Cabin Boy
Nicholas was rocking back and forth, feeling dizzy and disoriented. He opened his eyes to a dark cabin and realized that it wasn't him rocking, it was a ship. He almost panicked at the thought of being kidnapped by pirates. The door to the cabin swung open.
" This'll never do! We need light, don't we, boy? Can't talk in the dark. Never know what foul-hearted scum are hiding around here!" A woman's voice said.
" Where am I? Where have you taken me? Who are you?" Nicholas demanded.
" One question at a time, Nicholas Hawkins. One question at a time. You are on my ship, the Mintanion. You're on the open ocean, the dead of night, in a mild storm, nothing to worry about really. And you know who I am, Nicholas, my friend. You and I met a couple of hours ago, in the pub. No hard feelings, are there?"
" Gold! You—"
" No need to be vulgar, Nicholas. And please, call me by my real name."
" And what, pray tell, is that?"
" Easy, Nicholas, easy. There is really no reason to be so upset."
" Don't tell me that! You kidnapped me from the pub! I'm in the middle of the ocean because you felt that you needed a new cabin boy, and my father is stuck at home without a son! I want to go back!"
" Back to that hellhole? Back to being a slave to the economy? Back to where no one even knows who you are and wouldn't care unless you were wealthy? What kind of a life is that, Nicholas? Hm? Answer me that, and then we'll see."
" It wasn't much of a life at all, but I was happy with it!"
" Don't feed me that lie, Nick. I know better. I make it my job to know better, it's how I am still alive right now, it's the only thing that's saved me. You learn certain skills while you're out on the open sea, Nick, and those skills are the most important ones to keep. Your father must have forgotten them, if he let you serve me tonight."
Nicholas looked confusedly at her.
" What do you mean?" He asked.
" Your father's intuition used to be the best when it came to people, after he met Silver, that is. He really knows how to spot the good from the bad, and he should've known tonight what was going to happen. But that's what happens when you haven't been to sea in years; you grow rusty and outdated." Gold replied coolly.
Nicholas had no response to her. Something that she had said clicked in his mind and made complete sense to him. He thought for a moment, and realized that, even if he were to request a ride back home, he wouldn't get it.
" That's right, Nicholas. We aren't turning this ship around for anything. With the journey we are about to go on, we won't be returning to the Dockside Pub for a long, long time. So I suggest that you get over your troubles and do as you are instructed, Cabin Boy."