Previously, on Pirates In Love...

Navy Bastard 1 - "Over there!"

I heard their footsteps running towards me. I had to move. I had to move now. But my limbs were frozen with fear. This isn't the time for this, Alex. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do. I forced my fingers to wrap around two throwing knives. Taking a deep breath, I leapt out and threw them.

The first one missed, but the second one caught his shoulder. He yelled out in pain, then charged at me, smoke billowing around him. The other two soldiers were not far behind. He thrust his sword down on me and I barely had time to block it with my dagger. The blow sent me crashing to the ground. He raised his sword, preparing for another swing.

Navy Bastard 2 - "Wait!"
Navy Bastard 1 - "..."
Navy Bastard 2 - "It's a woman…"
Navy Bastard 3 - "The hell's a woman doing on board?"
Navy Bastard 2 - "Let's take her captive!" He moved towards me.
Navy Bastard 1 - "If she's got weapons, then she's one of them! I say we kill her."
Navy Bastard 2 - "Are you insane? She could be a civilian -"
Navy Bastard 3 - "Doesn't look like a civilian to me."

I had stood up and gotten into a defensive position with my dagger at the ready. There was no way I'd be able to defeat all three of these guys. And clearly injuries didn't stop them from attacking. The only way I'd be clear of them is if I cleared them out… completely. I gritted my teeth. Was I capable of doing such a thing?

Navy Bastard 2 - "Let's just take her up to -"

BANG!

The soldier grabbed his shoulder which was now spouting blood. Two more shots rang out and the other two fell to the ground. I stared at the two fallen soldiers with bullet holes in their brains. Their eyes were already glossed over and empty. Eduardo emerged from between the crates and aimed his gun at the first soldier. My heart leapt into my throat. All it did was click.

Eduardo - "Damn. I'm out."

The soldier looked relieved for a moment. So was I. Then Eduardo pulled out a knife.

Alex - "No!"

I grabbed the back of his shirt. He stopped and looked at me, annoyed.

Alex - "Don't kill him."
Eduardo - "He would do the same to me."
Alex - "But he wasn't goin' to kill me! Just… Please, just throw him overboard, or give 'im back to the navy!"

Eduardo looked back at the soldier. He was struggling to keep himself up.

Eduardo - "Fine. Take his weapons."

I grabbed what weapons I could find on him and Eduardo took him by the arm and brought him out onto the deck. I followed.

Up on the deck there was a standoff between the crew and the remaining navy. Bloody corpses riddled the deck. The sight made me nauseous. I kept forgetting the kind of people I was with. Moments like this always reminded me that these men were pirates. And now people thought I was like them… Eduardo dragged the wounded soldier to the space between them and threw him onto the deck.

Eduardo - "Look, I spared one of your rats. Now, we'll let you leave with this guy in one piece, or" he cocked his gun at the soldier's head, "this one's a goner."

I thought he was out of rounds… Is it a bluff? The wounded soldier isn't saying anything either and he knows Eduardo has no bullets…

The commander in charge stared at Eduardo for quite some time before agreeing with his terms.

Navy Commander - "Okay! We'll leave. Retreat!"

Some navy soldiers grabbed the wounded one and they started to disembark. The wounded soldier looked back at me before disappearing off the ship. I sighed in relief. One less casualty.

As we sailed away, Morgan yelled back at them, "And don't you dare follow us!" He turned back to the crew. "Nice plan Eduardo! Although, it's not like you to leave anyone alive."
Eduardo - "I had some inspiration."

He glanced at me sideways, smirking. I blushed and looked away. That devilish expression always made me embarrassed.

Christopher and I tended to some of the crew who had incurred minor injuries. Morgan and Eduardo went to the nav room to find out where to go. The rest of the crew cleaned up the deck, scavenging for weapons and throwing bodies overboard. Now I knew why Thomas was constantly swabbing the deck. This ship would probably be stained red by the time we finished. Once we're done… what'll happen after that? I felt sad and hopeful and scared thinking about it. Did I want to stay? Did I want to go? I had already decided Yamato was no place I could return to… I shook the sad thoughts out of my head. There was no point in thinking about it. I had to concentrate on the problem at hand.

