. Nobody's hurt her." Dyne said simply.
"Good." The young man replied as he grabbed Dyne's arm in a surprisingly strong grip and began to lead him away. "I will escort you to your… accommodations."
Dyne felt his heart sink as he looked back at the scorched ruins of his home. He could only hope he'd see it again; and maybe, that Vyse wouldn't do anything foolish when he saw it.
Piastol's work could get very boring indeed at times; Though killing pirates was always exciting, there were far too many pirates in mid ocean for her to go after all the time. And so she'd limit herself to targeting those who she felt grew too bold and successful - those who needed to be purged from Arcadia the most.
She'd been docked at Sailor's island for almost three days, and she passed the time the way she usually did. Her knife scraped gently at the little piece of wood in her hand as she carved out the shapes she saw in her head. When at last it was perfect, she carefully positioned it above the deck of the miniature ship on the table in front of her.
She narrowed her eyes as she set the last piece into place with a little bit of adhesive, before leaning back with a sigh of relief. Her muscles were sore from sitting around for so long, and her legs demanded a stretch. Luckily, she had plenty of reason to use them now that her work was done.
She rose and stepped away from the table to grab a black hooded cloak from a rack nearby, slinging it over her shoulders and pulling the hood over her eye-catching hair before fastening it around her collar. Then she grabbed the little model ship from the table, carrying it delicately in both hands as she stepped out the door and onto the deck of her real ship.
Deathhound raised his head from where he sat on the deck to watch her go as she nimbly hopped onto the dock her ship was fastened to. "Be a good boy while I'm away, okay?" She said with a wink at her furry companion before heading into town.
Sailor's island was a bustling place that many would consider the heart of mid ocean. It was certainly the most developed town in the region, with dozens of shops and a thriving community of traders and sailors.
And pirates. Their numbers in the town had begun to thin since Piastol had started to make a name for herself, and she felt a little swell of pride as she considered that fact. Most of the people she passed on the cobbled streets looked respectable, or at least passable. Few of them gave her more than a passing glance.
That suited her just fine. She didn't want attention. Attention would only make her job harder. She needed to move freely from place to place, to be able to track her targets without them knowing she was after them. If nothing else, her choice of work had taught her subtlety.
A bell jingled as she opened the door to the little shop. She stepped inside to see that she was the only one there other than the woman at the counter, which seemed to be the usual. She sometimes wondered how they made any money with how few customers they seemed to have.
The woman behind the counter seemed to perk up as she caught sight of the hooded girl. "Oh! Emilia. It's been awhile." She said with a smile.
Piastol smiled back at her as she heard the fake name. "Indeed it has, Loretta. I've got more junk to sell you." She said.
"Oh, please, Emi! The things you make are hardly junk." Loretta said as she waved her over to the counter. "Let me see it." Piastol gently set the model ship on the counter for the woman's inspection. Loretta quickly went to work looking it over. "My, my, this is bigger than what you usually make. I like it!"
Piastol felt her cheeks heat slightly. Ms. Loretta was always too kind for her own good. "Thanks. What'll you give me for it?"
"How does about 3,000 gold sound?" The woman said with a thoughtful look.
Piastol blinked. That was 500 more than she usually got. "Are you sure?"
Loretta smiled warmly at the young woman across the counter. "Of course! I can tell you really put your heart into this one."
Piastol rubbed idly at her neck with embarrassment. "Well, I won't say no…" She said with a small smile of her own.
Loretta fumbled with a purse she pulled from her hip for a moment before depositing three large golden coins on the counter. "Come back sooner this time, okay?" She said. "I worry about what you get up to when you're away."
The white-haired young girl nodded uncomfortably as she scooped up the coins and deposited them into her pocket. "I'll try my best, Loretta. Thank you for this." She said. Loretta nodded at her before she hurried out the door.
Piastol sighed as she stepped outside. Loretta was tremendously kind, and her generous payments had often been what kept the young girl afloat when supplies ran dry, but she wasn't sure she'd ever be able to take kindness at face value again. It always made her feel like something bad was about to happen. She shivered as unpleasant memories flickered through her head before turning to head back down the street. She needed a drink.
She'd gotten about halfway to Polly's tavern, staring at her feet for the most part before she bumped into someone. "Hey, watch where you're going!" She snapped as she took a step back and glared at the offending pedestrian.
A girl in a bright yellow outfit with even brighter orange hair glared right back at her. "You're the one who wasn't looking where she was going!" The girl snapped.
Piastol scowled. This girl's loud outfit was already annoying enough, but by the way she stood and the manner of her dress, she could already guess that she was a pirate. She wanted as little to do with her as was possible. "Get out of my way." She said as she tried to pass her by.
The girl grabbed her arm. "You should apologize when you do something like that. Manners are important, you know?" She said.
Piastol yanked her arm away and turned to glare at the young pirate once more. "You want to lecture me about manners?" She scoffed. "I don't need to take lessons from a dirty pirate."
The girl's jaw dropped for a moment before her expression got even angrier. "You little…" She growled.
"Aika! What are you doing? Let's go, already!" Someone called to her from nearby. Piastol followed the sound of the voice to look for its source, but whoever it was was already in the crowd near the tavern.
The girl - Aika, Piastol supposed - flinched for a moment before sighing. "I'll let you off the hook this time." She said with one last glare before she turned to run towards the source of the voice. "Coming!" She called as she disappeared into the crowd herself.
Piastol followed her with her eyes until she disappeared. Something about that girl seemed familiar, but she didn't quite know what. Whatever it was, it was making her upset, and she knew now more than ever that she'd need that drink. She hurried to the tavern.
Polly's tavern was crowded like it usually was in the afternoons, but Piastol managed to find a seat soon enough. "What're you having?" The young waitress said as she approached.
"Just get me a glass of mur loqua." Piastol said with a wave of her hand before handing the waitress a smaller gold coin.
