The past
Zaken stood on the meadow watching the house of the farming couple burn without pity or remorse. He'd been staying with them for the past three months, living as a normal man. He'd suffered from amnesia from the shock of almost dying, and thought himself a simple farmer like them. That is, until what was left of his crew came searching for him. Embarrassed that he'd been living off of their kindness (they'd even built him his own cabin), Zaken killed the couple immediately and set their house on fire. Their bodies laid in the meadow disgracefully, left for the wind spirits and lesser Orcs that wandered about the area.
Komugi almost wanted to hate this Zaken, with how cruel and ruthless he was. The couple had opened their hearts to him, and this was how he repaid them. "Is this how you wanted to torture me, Freya?" she asked the sky angrily. "Showing me all of this? Mocking me that Zaken is indeed the cruel thing that you said he was?" Still, hatred would not come completely, as all she could see was the little boy he once had been, crying in fear over the death of his Ol Mahum playmate. She crouched to the ground next to Zaken as he continued to watch the burning house, idly wondering how much time had passed in the real world. To her it felt like days, years had gone by, but she knew that if that were so, she'd be dead and not experiencing Zaken's memories any longer.
"Captain!" Perry exclaimed as the Shepard's Flute sailed into the cove of Devil's Isle with Zaken on its bow. The rest of the pirates remaining emerged from their little nooks in the walls of the Isle shouting happy greetings as it had been ages since they'd seen their captain. Pirates still whipped weakening slaves on the pathways around the cove, the island still far from being completely excavated.
"We thought you were dead, Captain!" Alvar said happily jumping onto the ship as soon as the ramp was lowered. Zaken gazed about the cove with a hardened expression before focusing on Alvar.
"Where is the Derech Eretz?" he snapped, earning a look of surprise from the Elf.
"It's here Captain, but don't you want to see how the Island has come along…?" Alvar asked uncertainly.
"Take me to my ship." Zaken demanded. Alvar gave Perry a look of uncertainty before turning and holding a hand out.
"This way Captain." Alvar said respectfully.
Zaken was lead through the maze of tunnels that now made up most of the Island, and back into the first cove that the slaves had started from. In the center of it, a natural waterfall pouring in from above upon it, was the Derech Eretz. It was broken in two.
"What happened to my ship? Why didn't anyone stay on board to retreat it when I ordered it?" Zaken demanded, grabbing Alvar by his tunic and shaking him. Alvar raised his hands weakly, frightened by the look of rage on Zaken's face.
"With all due respect sir, we still have the Dreadful King. It's much better outfitted for Piracy than the Derech Eretz ever was." Perry said, coming up behind them. Zaken glared menacingly at Alvar another moment before releasing him roughly.
"What are our other losses?" Zaken asked, his voice suddenly sounding tired. He raised a hand to his forehead and passed it over his eyes, as if wiping his anger from him.
"We lost the Wagtail and her crew, sir. Beryl died an honorable seafaring man's death." Perry said sadly. The crew behind him pulled off their bandannas in respect with his words, and bowed their heads.
"Find any remains of that ship and bring it here. We'll honor those who died by giving their souls a safe place to rest." Zaken said, walking away from them. Dark laughter suddenly filled the cavern, echoing off the slimy rocks, and Zaken lifted his head swiftly at it.
"Sad little mortal, afraid of death are you?" Kurikups' voice came. He materialized in front of the human with a smirk, and Zaken's hands clenched into fists at his haughtiness.
"Away from my sight, demon. I have been keeping my end of the bargain with you." Zaken said through clenched teeth. Kurikups did not move, and only chuckled darkly.
"You stink of fear, Grand Pirate." Kurikups said, using the title the folk on the mainland had begun to call him mockingly. "I have never seen a man fear death like you before, yet throw himself into a world where death is prominent." Kurikups strolled around Zaken, as if sizing him up. "But I know of a way to thwart Shilen's embrace, and I'm willing to share it with you."
"What's the catch?" Zaken asked warily, narrowing his eyes. "I have learned enough in this land that a demon's help does not come without a deal." Kurikups raised his eyebrows in surprise, as if appalled by Zaken's words.
"There is no catch at all, dear friend. Fine, if you do not trust me, then seek out the Magus Kenishee. She will tell you where you need to go to find the Giant's Treasure that which will help you cheat death." He disappeared into the air chuckling once again, leaving Zaken to stare without expression, at the spot where he once stood.