Of course, we'd be travelling to the Reiz empire to get the rest of the map, but we didn't know where. We were basically back to square one. But when Eduardo made for a new course, we didn't head out to open waters. He kept the shores of Moldor to our right, heading south. Out on the deck with the rest of the crew, I asked Morgan why.

Alex - "Captain, why are we still hangin' around Moldor? Isn't it dangerous?"
Morgan - "We're not done here. We got the map, but we need the other piece. And I've no idea where it could be. We need to snoop around Moldor for more information. We'll stop at a free trade port. The navy'll think twice before hassling us there!" Morgan laughed.
Alex - "What's a free trade port?"
Christopher - "It's essentially a safe haven for pirates. The government doesn't like to admit it, but pirates are a part of the economy. It allows us to buy and trade within a city without getting thrown into prison."
Alex - "Wow really? Even though you guys have bounties on your heads?"
Christopher laughed. "We're granted immunity from the navy, but that doesn't stop anyone else in the free trade zone to try and collect on us."
Nathan - "We're well known fer our strength. No one gives us trouble."
Eduardo - "It'll be dangerous for a girl like you, though."
Alex - "Huh? Why?"
Eduardo - "Free trade zones are a little lawless. You could get kidnapped and sold off, and there's no navy to stop them from doing so."
Alex - "Why is it always me they want… I don't even have a bounty."
Morgan - "It's cuz you're so damn cute!" He grinned, patting my head a bit too hard. "How can a guy not wanna steal ya?"

I blushed.

The free trade zone was quite a ways away from the main port of Moldor. It took us a few days to get there. The day before we were to make port, I was helping Nathan in the kitchen, preserving some fish we had caught. Well, Nathan had caught all of them except one. I had reeled in the tiniest fish. I sighed.

Nathan - "... Ya've been hangin' out here a lot lately."
Alex - "Oh, um, do you not want me here?"
Nathan - "Not really…"
Alex - "I'm sorry, I'll leave…" I went to the sink to rinse my hands. Nathan laughed.
Nathan - "I'm joking."
Alex - "Oh… haha." I returned to salting the fish Nathan had cleaned.
Nathan - "Ya have been hangin' out with me more n' usual, though. Somethin' up?"
Alex - "Ah, nothing…"
Nathan - "So ya just like me that much, eh?" He smirked.
I blushed. "It's not like that! I just… don't wanna hang out with other people…"
Nathan - "That's basically what I said…"
Alex - "Is not!"

I slapped Nathan in the face with a fish fillet.

Nathan - "..."
Oh god, he looks mad. "I-it was a joke!"
Nathan - "Yer gon' regret that."
Alex - "Aah! I'm sorry!" He chucked a pile of fish guts at me. "Ugh, gross!"
Nathan - "There's more where that came from!"

Soon bits of fish were flying everywhere in the kitchen. One of the fillets caught Russell in the face when he was walking by the window. I sidestepped a fish head Nathan had thrown at me, but then slipped on some guts. I fell forward and knocked him over. My bandana had fallen over my eyes. When I pulled it back I found myself on top of Nathan, on my hands and knees, between his legs. His face was directly in front of mine.

Russell walked into the kitchen with a fillet in his hand looking very angry. He stopped and stared at us.

Russell - "What the hell are ya guys doin'?!"

He pulled me off of Nathan and grabbed my shoulders.

Russell - "What do ya think yer doin'? Ya got any idea what he could do to ya?"
Alex - "It was an accident! I fell."
Nathan - "What do ya mean, what I could do ta 'er?"
Russell ignored Nathan. "It don't matter, don't be puttin' yaself in those kinda positions with men!"
Nathan - "Ya think I'm an animal or somethin'..."
Alex - "I said it was an accident!" I yanked myself away from Russell. "Why do you care so much about what I do with other men?"
He completely ignored my question. "I can't leave ya alone, can I. Tomorraw yer comin' to Moldor with me."

He walked out the kitchen and slammed the door behind him.