"Coming right up!" The girl said before disappearing behind the counter.
Piastol passed the time by listening to the chatter around her. Most of it was talk about trade or food, but one thing caught her interest.
A scruffy-looking sailor was talking to another one with dark hair. "So I heard the armada was in Blue Rogue territory yesterday." The scruffy-looking one said.
"Yeah, I heard they got Dyne." The dark-haired one replied.
"Damn shame. He was one of the better guys out there."
"You think this is the end of the line for him?"
The scruffy-looking sailor nodded seriously. "Oh, definitely. Once Valua gets you, you're done. They'll be dead before the week is out, no question."
"Tsk… that's hard." The dark-haired one said, shaking his head.
"That's life." The other replied.
Piastol was distracted from the conversation as the waitress returned, setting a glass of greenish liquid down in front of her. "Here you go. Enjoy." She said before hurrying off to service other tables.
Piastol took a sip of it with a smile. Pirates meeting their just demise was always a treat. She didn't even mind that Valua was taking work from her. As she imagined the bratty redhead from a few minutes ago among their number, she only wished she could be there to see them die.
Admiral Belleza made her way through the Grand Fortress with purpose, heading for the meeting room at the top. Lord Galcian's summons had been urgent, and she didn't intend to keep him waiting.
She'd changed considerably since being given admiralty and command of the intelligence division. She'd honed her skills in lying and manipulation, built up a network of spies and informants, and tailored her appearance to better suit her role. Her long red hair now flowed past the shoulders of her custom uniform, which carried a similar shade of red to match.
Soon enough, she reached the imposing double-doors leading to the meeting room and opened them, stepping inside and taking her seat at the large table in the center of the room. Admirals Gregorio, Alfonso and De Loco were already there and waiting. "Glad you could make it, Belleza." De loco said with a sneer.
She gave him an unamused look through his glassy helmet. The little engineer, De Loco, had only been given the position of admiral quite recently, but he'd been working as the head of Galcian's engineering division for three years. Apparently his father had had a hand in creating the Grand Fortress itself.
That didn't help his personality at all, though. He was a crafty, irritable misanthrope, and Belleza stayed out of his way whenever possible. Normally the separation in their duties made that easy, but meetings like this one often led them to clash. "It's nice to see you too, Lord De Loco." She said with a forced smile as she bit back what she really wanted to say.
Whatever De Loco had to say to her was interrupted when the doors opened again to admit Lord Galcian himself, flanked by admiral Dulcinea and his vice captain, Ramirez. Belleza's gaze flickered between Galcian and the silver-haired vice captain as they crossed the floor. Dulcinea took a seat at the table, while Galcian and Ramirez moved to the front of the room.
Ramirez stepped off to one side while Galcian took a position at the end of the table. "Good evening, admirals of the Valuan armada. I appreciate you assembling on such short notice." Galcian said.
Belleza and the other admirals nodded. "What news do you have for us, Galcian?" Gregorio said, his armor creaking as he shifted in his seat. Belleza idly wondered if he ever took it off.
A smirk spread across Galcian's face. "As of yesterday, we have finally captured a member of the silver civilization. She is being prepared to meet the empress as we speak."
Alfonso wore an expression of self-satisfaction as he spoke. "Of course, I was the one who first located her. Had I not been betrayed by my own men, I might've been able to bring her here even earlier."
Belleza frowned at him out of the corner of her eye. That's not what her network had told her, and they were rarely wrong. "Is that so, admiral Alfonso?" She said. She saw him flinch ever so slightly, and that told her all she needed to know as she carefully kept the smile off her face.
"I'm sure the empress will be very pleased. Hopefully this girl will be willing to help our cause." Gregorio said seriously.
"No doubt she can be persuaded." Dulcinea noted.
De Loco chuckled from his seat at the other end of the table. "If not, I have more than a few methods of ensuring her compliance."
Both Belleza and Dulcinea glared at him for a moment before Galcian's voice brought both of their attentions back to his end of the table. "I will be escorting her to the palace shortly. With the empress's approval, I believe we will be able to begin our search for the moon crystals very shortly." His cool gaze swept over each of the assembled admirals. "I suggest you begin making preparations."
"Yes, Lord Galcian." The reply was unanimous among the assembled admirals.
"You are dismissed." Galcian said. The sound of chairs moving across the floor echoed throughout the room as one by one the admirals rose to their feet and began departing. "Except you, Alfonso." He added a moment later.
Alfonso froze mid-step, before slowly turning to face Galcian. "Did you need something from me?" Belleza, too, stopped near the doors to watch, letting herself smirk about it now.
Galcian strode forward to confront Alfonso directly, towering over the younger man and oozing with implied threat. "You lied in your report on the girl's capture. You betrayed your men to save yourself, then gave the ship over to pirates."
Alfonso shook his head with a shaky smile. "I did no such thing! Why would I lie to you?" His acting was convincing nobody.
Galcian narrowed his eyes at Alfonso. "The pirates released the ship and your men recently, and they returned to make a full - and accurate - report." Alfonso visibly deflated as he looked away from the older man towering over him. "Such weakness is unacceptable. You are hereby relieved of your command over the mid ocean fleet and confined indefinitely to Ixa'taka."
Alfonso stared at the floor, avoiding Galcian's eyes. "Yes, Lord Galcian." He said dejectedly.
Galcian regarded him with contempt as he waved a hand dismissively. "Get out of my sight."
Belleza watched him walk out with his tail between his legs. A moment later she realized Galcian was staring at her. "Admiral Belleza?" He said questioningly.
She gave him an apologetic bow of her head. "Sorry, my lord. I just wanted to see that." She admitted.
Galcian's smirk returned, and it briefly made Belleza's chest tighten as she realized it was directed at her. "Understandable. I'm sure you've been waiting for it ever since your listeners first reported it." He said matter-of-factly. "Nonetheless, I believe you have work to do."