"Captain, why must we find this Magus? You said yourself that demons cannot be trusted!" Tillion protested as Zaken walked ahead. It was now a month after his conversation with Kurikups, and Zaken had finally located Magus Kenishee hiding on the opposite end of the island from Kurikups.
The group of crew that followed Zaken walked fearfully behind a party of slaves that they forced to walk ahead, never being to this part of the island before. They arrived in the mouth of a natural cave, which led to a sandy knoll blocked off from the ocean by tall, pointed rocks.
There was a strange gurgling roar, and suddenly the first slave that inched warily ahead was flung into the air with a scream and over the pointed rocks. Zaken and his crew stopped as a beast they'd only heard of in legends dragged himself out from around a corner on the knoll, hitting the slaves away with a large club.
"It's a Giant!" one of the crew cried as a slave was crushed under the titan's mighty hand. Zaken backed against the rock wall, unable to break his eyes away from the giant as it slaughtered his slaves and a few of his crew unlucky enough to have gotten in its way. Its legs had withered away at its waist, a tattered skirt covering his torso and blocking the stumps from view. Strange armor adorned the Giant's shoulders, and a strange mask that had a glowing green circle carved into the center of it sat on its head. Breaking his eyes away from the titan for a moment, Zaken saw a woman wearing a red cloak standing on the knoll behind the giant, her eyes lowered in a look of satisfaction. Beside her floated two shadow servitors, and she petted them lovingly as if they were dogs.
Zaken turned quickly as a roar came from inside of the Island. Krantz stomped through the cave at a run, flinging the crew out of the way like they were dolls. They hit the walls of the cave roughly, and slid to the ground, some dead, some merely unconscious. Krantz caught the Giant's club as it was swung at him, and snarled menacingly at the creature of his ancestry.
"Zaken friend! You will not hurt him!" Krantz shouted. The Giant recoiled a bit, as if shocked to find a being with Giant's blood amongst Zaken's crew. Taking the moment while Krantz scuffled with the Giant, Zaken hurried over to the Magus, who backed herself against the pointed rocks in fear. Her servitors rushed out to aid her, but Zaken merely pulled his pistol from his coat and shot them both in their spectral heads. They dissipated with a moan, and the Magus began scrambling to climb over the rocks.
"No more games, we came to you seeking the location of the Giant's Treasure." Zaken snapped, grabbing her cape and pulling her with it. She held it over the lower half of her face as she fell back to the sand, trying to keep her face from being exposed. She regarded him curiously for a moment before holding up a hand. The Giant suddenly withdrew, leaving a confused Krantz. Still in bloodlust, he turned his remaining anger on the bodies of the crew around the cavern, and began to rip them apart.
"I see Kurikups has found someone worthy of the treasure." Magus said, lowering her eyelids at Zaken. She lacked eyebrows, and it was hard to discern what expression her face was showing at that moment. "The treasure lies on an island, hidden away at its center. Seek it out, it will become known to you"
Nearly a year later, Zaken stood at the bow of the Dreadful King once more as they sailed through a fog. The man in the crow's nest had announced that land was in sight, and he strained his eyes to see it. Could this be it? He thought in anticipation.
They'd been sailing up and down the Aden and Elmore coast for almost a year, searching for the island the Magus claimed held the treasure. Pillaging had come to an almost standstill as Zaken searched for the elusive Giant's Treasure like a man possessed. Tillion smirked darkly to himself in satisfaction as doubts on Zaken's sanity began to spring up amongst the crew. Just wait a little longer… he told himself.
The Nwalmaer remained plundering the southern coastline, and had reported that a Pirate had emerged claiming himself to be Zaken's nemesis and the true king of the southern seas. Perry and Alvar could barely contain their laughter when they realized it was Kylon himself, now going by the name of Corsair Captain Kylon, and sporting the biggest corsair hat they'd ever seen.
They made landfall on an island full of strange flowers, and Komugi instantly recognized the place as the Arteias' land. The events she witnessed from there on matched what she had seen in the feed-dream she'd experienced when Zaken bit her. She watched them again without expression, one hand at her chest as she felt a strange squeezing pain to see Triage again. She didn't understand why, but she didn't feel jealous when she saw the girl, only a great sadness. She looked away as Triage and Zaken kissed, but then glanced back in surprise as the scene shifted to Zaken's cabin.