Alex - "Geez, is he ever in a good mood?"
Nathan got up from the floor, brushing himself off. "Hmm… I think that is Russell in a good mood."
Alex - "What?"
Nathan - "He's usually a lot more vulgar around women. But not you."
Alex - "That's 'not vulgar'?"
Nathan - "Yup. Here, clean this up."
Alex - "I have to clean it all?"
Nathan - "You started it." He took off his shirt and handed it to me. "Wash this too."
Alex - "Okay…"

Nathan turned his back to me and started working on the fish. The wound on his back had completely healed, but it left a nasty scar. The questions I had about his past were simmering in my head again. I really wanted to ask them. I had to ask them. They eventually boiled over.

Alex - "Why do you have so many scars?" I blurted.
Nathan kept working. "Fights n' stuff."
Alex - "Fights from… being a pirate?"
Nathan - "No. Mostly from when I was a bandit."
Alex - "A bandit?"
Nathan - "..."
Alex - "Um, if you were a bandit before… why'd you switch to bein' a pirate?"

Nathan worked silently for a bit. I wondered if he was just going to ignore the question. He tended to do that when he didn't want to talk about something.

Nathan - "It's cuz of Cap…"
Alex - "Captain?"
Nathan - "Yeah. I owe 'im my life. He saved mine. Twice."
Alex - "... How?"

Nathan told me his story of how he ended up on the Sirius. How he used to lead a life of thievery and murder, always getting into scraps with the local police. How he was betrayed by the men who had raised him, how he lost his childhood friend, and how he was nearly hanged. He told me how Captain saved him from being hanged and from the guards who were chasing him. It's the reason he has such a huge bounty on his head. He finished his story and kept working, a stern expression on his face. I had finished cleaning and was soaking his shirt in the sink. I kept quiet for a bit, unsure of what to say. I could feel my eyes watering. Everyone has such a tortured past… I dried off my hands and wiped my eyes.

Alex - "At least you have the Captain!" I smiled at him. "And the rest of the Sirius crew! Who cares about those bandits when you've got everyone here, watchin' your back n' stuff. You all get along so well… you're inseparable."
Nathan looked at me. "... And you."
Alex - "Hm?"
Nathan - "I have you, too... don't I?"
"Oh…" I didn't think he thought of me in that way. Sure, I was his 'lil kitchen helper', but I thought I was still just a stowaway on this boat. I smiled even wider. "Of course!"

Nathan smirked and poked my forehead.

Alex - "Hey! Oh, this is covered in fish gunk!"

He just laughed at me. I dunked my bandana into the sink with his shirt.

The next day I was back in my civilian clothes. Morgan thought I'd blend in better in my blouse and skirt. Personally, I think he just likes any woman in a dress. I had to leave the bandana behind anyway since it was still drying. I combed out my hair and let it fall loosely around my shoulders. It had been so long since I looked in the mirror and saw a real girl looking back. It felt kinda good. Thomas blushed when he saw me. I guess he was remembering the last time I wore these clothes, back in Hoenn when I sang in the bar. Except the skirt was shorter now. The ends had gotten worn out so I had to hem the bottom quite a bit. The sleeves had gotten ragged as well so I had to shorten those. I was also missing the top two buttons, exposing a bit of my cleavage. Nothing I could do about that. Nathan and Eduardo both stared at me. I asked what they were lookin' at and they just mumbled some nonsense excuses. Thomas stayed behind on the ship again, and we all headed out.

Russell and I walked around the muddy streets of the free trade port. The streets were wider here, with blackened wood beams and bridges spanning the buildings above us. There were many more shops and vendors here, and lots of traffic on the streets. The variety of people and races here was overwhelming. I had never been in such a bustling metropolis of people before. I grabbed Russell's arm.

Russell - "What ya doin'?"
Alex - "Sorry! I slipped, I didn't want to fall."
Russell - "Christ…"

He grabbed my hand and tugged me along. He didn't complain about how slow I was being, or how I shouldn't be out with them in the first place… Why did he want to be with me in Moldor anyway? Aren't I just a burden to him?

Alex - "Hey, Russell?"

I stopped.