"Of course, Lord Galcian. I'll get right on it." She said, bowing her head once more before hurrying out the door, leaving Galcian alone with his silent vice captain.
Galcian was quiet a moment before turning to Ramirez. "Go ahead and ask me the question you've been meaning to. No sense in keeping silent about it any longer."
Ramirez blinked for a moment before staring at Galcian with the faintest hint of a smile. "Very well." He said. "If it's not too much trouble, may I be the one to escort Fina to the palace, my lord?"
Galcian sighed and shook his head. "I'm afraid not. While I don't doubt you have plenty to say to her, there are plans I must put in motion during my visit to the palace. You'll have to save your reunion for afterwards."
Ramirez looked at the floor with a slight nod. "Yes, my lord. I understand." He quickly bit down on the little flicker of emotion that had begun to stir in his chest, before looking back at Galcian. "What will happen to the air pirates that kidnapped her?"
Galcian smirked. "They'll be executed tomorrow morning. All of Valua will get to see their heads roll."
Ramirez felt that faint smile returning as he nodded once more. "As it should be, my lord."
The gate rolled open with a creak, and Dyne was led out into the open space of the coliseum by a duo of armored guards. The roar of the crowd was a constant din in his ears as he was marched toward the executioner's block.
The executioner himself had apparently dressed up for the occasion, wearing a large set of exquisite gold and red armor that matched the yellow-bladed axe he held in one hand. Dyne thought it looked tacky as he was walked up onto the small, raised stage on which the executioner stood.
"What is this, a high-society party?" Dyne scoffed at the executioner.
"Fitting last words for a pirate." The executioner said.
Dyne felt a shiver run down his spine as he looked around. This was really it. His hands were bound. All his men were in chains, locked up in cages nearby and waiting to be executed after him.
This would be the end of Dyne of the Blue Storm.
He was just about resolved to his fate when he heard a clatter of metal, followed by hurried footsteps. A moment later, the guard on his right let out a grunt as another metallic clang sounded, before collapsing to the floor. "What the…?!" The other one said, only to be felled in a similar fashion a second afterwards.
Dyne was knocked off his feet as someone tugged at the collar of his shirt, pulling him just out of reach of the executioner's axe as it swept out to carve through the space he'd occupied just a moment before. He let out a grunt as he hit the floor, painstakingly working his way to his feet without his hands to help him.
He was halfway up when a set of familiar hands helped him the rest of the way. He came face to face with a young man wearing a zoom lens over one eye, his messy dark red hair just barely avoiding hanging in his face. "Vyse?" Dyne said with disbelief.
"Hey, Dad." Vyse said simply. "Hold still." He said, and Dyne froze as he felt one of his son's cutlasses slash through the rope binding his wrists.
He turned around to see chaos breaking out in the coliseum. Aika and an older man with a mechanical arm were battering the surprised guards and freeing his men left and right. Dyne scratched his head in confusion as he tried to process all this. Was it a dream? "Vyse, what the hell are you doing here?"
Vyse shook his head before pointing to a hole in the center of the floor of the coliseum, where a hatch had been knocked back to reveal a ladder leading downwards. "No time to explain. You and the rest of your crew need to get out of here."
Dyne was about to protest when another voice interrupted him. "Die, pirate!" The executioner said as he rushed forward towards the both of them, sweeping his axe in a deadly arc. Dyne and Vyse both rushed out of the way, Vyse brandishing his swords as he took a defensive stance soon after.
"Just go, Dad!" He said.
Already, Dyne could see some of his crew hurrying down the newly-revealed ladder while Vyse and his friends shielded them from the executioner and his remaining troops. Dyne shook his head as he hurried to follow the last of his men down the ladder.
He'd known Vyse was crazy, but not this crazy…
Though the palace was as bustling as ever, the last seven years had left Enrique feeling quite alone. He spent most of his time reading or attempting to persuade his mother of a new course for Valua. His visits to lower city had become increasingly infrequent, and Gregorio had warned him more than once that he was becoming a shut-in.
He wasn't sure he cared. He'd had to watch his mother grow increasingly violent over the years despite everything he tried, and now the one person he'd thought he could count on was far away from him at all times. He'd seen her maybe a dozen times in seven years, and most of the time it was in formal settings with little room for idle chatter.
So when Galcian arrived in the throne room that day, he didn't get upset. He simply stood alongside his mother and watched as the two of them conspired to destroy the world.
"Lord Galcian?" Teodora said with a gleeful smile on her face, her eyes roving over the young woman standing beside the Lord Admiral.
Galcian nodded seriously as he gestured to the girl. "As you requested, empress, the armada has captured a silvite." He said simply.
The young woman was quite unique-looking indeed, Enrique thought with a distant sort of intrigue. Her white clothes looked exquisite yet very foreign in their design. Her pale blonde hair was veiled by a translucent piece of fabric whose function he couldn't guess at. But what caught his eye was the way she stood - back straight and eyes forward as she faced down the empress.
"Excellent, Lord Galcian. You have yet to fail me…" Teodora said, before turning to the girl. "You are a member of the ancient silver civilization, yes? Your knowledge of the moon crystals will be invaluable in helping to expand the empire." Teodora smiled sweetly as she gestured imploringly at the young silvite. "Tell us what you know, won't you?"
The silvite girl shook her head. "I will die before I tell you anything about the moon crystals."
Teodora's eyes widened instantly. "What?" She said, her voice suddenly shaking with anger.
The silvite lifted her head in defiance as she stared down the empress. "The gigas and the moon crystals nearly destroyed this world in the past. I will not allow that to happen again." Her green eyes narrowed at the older woman standing shocked above her. "Power-hungry dictators like you are the reason the moon crystals must never be wielded by man again."
Teodora's jaw dropped for a moment before she began screaming, "Kill her! Kill this insolent wench now!"
