The Scathed

[Luckie OClover]

Great chapter Crest!
I'm glad to hear the next is all ready to go..... it's not Thursday yet is it?

[seafox]

Me<----------Jumping up and down with excitement!!

Lots of action...boom shots...the whole nine yards...can't ask for more.....or can I?? hmmm...

I, of course, loved the last two chapters immensely...but a new chapter this weekend to celebrate with???? would be perfect timing me thinks.

[KeeperOfTheCode]

Erm... A beautifully written chapter, but it really helps is you know what you're talking about. When you said front mast, you could have said fore-mast. Then of course, there's the main-mast, and finally, in the back, the mizzen-mast. Things like that really liven up a chapter. If you ever need help with that, just ask.

[muffin pirate]

Great as Always... Can't wait for the next chapter!

[Crestshot]

Well Seafox, you convinced me. I figured I tormented you for a month, I could give you an extra chapter this weekend. Cause, you know, I'm just nice that way. (No 8th level for me Del!). Oh, and we can all blame Luckie for keeping me up till 5 in the morning to type this. So mates, as a treat, I give you...

Rescue



Kat and Lawrence just stared at the sandy haired man that had just barked at them. He glared at them through the dirtied bars of the cage. “Well, c’mon you pirates, are you going to help a bloke out or what?”

Kat moved a little closer to the man. “Why should we?” she asked cautiously.

The man met her eyes with a level stare, but they were cold. “I can help you out aboard that miniature ship of yours,” he said silkily. “You think I didn’t hear them laughing at you up there, about the fishing dingy that was attacking them?” Kat flinched at the word dingy, but the man didn’t see. “If it’s only the two of you, you’re going to need a whole lot more help with whatever you think you’re doing. Besides, I’m obviously not Navy.”

Kat leveled him up. He looked strong and perhaps a little sea worn. This man was not new to the roughness of the seas.

She was opening her mouth to say something, but Lawrence beat her. “Kat!” he said sharply. She turned to see him with his arms crossed, glaring at the jailed man. He motioned her to him with a flick of his head.

“What?” she asked him.

He glanced back at the man before turning his green gaze on her. “You can’t seriously be considering his offer, can you?” he whispered as if she was mad.

“Well, why shouldn’t I?” she whispered back. “Are you saying you wouldn’t appreciate an extra hand, especially with those torn sails?”

“Why is he in jail if he hasn’t done something wrong, Kat? Did you think of that?” he shot back.

Kat glared at him. “You should know by now that the Navy isn’t exactly fair, Mcrage,” she said pointedly. “This is a place for second chances, and I plan to give him one.” She stepped out of the shadows and back towards the cell.

“What be your name, mate?” she asked the barred man.

“Solomon… Sharkfury,” he told her. There was a touch of hesitation in his voice as he gave his name. Kat noted it, but she ignored it for now.

She put her hand through the bars. “Good to meet you, Solomon.” He grasped the hand strongly, but again, there was something behind it. It was wary. She would have to remember that later.

“Well, shall we get you out of here then?” she said. She examined the door and the lock carefully, then let out a short laugh. “They never do learn,” she muttered. She took a wooden bar – probably from a broken cargo box – pushed it through the holes of the cell door, and popped the door off.

“Well, that was simple enough,” Solomon said, walking out. “There’s some weapons right above us: Bayonets, swords, pistols and such. I’m assuming you’ll be wanting some?”

“Aye!” Kat said heartily. Her and Solomon ran up the stairs while Lawrence followed grudgingly behind.

Kat pried open a box with her cutlass, finding all kinds of naval swords, shining up at her. She picked up one and unsheathed it. “Not a bad blade,” she muttered. She placed the strap over her shoulder for possible use later. Solomon was over at another crate, taking out a bayonet that he slung over his shoulder.

Lawrence came to Kat’s shoulder to look at the swords as well. “Look at these, Lawrence!” she said excitedly. “Think of how we could use these! We could sell them to pirates at Tortuga, or resell to the Navy, or even keep them in storage for ourselves!”

“Aye,” Lawrence muttered, not really listening. He moved to the smaller box next to the swords. The top slid off easily to reveal dozens of small throwing knives. He grinned and picked up a few. They definitely had to take these weapons.

A crash and a rumbling came from above. Three heads snapped up. “I think those soldiers finally broke through,” Kat muttered. She unsheathed her sword and heard Lawrence do the same. Solomon moved to the box of swords and threw one over his shoulder, then readied his bayonet. They waited as the thumping of boots grew louder and closer.

The two Navy soldiers burst down the stairs. Their faces were menacing, but they recoiled at the sight of Solomon. “You escaped!” one of them cried.

