La Storia Quindicesimo: Panzane

Debito glared at his black, patent leather shoes. The viscous mud sucked at them with each step. Lately, everywhere this woman took him was damp and smelled of piss. The dockside tavern chosen for the negotiations was beginning to become a cliche at this point. This being the third of its kind in less than two weeks.

It was a weather-beaten hovel, as ramshackle as could be expected from a band of pirates. This was the last place he wanted to be, a sharp departure from his previous life of glitz and glamour. Grimy, middle aged men replaced the parade of scantily dressed, perfumed beauties. Amica, however appeared to be in her natural element, walking straight ahead, completely unphased by the sights and unfortunates smells that abounded within the tavern's cluttered confines. She moved with purpose amongst the cramped tables, despite the unnatural silence and cold states that accompanied them. He followed two steps behind the girl, flanked by two of her crewman. Their eyes swept the room like predatory birds. He could feel their attention linger on him, unsure if he were the largest threat to their mistress or merely the questionable ally he appeared to be. For a bunch of rabid dogs, their devotion to Amica was almost endearing. He swallowed hard under the fierce scrutiny of the large African sailor to his left.

Lost in his observations, Debito only heard fragments of the man's protest. "- 'has nothing to do wif our affairs.' Them's the Cap'n's words, not mine. And he ain't to be allowin' them sorts of folk in. Got a problem with that, take it up with him."

Amica turned. She paused in a moment of cold appraisal. He felt her violet eyes rake over him. Evidently whatever she found set her mouth in a firm line.

"Stay out of trouble," she hissed and ducked beneath the heavy curtain that cordoned off the captain's private area.

Debito stalked off to the darkest corner of the bar, indulging in his more childish nature. He wouldn't admit he was pouting, but perhaps he felt something akin to that.

The moments of silence faded the longer Amica was hidden behind the curtain. The collective curiosity of the tavern's patrons was palpable. Slowly, the muzzle was lifted and the pirates began to mutter amongst themselves.

A small group of them were huddled around a table nearby, and Debito eyed them carefully. He hoped to overhear just a bit of what these supposed talks were to be about.

"Did ya see her?" A red-bearded pirate said, spitting his disdain on to the dirt floor.

"Yeah, I saw her. Marching in here all high and mighty like. With that King's Man hiding behind her skirt," a tawny haired young man acknowledged, nodding emphatically.

"That's Santiago's girl, you know? Do you really think it is wise to say such things out of turn, señor?" a dark-skinned Spaniard cautioned.

"What's that got to do with it? That old Spaniard's dead. I'm with Lucentio. It ain't right having a woman leading us," the red beard retorted in his thick brogue.

"That ain't just some woman yer talkin' about. Don't act like you weren't there, Darby. You seen her, just like I did. She's the most fearsome bitch I ever seen. You remember that big old Spanish slaver ship, San-Wan-Whatever-You-Call-It. What's now called Venganza," the hitherto silent one snapped at the red beard before the beginning of his lengthy monologue. His voice was filled with superstitious awe, and Debito stared incredulously, assuming this was the beginning of one of those famous pirate tales, rife with hyperbole and outright lies.

"Venganza? That's the Cap'n's boat!" the tawny haired one cried in shock.

"Aye. And sure as you live and breathe, this lass be climbing up the rigging with her papa'a old rifle, she was. And picked off the enemy captain with a single bullet from 100 yards away," the storyteller continued.

"Ya be lyin'. That girl? I'll be struck down if that's the truth," the greenhorn accused.

"I be telling the truth, lad. I seen it. On me pa's dying breath, I seen it. We took the galleon without a second shot bein' fired. That girl, there's a devil what lives inside her skin."

"A devil? Just a good shot, I reckon."