For a moment, Enrique felt his apathy flicker away, and he reached out to set a hand on his mother's shoulder. "Mother, you can't do that. This woman has done nothing wrong, and you know it."
Teodora turned to her son with a look of outrage plastered on her face. "Nothing wrong? She's insulted me, Enrique! That alone is a crime worthy of death!" She spat.
The silvite girl spoke up again, her voice frantic. "Listen to me! You really mustn't…"
"Silence!" One of the guards barked, and the girl cried out as she was struck from behind by the butt of his spear.
Galcian sighed as he took a step forward. "Empress…" He said, his voice somehow booming above the others'.
Teodora and Enrique turned to face him, blinking as they momentarily forgot their squabbles. "Yes, Lord Galcian?" the empress said expectantly.
Galcian bowed his head respectfully as he spoke. "With your permission, I will take the girl to the Grand Fortress and find a means to persuade her to give us the information we need. I will then personally lead the armada in tracking down the moon crystals for you. Does that satisfy you, empress?"
Teodora stared at the girl, who was slowly getting to her feet with a dazed expression on her face. "I suppose that will do, yes." she nodded slowly as she regained her composure. "Yes, of course. I task you, Lord Galcian, with retrieving the six moon crystals in the name of the empire. I am certain you will succeed." She said.
Galcian nodded. "Of course, empress. I have but one request…" He said.
"Name it." Teodora said with a smirk.
"I would like to request that my vice-captain, Ramirez, be added to the ranks of the admirals. He has shown consistent excellence as a soldier and a leader." Galcian said.
Enrique's eyes were on the girl as she continued to get up, and so he saw the way she flinched at Ramirez's name. He frowned as he wondered what significance it had to her. "It shall be done." Teodora said. "You may leave. Get this girl out of my sight." She said with a glare at the silvite.
"On your feet!" The guard from before said as he menaced her with his spear. The girl hauled herself to her feet a little unsteadily before being led off and out of the throne room by Galcian.
He was most of the way to the door when it opened to admit another soldier wearing the dress uniform of the royal guard. "Lord Galcian! Empress Teodora! Urgent news from the coliseum!" He said.
Galcian stopped in his tracks to stare at the newcomer. "Speak." He commanded.
The messenger nodded. "Somebody broke into the coliseum during the execution. They freed all the air pirates and incapacitated all the guards on duty."
"And they are still at large?" Galcian said in disbelief.
The guard cowered away from the larger man a few steps. "Y-yes, my lord."
Galcian stared at the messenger for a moment before turning towards the door. "Take this girl to the Grand Fortress at once. I will investigate this disturbance." He said before departing. The hapless messenger stared after him, then turned to the silvite and grabbed her by the arm before leading her out as well.
Someone else standing up to the empress. A breakout in the coliseum. Enrique watched them go, and as he did so, he thought he could see the barest flicker of color beginning to return to his world.
Ramirez waited at the rail-car depot for Galcian to return with Fina. He'd hurried to get his assigned tasks out of the way so he could be there, yet now, it seemed his benefactor and the girl he'd been waiting seven years to see again were both late. He scowled at nothing as he lingered alone by the tracks.
A distant rumbling eventually caught his attention, and he turned his eyes to one side to catch sight of the lights on the front of a steadily-approaching rail-car. "Finally…" He said, carefully schooling his excitement. He hated to admit it, but Dulcinea's training had taught him a lot about controlling himself, and he was much more reserved now than he'd ever been before.
The rail-car slowed as it neared the depot, and eventually it came to a stop with a screech of metal against metal. He watched as the side doors rolled open, then froze as he realized that none of the passengers were who he was waiting for. He grabbed one of the soldiers and pulled him aside before he could file off into the fortress. "Where is Galcian?" He demanded.
The soldier quickly pulled away from Ramirez's grip. "Watch it! Don't go just grabbing people like that." He chided for a moment before he seemed to realize who he was talking to. "O-oh! Ramirez, sir. Sorry." He said, bowing his head frantically. "Lord Galcian went to investigate a disturbance at the coliseum. Apparently somebody broke in and freed the pirates who were going to be executed."
Ramirez stared at the soldier for a long moment to be sure he wasn't lying. "What about the girl, the silvite?" He asked.
The soldier looked apologetic for a moment before replying. "Uhm, I don't know what you want with her, but… she started making a fuss on the way to the rail-cars by the palace. Apparently it caused quite a delay. She should be here soon, though, alright?" The soldier cracked a smile as he leaned a little closer. "For what it's worth, sir, I hear you're getting promoted. Galcian requested it directly to the empress."
Ramirez was surprised at how little he cared at that moment. "Just get out of my sight." He said, and the soldier hurried to comply, scrambling off into the fortress as quickly as he could. He turned to stare at the rail-car as its engines slowly shut down.
Something wasn't right. Galcian's plans never went awry. Whatever was happening was outside the scope of his master's foresight, and that frightened him. He brooded on this fact as he headed into the fortress. He'd gotten about halfway to his chambers when an alarm started blaring. Almost immediately he could guess what was happening, and he hurried to the nearest hangar.
Soldiers were filing into one of the smaller cruisers docked there, and already its engines were spinning up as it got ready to fly. The slight rumbling beneath his feet told him the gates of the Grand Fortress were either opening or closing, though he couldn't tell which from his current vantage point.
He flagged down the soldier overseeing the ship's departure. "What is going on?" He asked as the alarm continued to blare.
The soldier looked almost as harried and confused as Ramirez felt. "S-someone attacked a rail-car on its way to the fortress! We were told to get in attack formation and close the gates at once."
Ramirez swore under his breath as he hurried to the opening the ship had departed through, giving him a view of the gates as they slowly began to turn towards a closed position. A trio of cruisers had been deployed in the space behind them, waiting for something.