“Thank you for that observation,” Solomon said sarcastically. He raised the bayonet up to eye level. “Now, are you going to let us pass, or are you going to get shot?”

The soldiers raised their hands and dropped their weapons. Kat walked behind them and pointed her sword at one’s back. “We’re going to need you to do a little something for us…”

The group made the soldiers load the weapons they wanted into a small life boat, along with a few other valuables. Solomon had laughed at the Wolf. “That is your ship?!” he had thundered with laughter. “It’s a wonder you’re still afloat!”

Kat glared at him. “You can go back into the brig if you’d like.” That shut him up quick.

With the supplies loaded, they sent the soldiers back to their ship. Most of the Navy men weren’t dead (Kat didn’t need any more faces on her conscience), but they would have a hard time putting that fiery mess of a ship back together.

The now group of three escaped as fast as they could from the Navy, but their torn sails were a hindrance. It was just a good thing that the other ship was in no shape to follow. They sailed west for a while until the red and white sails were less than specks in the distance.

When they felt as if they were safe, they stopped to take the sails down and examine them. They had been dealt a bad hand by the Navy’s cannonballs. Kat just felt they were lucky that the mast hadn’t been taken down with the way the sails were.

“Lawrence, go get the needles and thread,” she said with a sigh. “We’ll have to sew them up the best we can until we get to port. Unfortunately, we’ll have to dock a lot sooner than I thought.” She rubbed her hand wearily over her eyes as Lawrence went for the supplies. “Solomon, help me get those sails down. This may take a while.”

They spent the rest of the daylight slowly stitching the sails back together, but they still didn’t finish. Kat didn’t want to risk trying to fix them by the light of lanterns or even the moon, so as the sun set, they put the sails back up. Kat went into her cabin to make some supper while the men did that. It was odd making it for three, rather than two or one. Perhaps the sails were a blessing in disguise, she thought. They didn’t really have enough food to supply three people for months at a time.

She called Lawrence and Solomon in when she finished cooking. Lawrence walked in behind Solomon, and Kat noticed his posture. He wasn’t comfortable around the new man. She couldn’t really blame him, but she’d have to find a way to talk to him later.

Solomon wolfed down the food placed in front of him. Kat frowned. “When was the last time you ate, mate?” she asked worriedly.

Solomon glared down at his empty metal plate. “Four days, maybe five,” he grumbled. “They didn’t really care about me down there.”

“Pompous little…” she muttered. She pushed her plate over to him. “Eat,” she commanded him.

He looked down at the plate and hesitated. Kat looked at him pointedly, so he began eating some more. She smiled in satisfaction. “You keep eating. Lawrence, come help me find a place for him to sleep.” She rose from the tiny table and motioned for Lawrence to follow.

The two walked down into the hold. Kat began rummaging through the supplies, looking for something to use.

“Go easy, Lawrence,” she said with her head inside a box. She grumbled in frustration and closed it, moving on to the next crate. “He really hasn’t done anything you know. Not that we can punish him for at least.”

Lawrence crossed his arms with a frown. “He was locked up in the brig of a Navy ship, Kat. Why should I trust him?”

Kat rolled her eyes. “Lawrence, we’ve both been there. Being jailed doesn’t automatically equate to untrustworthy.” She rummaged through the box, but again found nothing. The lid of the box fell back on with a thump, and a thin layer of dust billowed. She moved to yet another box.

“Kat, I just don’t think it’s good to immediately trust him,” Lawrence argued. Kat sighed and moved some things in the crate aside, still looking for a sheet or something.

“Ow!” she gasped. Lawrence was at her side immediately. She looked at her arm, where an angry gash had appeared from a loose nail.

Lawrence took her arm gently. “Let me see that,” he murmured. He took a strip of cloth from a pocket and gently wrapped her arm in it.

“Thank you,” she all but whispered. Lawrence merely nodded.

She looked up at the young man. “Look, Lawrence,” she said softly. He looked up at her with those blazing green eyes. She couldn’t help but lose her breath for a moment. “I trust you, and you trust me, right?” He nodded. “Then just trust me on this, ok? He’s just a lost soul. You don’t have to trust him right away, but at least accept him.”

He glanced down at the bandage to tie it off, then back at her eyes. “Alright, I can do that.”

Kat smiled at him. “Good.” She grabbed a blanket from the still open box. Her throat cleared lightly. “I’m going to go set up a place for Solomon.” She nodded goodbye, then turned away and went back up on deck, leaving Lawrence in the darkness.



So, there's that for you mates. As always, I love your reviews, but they're not necessarily necessary. Much thanks for those mates.

I also want to thank KeeperoftheCode for the use of his character, Solomon Sharkfury. I'll be doing my best to capture the essence of him mate.

