Story 2:
"WHAT! What ye mean no yum-rum? TWO WEEKS!" an angered voice erupted from the ship, "CAPTAIN!"
A peg-legged pirate rat stormed up the stairs. The rat's coat was still soaked with last night rum and bottles were tied in his beard. He made his way to the captain's cabin and kicked the door wide open.
"Captain!"
"Gah, stop being so loud!" The captain covered her ears.
The cabin was surprisingly cold, the captain had some ice beetles running about and a magic ice machine from Polaris. The pirate was seated by the desk, dressing her toy figurines in tiny samurai armour. She was wearing a pirate's skirt with a purple coat and her ears were cosied by some earmuffs with her eyes covered by shades.
"Privacy! This is my hour to myself!" She yelled at him. She placed her diary in the desk drawer and looked at Ratbeard, "What's wrong?"
"Captain, ye said there's a ban on yum-rum? Are ye an insane girl?"
"Possibly," she mumbled to herself.
The captain hadn't taken her medicine yet and things were already starting to get overwhelming. She was growing even more sensitive to sound, and even normal light was blinding. Ratbeard wasn't helping.
The captain blocked her ears despite still wearing the earmuff. Her face quenched up when the rat yelled again.
"Yes Ratbeard, the drunkenness is a security risk,"
"Captain, a pirate isn't complete without yum-rum. What are we supposed to drink!?"
"Ugh!" The rat's rants were almost painfully, "Water. Inside voice, please."
CRASH!?
She gasped; the noise sent a sharp strike to her head. The captain pressed her hands against her heart as hard as she could. She almost didn't want to turn around, but she knew she had to...
And there was a hole in her room's ceiling, with pieces of broken wood scattered about. Her bed was smashed. The wooden base was crushed under the weight of two pirates. A bull and monkey laid on top of the mattress. It was ruined with rips and tears; a rapier was stuck inside it.
"Captain, I can explain. It was the Monkey King!" El Toro exclaimed.
Her grip on the toy hardened even more while she gazed at the two. A tear flowed down her cheek when she saw her bed.
"Yeah, it was me. Wait, are you crying?"
She stood up and whipped her tears. The captain walked to her weapons closet and pulled out her rifle. It was an old cool ranch musket, had a scope on it and a nice wooden base. She loaded it with some thunder powder and aimed it at the monkey.
"Three of you, get out," she spoke in a light calm voice.
"Wow there…" The Monkey King stepped back.
"GET OUT NOW!"
RANGED ATTACK
The captain fired at the Monkey King's legs only missing by an inch. Then at El Toro's legs, then at Ratbeard. The thunder blast burnt through the wood with every pull of the trigger, just inches from direct contact. She chased the three pirates out of her cabin. Still shooting at them while they scrambled away.
"Okay, okay, we're going!" El Toro exclaimed. He barely dodged a shot to the face twice, or did the captain deliberately miss?
QUICK ADJUST
BURST FIRST
The monkey, rat, and the bull ran down the stairs. Bolts of thunder flew over the heads. The captain was raging; she kept firing until they were gone from her sight.
Then, she sighed and sat down on her seat again. She opened the small box and took out an almost empty bottle of pills. She emptied two tablets on her hand then swallowed it.
"Can't have a morning of relaxation," she grumbled. The girl leaned back on her seat while she waited for the medication to take effect. The intensity soon died; everything seemed tolerable, yet a dullness took over. She frowned, not quite angry anymore and not quite feeling anything for that matter.
KNOCK, KNOCK
The captain grabbed her box and shoved it into the weapon's closet.
"Come in."
Bonnie stepped into the room, she pulled Monkey King into the room by the ear. Her paws have a tight grip, and her claws would scrape his ear if he tried to pull back.
"Ouch, ouch. Okay, okay I'll apologize," Monkey King squealed, "Um, sorry for smashing your bed captain."
"I'm sorry my friend, what happened was inexcusable," El Toro apologized as well, "We'll pay for a new bed."
"No. I want the bed repaired," the captain said, her voice was sort of dragged
"Sorry captain, but it can't be repaired," El Toro replied. He dug through the rubble, the pieces of wood were broken in uneven pieces and the sword was still stuck in the mattress.
"Would glue work?" the captain asked.
"Ha, ha, sorry captain. Only magic can reverse this damage."
Without another word spoken, the captain made her way to the best witch doctor she knew, Old Scratch. She made her way to his room in the lowest part of the ship. The captain walked down the stairs, past the storage area to where the wood was old and decayed
The feeling of mojo oozed from the entrance of his room, yet the captain still stepped inside. There were various bones and skulls, a single pot was in the middle of the room and the various artefacts were hung around the area. A green mist escaped from the pot and the chill of spirits was in the air. At the end of the room was a skeleton, great magic kept him intact.
"Old Scratch. I need your magic," the captain requested; she ran towards him, but her voice was calm.
"Yes, captain my captain! What evil is happening now?" Old Scratch grabbed his new wand.
"I need you to use magic to fix my bed," she told him.
Despite the skeleton's lack of lips or flesh, the sense of disappointment marked him. He placed his wand back down and just looked at the captain.