"Moons above… if they screw this up, I'll kill them all." He snarled as he watched and waited with them.
A minute later they began to maneuver, the sounds of their engines filling the air. Cannons began to fire - and then, a moment later, a massive bronze projectile tore through the lead ship, setting it ablaze before the curious weapon retracted. The two ships to either side pulled away from the unfortunate lead vessel it went up in flames, leaving enough space for a green wooden ship to tear through the open space.
"You idiots!" Ramirez shouted helplessly at the two remaining cruisers while the little green ship sped towards the closing gates. The cruisers fired at it, but most of their shots collided with the walls of the fortress instead of their intended target as it pulled further away.
The gates were almost closed. Ramirez clutched at a nearby railing as he watched the distant shape of the green ship near the opening between the gates and the wall.
Then it was out of the fortress and in mid-ocean. The gates closed, obscuring his view of the retreating ship. He shook with barely-restrained anger as he approached the soldier he'd spoken to before, who was apparently receiving a flurry of new information from the console next to him. "R-Ramirez, sir! That ship, they've taken…"
"I know." Ramirez growled. "They've taken Fina."
Doc's life had been a relatively peaceful one since he'd taken up the mantle of a free ship doctor seven years ago. Staying near Sailor's island kept him relatively safe, while giving him a reasonable amount of space to roam in.
Unfortunately, the fresh air and easy days didn't seem to be doing much for Maria. She'd gotten seemingly no better since the sinking of the Aquila, and in fact, she hadn't said a word to him since they'd landed on that island years ago. He wasn't really sure what to do about her. He'd been keeping her fed and taking care of her to the best of his ability, but she was ten years old now. She'd have to learn to start talking again sometime.
Compounding his confusion and frustration was her new pet. He'd woken up one morning to find her cuddling up to a strange yellow bird he'd never seen before, and she'd been loathe to let it go since. Worse still, it seemed to be a remarkably picky eater. His attempts to get Maria to let it go had failed, and so he'd had to conscript random sailors to track down the rare fish it seemed to favor.
And that had led him to Vyse. He leaned on the railing of his little ship's deck as he watched the Little Jack draw nearer, until the large green ship had pulled up alongside his own. He blinked in surprise as he realized there was someone new aboard the ship alongside Vyse, his friend Aika and crusty old Drachma.
She was dressed all in white, with pale blonde hair. She avoided his eyes when he looked her way. She almost reminded him of Maria, in a way. He glanced towards Vyse. "Ho there, Vyse. Good to see you again." He said with a wave.
In a moment, Vyse had hopped the distance between their ships, landing on the deck of Doc's little craft. Doc noted he was carrying a bag in one hand, and he hoped it contained what he thought it did. "Hey, Doc. I've got some of this fish you wanted, and a story to boot." Vyse replied with a grin.
Doc raised an eyebrow at the young blue rogue before him. "Fill me in."
"They say they broke out of the Grand Fortress."
Piastol's interest was piqued, and she set her glass down on the table as she focused on listening.
"What?! Who? How'd they do it?"
"You heard about Dyne, right? How he got captured by the armada and was gonna be executed?"
"Yeah. Are you sayin'...?"
"They broke 'im out. From what I'm hearin', they broke into the coliseum, beat up the guards and ran. Then they got on a ship and booked it outta Valua before the gates could close."
"What, his crew? I thought the Valuans got 'em all."
"No, that's the thing. It's this new kid. Nobody's really heard of 'im before, but I guess he's Dyne's son. They're calling him Vyse the Determined."
"Heh. If he's half the blue rogue his dad is, I'm bettin' this ain't the last we'll hear of him."
"I'll say."
Piastol grinned as she tuned out the conversation once more. Vyse the Determined, the pirate who broke out of Valua. He sounded like an excellent target. She set her glass down, empty now, before rising and heading out the doors of the tavern. She had information to gather.
"You raided a public execution and then broke out of the Grand Fortress?" Doc said, laughing a moment after. Normally he wouldn't believe it, but it did explain how riled-up the Valuans had been in the last few days. "I like you, Vyse. You don't let anything stop you." The older man said with a grin.
Vyse looked a little embarrassed. "I couldn't just let them kill everyone I cared about."
The words sent a few ugly memories to the forefront of Doc's thoughts, and his smile faded a little as he nodded. "I get what you mean. You did the right thing. Just steer clear of Valua for a while, alright?" He said.
"Oh, I'm planning to." Vyse said.
"Now that Vyse is done boasting," Aika chimed in from where she'd been waiting beside him, "Maybe we can finally get around to feeding Maria's poor bird?"
Vyse turned and pouted at his redheaded friend. "C'mon, Aika. I think breaking out of the 'inescapable' Grand Fortress is something that's actually worth boasting about." He said, before turning back to Doc and hefting the bag in his hand. "But, yeah… while we're here, we've got some of those moonfish you wanted."
Doc clapped his hands together once with a satisfied smile. "You're a lifesaver, Vyse." He turned towards the cabin as he raised his voice. "Maria! Can you come outside for a minute?"
The quiet sound of footsteps preceded the sight of a young girl with large blonde pigtails and a simple black dress appearing in the doorway of the ship's cabin. In her arms she held the big yellow bird she'd become so attached to, and she eyed the visitors cautiously as she approached. "They brought some food for your bird." Doc explained.
Maria's expression didn't change, but she nodded as she set her bird down on the deck of the ship and watched Vyse expectantly. Vyse frowned for a moment before stepping forward, reaching into the bag and presenting one of the odd-looking fish to the bird.
Its eyes widened in recognition, and almost immediately it snatched up the fish in its beak and gobbled it down, staring up at Vyse with a hungry look in its eyes. "Wow. Hungry little guy." Vyse said with a grin as he began feeding one moonfish after another to the bird. He ran out within a minute.