They were back on the water by the way the cabin rocked, and Komugi found herself staring at the familiar cabin that she herself had remained in while staying with Zaken. Triage sat on the couch that Komugi had used for a bed, staring in worry at the window across the room from her. She wore the white ball gown that Zaken had given her, and the pearl necklace sat at her throat. Explosions rocked the ship, and Triage put her hands on the couch to steady herself.
"Zaken, I can get reinforcements, let me help!" Triage exclaimed as Zaken rushed into his cabin. He glanced at her once, but did not respond, and grabbed a strange bag from his desk drawer.
"Remind me to go through that desk sometime." Komugi said, catching a peek of a mirad of strange objects within it before Zaken slid it shut.
"No, you will remain below the deck." Zaken said in a hard tone of voice. Triage clutched a lock of her coral-colored hair in worry as another explosion rocked the ship.
"But I must get out, Zaken! I must!" she said desperately. It occurred to Komugi then that Triage had a sickly look to her suddenly. Dark circles were under her eyes, and her cheeks looked gaunt. Zaken turned a hateful look on her and grabbed her roughly by her shoulder.
"You wish to leave my side?" He demanded, his eyes wild and possessive. Komugi felt fear in her heart at his expression, as did Triage, by the way she backed away from him.
"You've changed Zaken…this journey has turned you into a demon." She whispered, taking a few steps away from him. Suppressed rage showed itself fully on Zaken's features and he grabbed Triage's wrist roughly and dragged her from the cabin.
"I have fed and clothed you like a queen, and yet you still speak of leaving my side? I have given you protection befitting a god, and your repayment is this?" Zaken snapped. He dragged her as she resisted across the deck and towards the brig.
"Zaken don't, please!" Triage begged, trying to pull her arm free from his grasp. "The Arteias cannot be cag…" Her pleas went unheard, and Zaken threw her roughly into a cell. He slammed the door shut as she dashed back to it. "Please, don't do this!" she wept, reaching a hand out to grab him. He deftly stepped out of her grasp, and returned to the ladder to take him to the deck. "Zaken please!" she wailed. Komugi felt herself crying as the pitiful Arteias woman fell to the ground, her hands over her face, crying as hard as she could. Feathers fell from her wings and littered the cell floor, giving Triage the appearance of a broken angel.
"This isn't what you told me happened, you said she was helping your ship!" Komugi shouted angrily into Zaken's face as she returned to the deck. He did not see or hear her, and walked right through her. Komugi cried out in frustration and attempted to beat on him with all of her might. "You bastard, why did you do this to her? Why did you lie to me?" Komugi yelled in anger and swung her hand as hard as she could. It contacted skin, and Zaken's head snapped to the side. Komugi stared in shock as Zaken lifted a hand to his cheek, surprised.
"Sir?" Tillion called, coming up to him and noticing his expression.
"Tillion, did debris just hit me?" Zaken asked, staring at the place where Komugi floated as if he could see her.
"Not that I can see sir, but we have to hurry, we need you to command us! Stupid Aden dogs, they think they can blow the Dreadful King out of the water!" Tillion exclaimed, leading Zaken away. Komugi looked at her hand in wonder and wiggled her fingers. She wondered if she had really hit him, or if the memory had just been timed right with some debris. Still, her fingers stung as if she had indeed smacked him.
Time sped ahead to several days after the attack on the sea. Zaken and his crew trudged onto a cold beach; the Dreadful King pulled up onto the sand and anchored behind them. It was riddled with cannon ball holes, and some crew remained on board, scooping water out of the cargo hold with buckets.
"That was a close one; we almost lost the Dreadful King too." Tillion said in weary relief. "They're getting stronger sir, shouldn't we return to pillaging?"
"Not until we find the Giant's Treasure." Zaken murmured darkly, focusing on the stretch of land before him.
"Zaken, when will you realize that the Magus and Kurikups have just sent us on a wild bird chase?" Tillion shouted, dropping all formalities with his frustration. He grabbed Zaken's arm to stop him, but Zaken's response was to whip out his fist and backhand Tillion across the temple. The crew that followed him stopped dead in their tracks, shocked that Zaken had hit his Chief Mate.