"What? Captain my art is a big responsibility. I can't waste it on trivial matters."
"Please? The bed is special to me," the captain begged.
Old Scratch grunted and looked at his room. He wasn't doing much of anything so it would be a lie to tell the captain he was busy.
"Hmm. There's an ancient art used to repair items. It only works if the item connects the owner to a special soul," Old Scratch told her, "Captain, this is no trivial task, it can end in disaster if I try and repair any old item."
"The bed just belonged to my parents. I found it when I inherited their ship. Please," she begged one last time.
"In that case, your bed sounds special enough." Old Scratch admitted. If he had lips he'll smile.
Ideally, the captain would be jumping around in joy, but she only mustered a gentle smile instead. Her heart raced, and she grabbed the skeleton's hand. She was careful to bring him to her room without pulling his arm off his socket.
She brought him to her room then locked the door again. Her crewmates were still there as well. Bonnie was quizzing both El Toro and Monkey King on how exactly they fell through the ceiling. The stories both were giving only got crazier the more Bonnie listened.
"?Toro?, Monkey, quiet. Old Scratch would fix my bed. With magic." The captain smiled.
"So magic is going to be our answer to everything huh?" El Toro asked.
"I must warn you, my captain, once the spell starts, there's no turning back," Old Scratch told her.
Old Scratch got to work, he waved his wand and a green mist followed. The ground beneath him glowed bright green with odd magical symbols suddenly appearing. Then, the pieces of the bed hovered above the ground. It glowed a bright green and a cold chill escaped.
The captain smiled, she stepped just a little closer and watched. Suddenly, her eyes glowed green. It shone directly at the bed while it slowly began to rearrange itself. Piece by piece the broken wood came together. Just when the bed was repaired something changed. The green mist blackened, and a foul chill passed through the room. Suddenly, the black mist engulfed the captain's eyes.
"Oh no. Something's not right, an evil spirit is trying to lay claim to the bed, and the captain's soul!" Old Scratch called out.
"An evil spirit!? Get the captain out!" Bonnie demanded, she tried to reach out to the captain.
But the darkness was too swift. It spread to the other pirates, consuming their minds. But Old Scratch resisted the evil. He waved his wand and a green mojo shone brightly.
MAGIC ATTACK
He struck the darkness with powerful mojo,
MOJO ECHO
He struck again. Old Scratch chased the darkness away from the crew and the captain. The evil mist returned to the bed.
The pirates gasped for air; El Toro coughed up some last bits of magic.
"Ugh, my head hurts." The captain groaned out and held her head tightly.
"The spell's been hijacked, beware, captain, we've disturbed an evil spirit," Old Scratch warned
A misty figure oozed from the bed, it morphed and shaped into a ghostly cat pirate. He was dressed in pyjamas and had sharp blades in his hands. The ghost glowed a bright green, slightly transparent.
"Who dares interfere with my BED!" He roared, "YOU!"
He floated to the captain, bladed held right above his head then he swung them at the captain.
BLOCK
El Toro's blade met his.
REPOSE
El Toro swung his sword with swiftness; his rapier stabbed through the ghost. The ghost cat meowed in agony and stepped back. His physical form glitched but quickly stabilized.
"Stay back! ?El Toro?would not let you hurt the captain!" he swung his sword high, then aimed at the ghost.
"He's right, no one attacks the captain on her ship," Bonnie picked up her rifle.
"Yeah, what they say," Monkey King grabbed his staff.
"Yar! I heard trouble!" Ratbeard stormed into the bedroom, "A ghost!?"
"Don't dare touch me, or my crew would make you wish you remained asleep," the captain threatened.
"This bed is MINE. I want it back!" the ghost demanded.
The captain was unphased. She aimed her wooden rifle at the ghost then pulled the trigger.
RANGED ATTACK
A blast of raw thunder burnt through the ghost.
BURST FIRE (x3)
Then she shot again, and again, and again. The hot thunder scarred the wood and smoke filled the room. The ghost faded away in the smoke, leaving just the repaired bed. The captain smirked in victory and chuckled.
"That worked out better than usual," Bonnie Anne commented.
The captain divided into her bed and rolled around The mattress conformed to her shape in a delicate softness. The pirate sighed in comfort and closed her eyes. The crew looked at each other with a concerned glare before leaving
Once the crew stepped out, the bed slowly levitated. Once she opened her eyes, the bed was already a meter above the ground. The captain looked around in shock when she noticed that she was much closer to the ceiling.
"Eh?" she asked. Her mind did not quite process what was happening.
The bed flipped a full 180.
SPLAT
She fell face flat on the floor, and the bed fell on top of her.
"GIVE ME THE BED!" the ghost's voice echoed through the room.
"NO!" the captain yelled while she crawled out the bed.
Then her weapon's closet tipped over. Her various guns and knives scattered across the floor, the magic then flung them around in the air.
"What is going- WHAT!" Bonnie burst in.
She just stared at the chaos. There was the captain, stuck under the bed with flying weapons dancing about.
"Dammit captain, you have to give him your bed." Bonnie dodged a flying knife.
"NEVER!"