Luckily, the bird seemed sated, and it let out what sounded like a burp as it strolled back to Maria. To Doc's surprise, he thought he could see something like a smile on her face. He flinched a moment later when he heard an unfamiliar noise.
"-ank you."
He stared at Maria. "Did you say something, Maria?"
She was silent for another moment as she stared at Vyse, before repeating what she'd said before. "Thank you."
Vyse knelt in front of her, all smiles as usual. "No problem, Maria! Your little bird looks much happier now!" He said.
Maria looked at the bird, then back at Vyse before nodding. She stared at the young man for a minute longer before somewhat awkwardly turning around and hurrying back inside. "She seems so shy…" Aika said as she watched Maria go.
Doc was having trouble forming words as he stared at where Maria had been a second ago. He quickly set his hands on Vyse's shoulders and pulled the boy to his feet. "Vyse! Do you realize what just happened?"
Vyse flinched as he was grabbed, blinking in confusion at Doc. "I, uh, fed a bird some fish?" He said with an uncomfortable smile.
"Maria hasn't said a word to me in seven years!" Doc said, still having trouble processing it.
Aika's jaw dropped. "Your own daughter hasn't spoken to you in years?"
Doc turned his head to give her a flat stare. "She's not my daughter!" He sighed as he pulled away from Vyse and ran his hands over his face. "Okay. I think maybe I need to give you guys the full story for you to understand this."
Vyse gave him a skeptical look. "I think so too. You didn't mention any of this back when we first met."
"Right. Sorry." Doc said as he organized his thoughts. Dredging up these memories would be painful, and he wanted to make sure he'd be clear about things. "Have any of you heard of the Aquila?" He said.
Vyse gave him a blank look, then shrugged. Aika looked thoughtful for a moment. "The name seems kinda familiar… but I can't really say for sure." She admitted.
"It was the flagship of admiral Mendosa of the Valuan armada. I used to be his ship's doctor." Doc explained. "Maria was his daughter."
"Wait, she's the daughter of a Valuan admiral? Why's she out here with you, then?" Vyse said.
"I'm getting there." Doc said, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned against the little ship's mast. "Things started getting a little strange around the time we picked up a kid named Ramirez from an odd shipwreck. He joined our crew a while after, but I think there was something wrong with him."
He heard someone gasp, and when he followed the source of the sound, he realized it was the girl in white from before. She was leaning over the railing of the Little Jack now, watching him intently. "Are you alright?" Doc said, raising an eyebrow at her.
"I… I'll be fine. Please, finish your story." She said quietly.
He frowned at her before nodding. "Well, as I said, Ramirez was a little odd. A nice guy, but… I always got the impression there was something dark inside him." Doc sighed wearily as he recalled the night of the fire. "One night, an explosion rocked the ship. A lot of good men died, and the Aquila burned down, the admiral and his wife along with it."
"Oh…" Aika said softly.
Doc nodded. "Besides Maria, Ramirez was the last person I saw on board the Aquila. The look in his eyes at that moment… I'm pretty sure he was the one that did it. Maybe he even killed the admiral himself." He said. "Still, I was close to him, and I never saw it coming. I got Maria out of there, and I've been taking care of her ever since. I suppose it's kinda my punishment for not recognizing Ramirez for the threat he was."
"And she hasn't spoken since then?" Vyse asked.
Doc shook his head. "Not until today." He admitted, staring at Vyse imploringly. "Somehow, that odd little bird - and you - are getting through to her. So what I'm saying is… Please keep finding moonfish for Maria's bird. I need to see her happy again." He pleaded, bowing his head and staring at the floor.
Vyse smiled sadly as he nodded at the older man. "Of course, Doc. I was already planning to keep finding those things for you. Now, I'm even more determined."
Doc wore a relieved smile as he looked up at Vyse again. "Thank you, Vyse. That makes me very happy to hear."
"Uhm…" Doc's eyes were drawn back to the girl in white as she spoke again.
"Something on your mind?" Doc said.
"That Ramirez person… Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about him?" She said.
He frowned at the girl. "What do you know him?" His eyes were drawn to her strange clothes as he started to realize something about them. "Now that I think about it, you're dressed an awful lot like he was when he first ended up on the Aquila." He shrugged. "Ask away."
The girl's fingers gripped the railing of the Little Jack tightly as she spoke. "What did he look like?"
"Well, he was about average height and weight. Really average. He had this unkempt silver hair that I'd always meant to ask him about, and his eyes were silver too. And he was a really good…"
"...Swordsman." The girl finished for him. "Do you know where he is now?" She asked.
Doc stared questioningly at her. "So you do know him?" He said. "I think he's back in Valua now. Working for Lord Galcian, last I heard. He must be doing well for himself." Doc said with a scowl.
He thought he saw the girl shiver, but he couldn't be sure. "Thank you, Doc." She said.
Doc nodded. "Sure thing, uh…?"
"Fina." She said with a small smile.
Doc smiled back at her. "Right, then. Sure thing, Fina."
When he turned to look at Vyse and Aika, they were both watching Fina intently too. Vyse shook himself out of it a moment later before turning to Doc. "Well, I think we'd better get going. I'm sure we'll be back to see you again soon, though."
"May the moons guide you, Vyse." Doc said, waving goodbye to the young man as he and Aika hopped back to the deck of the Little Jack.
"Same to you." Vyse said with a wink. "We'll be in mid ocean for a little while longer, so if you need something else just let us know."
Doc nodded, then watched as the Little Jack pulled away and sailed off into the distance. He sighed once more as he glanced back towards the cabin. For Maria's sake, he hoped he'd be seeing Vyse and his friends again very soon indeed.
Night had fallen over mid ocean like a dark blue curtain when Piastol set out in her little ship. She knew roughly where she needed to be; that ship would be easy to spot, she felt.
She sailed east awhile, towards the kingdom of Nasr. She didn't often come out this way unless she was killing the pirates that tended to patrol the trade routes out here. It seemed fitting that a pirate like Vyse would choose to lay low here.