"Nay, I'll admit it," the red beard finally caved under the narrative. "She sent the whole lot, what surrendered on that boat all to the depths. All except the cabin boy. No mercy, especially not for them slavers, boy. The captain is one lucky son of a bitch. The look in here eyes was cold enough to freeze Hades itself over, when she was looking him up and down. It weren't 'til he said he was one of the cargo that she changed her tune. Whether it's true or not, I can't say. Sure saved his sorry hide, though," the red beard recalled. Evidently, he was swept up in the storytelling and had forgotten all his previous disdain for Amica. "And this was all Back when we was crewin' under her on the Prosperitie. That little Norman schooner. Pissed all the boys off. Santiago putting some 15 year old whelp in charge of a crew of veteran men. She's lucky that Azaf fucker was on board... Or well... Ya know, something mighta happened to her."

"Espera! You mean to tell me... That the little señorita was able to take a man'o'war with little more than a glorified rowboat?" the Spaniard asked. Debito had no idea what he was talking about, but the tone in his voice seemed to indicate it was an impressive achievement.

"That's exactly what the man is saying. I ain't never seen another pirate like her. That's why it's such a shock. She comes prancing in her with a King's Man at her side. She don't even have the proper pride to call herself a pirate no more," the storyteller said.

"Aye. And I heard she's signing us up as proper privateers. That's what all this noise is about. The cap's been fuming about it all week," the red beard explained.

"So that's what that was all about. Honestly, I don't know if'n that's such a bad shake. The waters have been tough sailing these days, what with the Italians running patrols on the seaways," the storyteller said quietly. He ran his hand through his hair, nervously looking around the tavern.

"Yeah, but what about the plan?" the red beard hissed.

"I say hang the plan. The Cap's just pissed off that he wasn't asked about it. But truth is, we haven't had a good haul in months. Besides, I reckon Cap doesn't have the balls to kill her. They were thick as thieves as kids. He didn't leave her side for months after she took him from the slavers," the storyteller responded.

The rest of what the man said barely registered. Debito's mind shuddered to a violent halt. He could only imagine what horrible scenarios were playing out behind that curtain. It took everything in his power to stay seated and not put a bullet between the eyes of each one of these backstabbing dogs. At this point, whether the deed was carried through or not, wasn't even relevant. The fact that it was considered at all set his teeth grinding in a barely concealed rage.

"Oi! You calling the cap'n a coward, mate?" the greenhorn accused. The tawny haired youth grabbed at his dagger flamboyantly. Debito silently hoped the situation would escalate. Any opportunity for a disruption, might be enough distraction to slip past the one guarding the door.

Unfortunately, the pirate was able to diffuse the situation. "No, I ain't sayin' that. I'm sayin', how easy do ya spect it'll be to draw your sword on a lass you knew since you were a boy?"

Debito had heard enough. More than enough to send his blood boiling with barely suppressed fury. Not a single one of these mongrels were worthy enough to even exist in her presence, and this pissant of a captain thought he would take her life. Beneath the table, his fist clenched around the grip of his pistol, slowly sliding it from its concealed holster. Debito stared at the pirate guarding the doorway with narrowed eyes. He slipped effortlessly into the shadows as the protective veil of his Arcana shielded him from sight.

A/N: Thanks for sticking with me and reading The Fifteenth Story: Tall Tales.

Man, I can't believe it's been almost a year since I started this fic. Time really flies. Well, it's good to be back to posting, and I'm sorry about the long break, everyone. I'll try to keep the posting schedule a little more regular from here on out. For some reason, I was having a really hard time with the arc transition and nothing I wrote seemed like it was up to par. And then Dragon Age: Inquisition came out, and well, I'm sure you all know how that stuff goes... Anyway., I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, but at this point, I don't think anything would be "good enough."

Also, thank you, MusicofMadness, for getting my butt in gear. Thanks for the awesome review. It really helped motivate me to start posting again, just knowing that people are reading the story and enjoying it. It really means a lot!

Translations:

There wasn't a whole lot this time, except of a bit of Spanish.

Espera= Wait!

See you next time.

3.11.15