The blankets wrapped around the captain while the bed hovered above the ground again.
"Do your worse," the captain dared.
"Gladly."
The bed smashed through the wall.
SMASH
Bonnie Anne dived when the bed flew just over her. It crashed through the wall into the gun deck.
"Captain!" Bonnie Anne rushed after her.
The bed smashed her through wooden walls and against the ceiling. The captain's face collided against the wood. She groaned out and pulled each wooden piece from her cheek. She managed to struggle out of the blanket, grab a hovering pistol and aim at the ghost.
The chaos attracted the rest of the crew.
"Fighting's no-good captain." Old Scratch ran into the scene. "The bed has powerful mojo, it is protecting him. We have to destroy the bed or just give him it."
"Confounded captain! Let's just smash it!" Ratbeard called out.
"We'll buy another bed either way captain!" Bonnie Anne said, "Just say the word."
The captain's mind buzzed when she heard the crew, she looked at them with a frown and her eyes gazed at the bed. Deep, deep inside, she knew destroying the bed would be the best thing to do. After all, it's just a bed.
"No."
"Listen to 'reason' you fool! Your stubbornness would get you killed!" a crane monk screeched. Wing Chun was the last to rush in
The pirates sighed and looked at her bed one last time. Her head buzzed while she gripped her pistol tightly. She turned to her bed, and the ghost, then to her crew again. Deep down, she knew that her crew was right.
The captain closed her eyes and raised her gun. A chilling emptiness filled her mind while she aimed the gun. Her mind mapped out the area from just the sound. From her crew's screams to the drops of her sweats. The details grew clearer, then, she pulled the trigger.
Thunder roared through the air. And then, contact.
The bed was engulfed in green flames. The fire burnt the mojo away, sapping the power away from the cat. Suddenly, his magic reversed, the bed returned to its spot and the collapsed furniture stood upright again.
"Good job captain! Now let's get this cat," Ratbeard congratulated.
"MY BED! Foolish human," the cat meowed, "You'll join the afterlife for this."
The feline's rage attracted evil spirits to him. Ancient ghosts crawled out from between the ship's cracks. Evil mojo had saturated the spirits to the point that they reeked of corruption. No one knew what they looked like; their ghostly cloaks managed to conceal what deformed faces they likely had. The spirits were holding onto items from their lives. One of them still had an old picture, and another one had a necklace, one even had a diamond. Each possession had chains wrapped around it, and those chains were then wrapped around them.
"GET THEM!" the ghost cat yelled out.
The spirits shrieked and dived to the pirates.
OVERWATCH (x3)
BURST FIRE (x3)
The captain fired at each ghost; her pistol's thunder scorched through each ghost, leaving a puff of smoke. And she fired again, and again, only stopping when the thunder overheated the gun. The ghosts were scorched but pushed through.
One ghost got close to the captain. It raised its hands to strike the captain
BLOCK
El Toro's sword blocked the ghost's strike
RIPOSTE
He thrust his sword into the ghost, then shredded it apart. The ghost squealed, fading back into the darkness.
"YAR!" Ratbeard yelled in excitement.
HOLD THE LINE
He stopped the other ghost from moving even further.
The rat then leapt up into the air with his sword in hand. He dived down, sending a shockwave to the ghosts, pushing them back in all directions. The power disrupted the ghosts' physical states, they screamed out while fading back into the darkness.
"Surrender spirit, we have you surrounded," the Crane Monk asserted
The cat ghost grunted, but he was no fool.
"Alright pirate, you got away." He spoke out, "But you're a fool. If I kept the bed, at least you'll still be protected."
RANGED ATTACK
Bonnie blasted him with thunder, the heat from her gun scorched the ground around him and filled the room with smoke. By the time the smoke had faded away, the ghost was gone.
By then, the bed was nothing but ashes and burnt wood, spread along the floor in one big mess.
"Great job guys…" the captain forced a smile, "We'll repair the damage then set sail tomorrow."
She dragged her feet back to her room. Her room looked just the same with the mojo broken, there were the usual blood-stained weapons closet and opposite was her desk. But up ahead had an empty spot. There was an empty feeling in her soul, a bit more than her usual emptiness.
"I'm being unreasonable, it's just a bed," she told herself.
She sat down beside her desk and grabbed a book from the shelf. She filled her head with the book's world, the captain read through chapter and chapter and chapter. So much, that for a moment, she almost forgot that she even existed.
KNOCK, KNOCK
Her eyes ripped away from the book. She closed the book and looked to her side.
"SURPRISE!"
It was Ratbeard and Bonnie Anne.
"Yar captain! Look what we got." Ratbeard exclaimed.
Ratbeard was carrying a wooden crate. The crate was long and awkward to hold. Not as awkward as the large mattress Bonnie Anne tried to carry.
"Is that?"
"Yes, it's the same bed you had, the same!" Ratbeard said, "We robbed a store to get you one."
"He robbed the store, I had to pay for the bed,"
"Thanks, guys," the captain couldn't stop grinning. It was like her face broke and froze in place, "I can't stop smiling."
"Great, so what ye say about liftin' that ban on yum-rum captain?"
"Hehe. No."