"Do NOT touch me!" Zaken growled as Tillion stumbled from the impact. He glared hatefully at Tillion for a moment before returning to his path of travel.
"Everything dies one day, Zaken! That's the price of being alive!" Tillion shouted. "Don't be afraid of something like that, you still have years before Shilen will even embrace you!" His shouts went unheard, but the crew behind him began to whisper in shock, never before knowing that the fearless Grand Pirate feared something as natural as death. Tillion smirked darkly and spat, knowing his words would only fuel Zaken's search farther. Just a little longer… he told himself, pleased with the conversations of disbelief behind him.
Komugi followed Zaken as he trudged up a rocky incline, his face creased in deep thought. The rocks bit into his hands and caused them to bleed, but he didn't seem to notice them. She glanced about the land as Zaken climbed, trying to figure out where he had gone landfall. It was unfamiliar to her, and she sighed in frustration at her lack of land knowledge.
Zaken reached to top of the incline, and stood overlooking a tall, beautiful waterfall. His eyes narrowed as he caught sight of a figure standing in the middle of the waterfall pool, their back facing him. Obviously curious despite the frown on his face, Zaken slid down the other side of the incline and began inching along a ledge siding the river that flowed from the waterfall's pool towards the figure. He slid and fell in shock as the familiar face of the Ice Fairy Sirra suddenly appeared in his, landing ungracefully on his bottom.
"Stand down, Sirra. No need to attack a man who is merely curious." The familiar purring voice of Freya came. Komugi felt rage build inside of her at the sound of it, and her hair prickled out. Sirra grabbed Zaken by his arm and dragged him across the river to the bank of the waterfall pool where she dropped him. The figure in the pool turned out to be Freya herself in her Melissa form, bathing. "Please excuse me kind sir, I am so embarrassed to be caught before you in such a state." She said politely, rinsing her arms.
"Oh stop acting innocent you bitch, you're doing this on purpose." Komugi snarled as Freya continued to bathe with her back facing Zaken. "Making sure he gets an eyeful, aren't you." She growled as Freya turned slightly so that the side of her left breast was clearly seen. She groaned at the look on Zaken's face in response; he was very much falling for her show. "Think of Triage, will you? Is she even still alive?" Komugi glanced back in the direction of the ship, feeling heartbroken for the Arteias who was still locked in the brig.
A snap of Freya's fingers brought Komugi's attention back, and Sirra swooped down with an elegantly decorated crystal robe, which was wrapped around Freya's shoulders. She stepped elegantly from the water, and Zaken got his first sight of her face.
She looked the same as she did in the present, her hair short even then. She bent over with the sickeningly friendly smile Melissa had always given her, and held her hand out to Zaken. "I apologize if my maid startled you, kind sir. She was merely trying to protect me." Struck speechless, which Komugi assumed was caused by the fact that Freya didn't bother to hold her robe shut very tightly at her chest, exposing one breast for viewing when she bent over, Zaken could only take Freya's hand and allow her to pull him to his feet.
"No, the apology is mine; I did not intend to intrude." Zaken said in faltering politeness. It had been a long time since he'd used formalities, and his voice sounded wooden. Freya giggled daintily and led Zaken away from the waterfall.
"As a means of apology on both our ends, would you join me to dine?" Freya asked elegantly. She led him over rocks to a cabin house, smoke pouring merrily from the chimney. "You are a pirate, are you not? I am intrigued by this; I have never met one before."
"I've never met an Elf who has a creature made of Ice as her retainer either." Zaken said dumbly. Freya giggled again.
"We have much to share with one another then." Freya said silkily, leading him into the cabin. Komugi remained outdoors, feeling as if she would vomit in her mouth. She attempted to leave the area; not wishing to witness this portion of Zaken's memory, but found herself sped through time again.
Zaken stood on the deck of the Dreadful King with an angry expression as they sailed back into Devil's Isle. His ship went right into a cove of deep water, the same cove that Komugi recalled it being in even now, and a slab of rock slid down behind it. It reminded Komugi of parking a wagon in a shed, and she was impressed that Zaken had figured out how to rig the stone up in such a way to hide the Dreadful King from view.