Russell - "What? Ya can't just stop in the middle o' the street like tha'."
Alex - "Why did you choose me to come back into Moldor with?"
Russell - "Cuz' yer useless by yerself. Ya gotta have someone with ya ta protect ya."
Alex - "But…"
Russell - "What?"
Alex - "You're the one that wants me off the boat the most. As a woman I don't belong there… Why are you protecting me?"
Russell - "Heh, like I'd trust the other guys ta do it as well as me. They all got their own agenda."
Alex - "Their own agenda?"
Russell - "Nevermind that, let's keep goin'!"

He didn't really answer my questions, but I felt like we were back on good terms. We kept walking.

Alex - "Russell…"
Russell - "What now?"
Alex - "Thank you… for offering to protect me."
Russell - "Huh, when'd I do that?"

I giggled. He would never admit it, would he?

"YOU THERE!"

We turned around to see a bunch of soldiers running after us. But they weren't the navy. They had their weapons drawn. Russell took his out.

Alex - "We should run!"
Russell - "Like hell!"

He engaged the soldiers in combat.

Russell - "Stay behind me!"
I scowled. "Like hell!"

I wasn't going to let my failure to fight on board become a regular thing. I jumped into the skirmish, helping block attacks from the soldiers. They seemed to only care about capturing Russell. I was doing okay on my own, mostly avoiding attacks and landing a few throwing knives here and there, but the soldier's numbers kept growing. How many of them are there? And why are they attacking so suddenly? I heard the crunch of a footstep behind me.

Soldier - "You're in the way! Die!"

He lunged at me with his sword. I don't have time, he's going to stab me! I put my hands over my head and closed my eyes bracing myself for the attack.

Russell - "Alex!"

I felt no pain. I had not been stabbed. I turned around to see Russell standing over me. A sword had pierced his shoulder.

Alex - "No, Russell!"

The multitude of soldiers subdued us and put us in handcuffs. A few were injured and stayed put to tend their wounds, but the rest escorted us up the road. One of them tied a rag around his shoulder. I heard them mutter, "we want him alive, men." So they know who he is, probably… We marched down the street with the commoners staring at us as we walked past. I heard their whispers, "Is he a pirate? Must have a bounty. The Duke's soldiers are really coming down hard on us… If he does have a big bounty, maybe the Duke will let off of us for a bit…" Who is this Duke?

We walked up to a black iron gate and went into a large fenced in area. There were nicely paved walkways, well kept grass and gardens, and a giant mansion in the middle of it all. It was beautiful, with white walls and stained glass windows. Very different from the streets. But the grounds were teeming with soldiers. Who'd a thunk a huge chunk of land like this existed in the middle of town? The soldiers didn't say a word and brought us to a small jailhouse where they threw us into a cell underground. They didn't even say why they had captured us. At least they took the handcuffs off. Rubbing my wrists, I looked around.

It was dingy and dark. There was a disgusting hole in the ground for a 'toilet' and weeds were growing out of every crack in the walls and floor. The cell bars were crusted with rust. There was a lamp on the pillar opposite us that was the only light source. I could vaguely see other prisoners shifting around in the cells across from us. I could hear them whispering lightly to each other. The guards must not tolerate chitchat. Russell groaned and grabbed his shoulder.

Alex - "Let me look at it…"

He unbuttoned his shirt partway so I could slip it off his shoulder. The sword had gone all the way through, but it wasn't bleeding that much. I took the rags the soldier had wrapped around him and pressed down on the wound.

Russell - "Heh…"
Alex - "What's so funny?"
Russell - "Now we're even…"
Alex - "What do you mean?"
Russell - "I was returnin' the favour, from when ya protected me."

He lightly touched the scar on my thigh.

Alex - "Oh… haha, I guess so!... You still didn't hafta get hurt for me…"
Russell - "Yeah, yer right. Now we're trapped in this mess…"
Alex - "It's my fault we're in here… Probably shoulda stayed put like you said."
Russell laughed. "Nothin' is yer fault. Cap's always complainin' 'bout how I jump into shit too much. Sayin' how I'll regret it someday… Neva really got it 'till now."
Alex - "Why now?"

I took my hand off and started ripping my sash into strips. No point in hiding the weapons the guards had taken away from me, so I didn't need it. Russell lifted my chin up to look at me.

Russell - "If we'd a ran like ya said, maybe ya wouldn't have almost died. It scared the shit outta me when I heard 'im say that."