Her information sources proved viable yet again as she caught sight of an old-looking green ship hanging still in mid sky, its engines on but idling to keep the ship afloat without moving it. Perfect, she thought. Her instinct to cut Lawrence out this time had been correct. Her little ship was silent as it drifted upwards to pull up alongside the sleepy pirate ship.
Her ship slowed to a stop, and she stepped away from the helm to inspect her gear. She passed over her scythe this time - it would be less useful in the confined interior spaces of a ship. The claws for her boots would also have to go. They'd make too much of a racket when sneaking around. That left her with just her knives and her wits - two things she was quite confident in.
She strolled out onto the deck and peered out over the side at the deck of Vyse's ship. It was empty, to her satisfaction. "Nobody on watch, huh? Overconfident." She mused aloud as she headed over to where Deathhound waited for her. She knelt down to run her hands through his shaggy fur as she spoke to him. "Keep an eye on the ship for me, boy. Gut anyone who tries to touch it."
Deathhound gave her what looked like a nod and an affirmative-sounding pant, and she smiled at him before rising to her feet again. With a quick leap, she crossed the gap to the larger ship's deck. It creaked slightly under her feet, but held surprisingly well for something so old. She wondered who had maintained it as she headed for the door to the main cabin.
It didn't so much as squeak as she opened it. Someone cared for this old ship very much, she thought to herself as she crept forward through the dark interior of the ship. There were two staircases before her - one leading up, one leading down. The upper would likely lead to the bridge. She didn't need anything from there, just yet.
That left her with down. Likely where the crew slept. She made a point of staying quiet as she drew a knife from her belt and began descending the steps.
The sounds of her footsteps were quickly drowned out by the noise of the old ship's engine. She gritted her teeth slightly as she listened. It made it all but impossible to hear anything of note beyond the dull roar of the machinery. She had to wonder how anyone slept down here. Finally, she reached the bottom of the stairs and turned to look around.
This room was empty, too. A few barrels scattered around. One door on either side, and a set of double-doors leading to the back of the ship - likely lifeboats. Maybe everyone was asleep in their rooms? As she crept further along, however, she realized she'd missed something.
In the corner, by the double-doors, was a simple hammock that had been strung up from two pegs. It was currently empty.
Just then, she heard footsteps from the floor above her. "Sorry about this." A voice said just before someone kicked her in the shoulder. She grunted in pain as she tumbled into the engine casing, another flash of pain emanating from her back as she collided with the cold metal. She brandished her knife as she stared down her attacker.
He was about her height, with shaggy hair and what looked like an eyepatch made from one lens of a pair of goggles. He had on a black sleeveless shirt and pants to match, and his teeth gleamed in the low light as he grinned at her. "For once, I'm glad that engine's so loud." He said as he watched her.
Piastol hissed as she rushed at him, aiming a quick stab at his gut. Rather than dodging to one side, he leapt up to grab the ledge he'd been standing on before, hauling himself back up to the floor above in record time and leaving her to slash at empty air. A moment later he dropped down behind her again, slamming an elbow into her back and pressing her against the wall.
His fingers grabbed tightly at the back of her neck as he held her there. She squirmed as she tried to jab at him with her elbows. "Calm down." He said. "We can talk this out." The teasing note in his voice made her all the angrier, and when he went to restrain the hand holding her knife, she unsheathed another from her belt with her free hand and aimed it at his chest.
"Woah!" He said, dancing backwards as his hands left her. She whirled around and came at him again, this time with two knives. Now, he couldn't use the second floor to evade her anymore. He settled for dodging backwards, surprisingly nimble in the confined space. "C'mon… now. That's… dangerous." He said, continuing to taunt her even as he struggled for breath.
"Will you just die already?" She spat as she slashed at him with both knives. He was getting near to a wall, and she knew she'd have him cornered soon. Good. She could hear people talking in one of the rooms to the side, and she knew she'd have company soon.
Her opponent's back pressed against the wall, the cool metal of the engine blocking his escape on one side. She stabbed one knife into the wall beside his head, leaning close as they both realized he had nowhere to go. "Guess this is the end for you, huh? At least you put up a half-decent fight." She said as she waggled the knife in her free hand.
To her surprise, that grin of his returned. "I'm afraid not." He said, and as she watched him she realized he wasn't looking at her, but over her shoulder.
She heard a set of heavy footfalls behind her. She hadn't caught them coming closer in the heat of the fight, especially with the noise of the engine. She turned her head just in time to see a massive metal fist coming for her, and then a flash of pain in her skull sent everything cascading to black.
Piastol's head swam as she slowly regained consciousness. Her head was pounding, her vision was blurry, and something cold was pressing against the part of her head that hurt the most.
"...an't be serious, boy. She's dangerous." An older man's voice.
"Yeah! She tried to kill you!" A girl's voice. It sounded familiar.
"But she didn't, did she?" This voice was closer, and she realized after a moment it was the man she'd fought earlier.
Her vision slowly came back to her, and she realized he was kneeling in front of her, pressing something to the back of her head. She blinked several times as she stared at him. He gave her a quizzical look before turning to the others. "Hey! I think she's awake, now." He said before turning back to her. "How're you feeling?" He said with that same, irritating grin.
She tried to punch him, and found that she could not. Her arms were bound, and so were her legs. Someone knew how to tie a good knot, she reflected as she realized she was well and truly trapped. "Rot in hell…" She growled as she stared him down.
The young man chuckled. "You're a chipper one, aren't you?" He said as he stood up and took a few steps back. The cold faded from the back of her head as he left, and immediately that part of her head began throbbing a little more painfully. She sighed as she did her best to ignore it.
"Why'd you try to kill Vyse, huh?" The girl snapped at him. Now that Piastol got a clear look at her, she recognized this girl as the one she'd bumped into on Sailor's island a few days ago. Was she really one of the ones who had escaped Valua? It seemed like a joke to her.