He jumped from the ship onto the wooden walkway built over the water before it had even come to anchor completely, and stomped across it at a frightening pace. A skinny slave struggled with a boulder on it, and Zaken pushed him roughly off, the man letting out a surprised yelp as he fell into the water.
"Giant's Treasure on an island?" Freya asked in Zaken's recent memory. She lay next to him on a bed, a heavy quilt tucked under her arms to keep her naked breasts from being exposed. "The Giants never would never have bothered with leaving their legacy on islands. They preferred them to be stored in great rooms protected with things created from their vast knowledge."
Back in the present time of the memories, Zaken scowled and growled to himself under his breath. His first stop was the grassy knoll where the Giant, whom they discovered was named Glaki, sat with his family. Krantz sat on the rocks with him, talking in a strange language that was said to be the lost tongue of the Giants. Zaken looked around the knoll, his face skewing into deeper rage.
"Where is she?" he shouted. Krantz and Glaki looked at him curiously, but did not respond. Huffing in anger, Zaken spun on his heel, his coat flaring elegantly out behind him. He moved at a brisk pace back through the caverns and out onto a sandy ledge on the other side of the island, where Kurikups and his wives reclined.
"You lied to me; there is no Giant's Treasure!" Zaken snarled. Kurikups regarded him with feigned surprise, while the wife reclining against his chest snickered. Without pause Zaken drew one of his rapiers and stabbed the woman through her neck, pinning her to the ground. It would not kill her, only cause her great discomfort. Kurikups roared and stood, swiping at Zaken with a clawed hand. Zaken jumped away from it and pulled his remaining rapier from its sheath.
"I have no control over the Magus Kenishee, pirate! You do not take your anger out on me!" Kurikups snarled, plucking the sword from his wife's throat and throwing it back at him. "She left the island not long after you went on your journey. Giant's Treasure does exist, but where, I do not know." Zaken pulled his rapier from the sand and brandished it.
"You lie. I have spoken with the Ice Queen Freya, and she has told me of you, and the Magus Kenishee. You'll do anything just to return to your peaceful slumber, won't you? Including sending me to my death by searching out non-existent treasure!" Zaken spat. Kurikups raised his eyebrows in true surprise this time as he helped his wife back to her feet.
"So the Ice Queen has taken you as her lover, has she?" Kurikups stated, his voice wavering in amusement. "I suppose you'll be abandoning that pretty Arteias then, Freya is the jealous sort after all." Zaken lowered his swords and glared at the tall demon curiously.
"What are you talking about? Triage will remain with me no matter what." Zaken stated, his eyebrows drawing together.
"So you say, Grand Pirate. You haven't even noticed, have you? The Arteias are a creature not meant to be caged, even the Giants knew this long ago when they ruled the land. Your possessive nature of her is killing her." Zaken's face relaxed in a second, and his lips parted slightly. "If you are bored of her, I'd be glad to relieve you and take her as my wife. I'm fond of the soft creatures you see; it always pleases me to have another." Kurikups grinned. Without a word, Zaken spun and marched back into the Island.
"Triage is dying?" he muttered to himself under his breath. His eyes were wide in concerned fear, and he didn't even see the caverns as he walked through them. "Impossible, how could she die? Have I not been treating her well?" He felt as if his heart were being ripped from his chest at the thought of her dead, and tears, something he'd not experienced for a long time, pricked at his eyes.
"As if the brig is treating her well, have you been lying to yourself all of this time or something?" Komugi asked bitterly as she followed him. Zaken returned to the Dreadful King and hopped into brig. Triage sat weakly against the bars of her cell, carelessly rolling one of her feathers between her thumb and forefinger.
"Triage!" Zaken exclaimed, as if seeing her condition for the first time. She opened her eyes wearily and looked up at him. The sight of her broke Komugi's heart again, as did the tears that suddenly slid down the Arteias' cheeks. Zaken flung the cell door open quickly and fell to his knees beside her. "I'm so sorry." He said, his voice thick with tears. He clutched her to his chest and wept in sorrow, realizing what he had done. Triage stared into the air in surprise for a moment before lifting her arms and encircling his back. "I love you, I'm so sorry." Zaken whispered. Triage shut her eyes, a tiny smile gracing her lips and hugged him back. Komugi was propelled backwards out of the brig as the pair kissed and hugged each other in relief only to come to a stop at the top of the brig ladder to find Tillion staring at them with a scowl.