I remembered the soldier yelling, You're in the way! Die!

Alex - "What are you sayin'? You're the one that got hurt, you coulda died!"
Russell - "He was aimin' at ya to kill, they weren't even tryin' ta hurt me. And maybe I'da known that if I took the time to think, and 'assess tha situation' as Cap always says." He sarcastically made quotation marks in the air.
Alex - "Maybe… but you think quick on your feet! It's what saved me." I smiled at him. "I'd be sliced salami right now if you hadn't gotten in the way of that blade."

I supposed Russell did care about me in his own way. I finished wrapping his wound and put his arm in a sling. He argued with me about wearing it and I told him he shouldn't use his arm with a shoulder wound. He grumbled and said to not tell him what to do, but he kept the sling on anyway.

Alex - "Okay, how do we get out?"
Russell - "Already thinkin' bout that eh?"
Alex - "Well, I'm guessing you don't just want to sit here, right?"
Russell - "Actually… I do."
Alex - "What?"
Russell snickered. "This ain't ma first jailbreak. Ya gotta wait till night. No point in breakin' out in broad daylight when them guards are all over the place. Ya saw 'em on the grounds when we walked in, didn'tchya?"
Alex - "Oh… right. There are no windows. How do you know when it'll be dark?"
Russell - "Let's see… We got thrown in 'ere midday. Usually shift change is 'round supper time so the guards can go eat somethin'... Then another shift change 'round midnight. That's when we'll make our move."
Alex - "So… we wait for the second shift change."
Russell - "Yup."

He knew so much about how the guards would operate, and he'd only just met them. I didn't think he was much of a thinker, but he actually uses his head when there's real trouble. Maybe he's smarter than I thought. But he's clearly he'd been thrown in jail many times. I wondered if that's why he has a bounty. What crimes was he jailed for, and how many places is he wanted in for breaking out? I was curious.

Alex - "This really isn't your first time…" I mumbled.
Russell - "Wussat?"
Alex - "Nothing!"

We sat in silence, waiting for time to pass. My curiosity got the better of me and I asked Russell about his bounty. I was afraid he'd yell at me for asking, but I just had to know.

Alex - "So… why do you have a bounty on your head?"
Russell - "We're pirates. We all do. Even Thomas."
Alex - "Yeah, but… what did you do to get it… so high?"
Russell - "Seen the posters huh? Mine's not as high as the Captain's. He's the real wanted man."
Alex - "You admire the Captain, don't ya?"
Russell - "... He's a good man. He let me on his ship so I could fulfill my goal."
Alex - "What's that?"
Russell smirked. "Someday, I'll beat him and become the next Pirate King."
Alex - "What? He let you on the ship even though that's what you wanna do?"
Russell - "Eh, he didn't really find that out 'till later. First, I need to defeat the Legendary Swordsman."
Alex - "Who's that?"
Russell - "He's the best two sword fencer! Well, second best. I'mma defeat 'im." He grinned.
I smiled. "All ya wanna do is fight, huh?"
Russell - "Somethin' wrong with that?"
Alex - "No… But… nevermind."
Russell - "What?"
Alex - "Well, I dunno… Don't you ever think there's more to life than that? Fightin'?"

Russell remained quiet. He was staring at the wall now. Did I touch a nerve?

Russell - "I used ta think that was the only thing to life."
Alex - "Used to? What changed?"
Russell looked at me then scratched his face as if he was embarrassed. "You… y'know what, it doesn't matter. I'mma get some shut eye."

He settled against the cold stone wall. I stared at him for a bit. "Russell?"

Russell - "Yeah?"

Alex - "You'll make a great Pirate King someday."

He didn't answer and just rolled over. I got bored and started humming, quietly enough that no one would hear me. It made me a little more comfortable. Eventually, a couple guards came by to relieve the first shift of their post. They talked about what there was for supper. Russell was right. It made me hungry listening to them. I had crawled over to the cell bars and peered out down the hallway. I could barely see their backs. Two of them walked out and the door slammed shut behind them. I looked around at the other cells. Some of the other prisoners had also come up to the bars to see what was going on. One of them looked familiar. I gripped the bars and pressed my face up against them.

Alex - "Hey, you!"