"Because he's a pirate." Piastol said flatly as she stared the girl down.
"What?" The girl said incredulously. "That's not a reason! There are plenty of pirates in mid ocean."
"I think I've heard of this girl." The older man said. He was wearing a green shirt and pants, and he looked like the next step beyond grizzled. She suspected that his mechanical arm had been what put her out earlier. "They call her the angel of death. She's been goin' around mid ocean for years now, killin' pirates left and right. Doesn't seem to matter whether they're blue rogues or black pirates."
"The angel of death, huh?" The young man, who she assumed must be Vyse, said. "What's your story?"
She stared at him. She hadn't really gotten a great look at him in the dark of the ship. He'd covered up the sleeveless shirt with a blue coat adorned with red straps. His messy hair was dark red, and…
Piastol's eyes widened as she fixated on the scar on his cheek. The hair. The clothes, the eyepatch… and the scar. Add in his age, and it all fit together perfectly. She froze up as she stared at that scar.
"Uhh… Angel of death? Whatever your name is? You in there?" Vyse said as he knelt down again to wave a hand in her face.
"Get away from me!" She spat as she thrashed violently against her bindings.
"Woah, there!" Vyse said as she backed away a step. "You really need to learn how to relax. I get the feeling you haven't been calm in years."
Piastol grit her teeth as she watched him. "You don't get to lecture me." She growled. "Not after what you did to me."
The red-headed girl turned to look at Vyse with a skeptical expression. "Vyse… did you do something before I got there…?"
Vyse blinked as he turned towards his friend, his cheeks looking a little red. "What? No! She attacked me and I fought back. That's all that happened."
The memories were flashing through her head like lightning now. Piastol's breathing was a little unsteady. She'd finally found him, and he'd captured her. "I'll never forget what you did to me… to my family…" She said, glaring at him with hatred in her eyes.
Vyse looked lost. "What did I do to your family? I don't think I've ever even met you before."
"You and your filthy pirate friends killed them!" Piastol screamed. She wished she could tear herself free of her bindings and get her revenge right there.
"What?!" Vyse said in disbelief. "I've never killed anyone's family!"
"That's a bold lie, coming from a pirate." Piastol said, scowling at him.
The redhead shook her head emphatically. "Blue rogues don't do that kind of thing. It's just not our way."
Piastol laughed bitterly. "Blue rogues, black pirates. You're all the same. It doesn't matter what you call yourselves."
Vyse rubbed tiredly at his forehead with one hand. "I don't think we're going to get through to her…" He said.
"Let's just toss her overboard and be done with it." The older man said.
"We can't do that! That's horrible!" The redhead said indignantly.
"Do whatever you please. If this is all the justice there is in Arcadia, I'm done with this world." Piastol said.
Vyse sighed as he knelt in front of her again. "Okay, look. I don't want to kill you, even if Drachma here is really in favor of it. I'm willing to let you go, on the sole condition that you promise me you won't try to attack me again when I do so. Got it?"
Piastol tensed. She'd expected to die here. She wasn't quite sure how to respond, or if she even wanted to accept this pirate's mercy. Still… it was another chance to kill him later. "Fine." She said, avoiding looking him in the eye. "I swear that I will not attack you if you let me go. I will return to my ship and leave you in peace."
Vyse grinned at her, and she had to wonder just how naive he was as he glanced back at his fellows. "Sounds good to me!"
"This is moronic, boy. She hates pirates. Even if she doesn't attack you now, she'll be back to try again later." Drachma chided him.
"Then we'll just capture her again until she learns her lesson." the redhead said with a grin to match Vyse's.
Piastol looked back and forth between the two younger pirates in disbelief, until Vyse disappeared behind her to begin undoing her binds. The ropes restraining her fell away a minute later, and she slowly got to her feet, her arms and legs aching from being held in place for so long.
"You're welcome." Vyse said from behind her.
She whirled around to face him before taking a step back. He seemed to be staring at her expectantly. Did he really expect…? She smirked nastily at him. "Thank you." She said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
She'd turned back towards her ship when a thought occurred to her. She whirled back to face Vyse with a glare. "Wait. What did you do with Deathhound?"
Vyse blinked for a moment before smiling. "Oh, the mutt? Fina hit him with a slipara spell. He's been fast asleep for awhile now." He explained.
Piastol breathed a sigh of relief, and for a moment the tension faded from her. She shivered as she realized she'd felt genuine gratitude to her captors, even if it was just for a moment. "Very well, then…" She said, turning to head towards her ship once more.
A young woman in a white dress stepped off her ship and onto the deck of the larger one, passing her by as she did so. The woman's green eyes followed her until she hopped the distance back to her ship. True to Vyse's word, Deathhound was slumbering peacefully on the deck, by the main mast.
She turned around to find Vyse and crew all watching her curiously. She didn't know what to make of what had just transpired. Pirates, in her experience, didn't have the word "mercy" in their vocabulary. These ones had just demonstrated it twice. She scowled as she chased away the doubts that had begun to gnaw at her determination.
"Vyse…" She said as she gripped the railing of her ship's deck.
"Yeah?" The young man said, smiling at her.
"I will be back to challenge you again someday. And on that day, know that Piastol is the one who sent you to your grave." She said.
Vyse's smile only grew wider. "I'll keep the name in mind." He said. "See you, Piastol."
She stared at him in disbelief for a long moment before turning and hurrying into her cabin with a huff. She pulled her ship away as quick as she could. She wanted to get that big green ship out of her sight as soon as possible.
Still, even as she lost sight of it, it and its passengers stayed in her thoughts. She'd finally found the man she'd been hunting for seven years - the one she was sure had been responsible for the deaths of her family and the destruction of her old life.
So why, then, didn't he seem like any of those things?