Really quick, mostly because I don't want to make a brand new thread or blog... Some of you may have heard me ranting about an audition I had for a school play last week. Well, I went for call backs on Friday. Through the entire thing, I was thinking, "Oh wow, these people are so much better than me, I'm not getting a part." Well, I suppose my predictions fail. I got a part in my school play! So, you may not see me on quite as much mates, but I'll still be here. I'm too addicted to this thing to completely leave, haha.

Well, that's it. Next chapter should be posted on Thursday, per usual. Thanks for reading!

-Kat Crestshot

[Captain Del]

Eh... ok, maybe level 7....

Crest, I love it! The way you paint the characters in the story, giving them feelings, thought, personality, and understand, is simply amazing! It's like I'm watching it all unfold in front of me!

I await your next chapter with zen-like patience.

[muffin pirate]

Another Chapter?!?!!?!?! Sheesh, Hold The Suspense Please.... LOL

EDIT: Nice Chapter Crest... Keep it up.

[Luckie OClover]

Great Chapter, I'm glad you kept me up while you were working on it

I wish I had an awesome Luckie's Punch of Approval stamp like Del......
Here's the best I can do.....

[KeeperOfTheCode]

Thank you for using him. Hmm... Nice portrayal. I especially liked silkily.

[seafox]

xD.....I have none of Del's zen thingy....but...sigh...I will wait without pestering you...as you are now a rising theater presence!!

Good Luck and break a leg and all that!! Wow, what does one call a noted author and a actress? Oh yeah....awesome!! xD

[muffin pirate]

Originally Posted by seafox

Oh yeah....awesome!! xD

How bout Epicly Awesome?!?!??!

[Crestshot]

Here you are mates! Food for thought! Well... ok, maybe not so much for thought as entertainment. My apologies on the lateness of this. Homework and theater and drama... etc etc. Still Thursday here though, so HA! to all of you East Coasters. Anywho...

Port Again



“Run, Kat!” Lawrence cried. He grabbed her hand and pulled her along after him. It was foggy. She could only see the shadow of Lawrence in front of her.

And then the shadow was gone too. “Lawrence?” she cried fearfully. No answer. “Lawrence!” she yelled again.

“Throw her in the brig!” The words echoed around her. She reached for her sword, but the weight wasn’t there. Frantically, she looked for anything: her pistol, a dagger, even her compass, but none were there. She began panicking.

“Kat, Kat!” Lawrence’s voice tore through the fog. She turned wildly, searching for the source, but it echoed all around. It was impossible to figure out.

“Thank you for saving me Kat,” a voice said softly behind her. She turned on the spot to see the ragged Solomon. He gave her a malicious grin. “I have to look out for myself though.” A sword formed from the fog and he swung…

~~~~~

Kat sat up in her bed and rubbed her face in frustration. All she had was a haunting feeling of dread and fear. She remembered fog… bah! All she knew was that something was wrong. She put it to the back of her mind for now. They had to get to port.

She dragged herself to her maps. They had head out from Tortuga at south west, so they would be about…here! Her finger landed on a spot near one of the uninhabited islands. That meant… her finger traced south east, looking for a port. She grinned. Port Royal was only about a day’s travel away. That would work well enough. She was sure Lawrence would enjoy the opportunity to see Josie.

Her compass was open on the table, so she picked it up to double check her bearings. She walked outside to figure out the right direction from the position of the sun. The compass pointed in the correct direction. Perhaps everything was starting to turn their way.

Lawrence and Solomon were about to take down the sails to try and fix them up a little more. “Hold up there you two!” she called to them. They stopped climbing the rigging for a moment to look down on her. “We’re going to head to Port Royal mates! Shouldn’t take long to get there!”

Lawrence hung upside down from the ropes and saluted. “Aye Kat!” he called back.

Kat laughed. “C’mon Lawrence, but it out before you fall into the sea!” He grinned at her upside down and flipped off of it.

“So, Port Royal?” he asked when he landed. “Brilliant, I haven’t seen Josie in months!”

Solomon crept over to Kat. “Are you sure you want to be heading to Port Royal? It’s not exactly a safe haven for people like us.”

Kat’s eyes sparkled. “You underestimate the wit and the wiles of a woman, Solomon. Don’t worry about it.” She sent Solomon off to work on minor ship repairs, while she took the wheel for Port Royal.

The sun was setting on the water as they neared Port Royal. They lowered anchor just off the coast and took one of the dinghies to shore. Kat changed into a more appropriate style before they left, so as not to reveal they were pirates quite as easily. Lawrence rowed steadily to the docks, muscles rippling underneath his tank. Kat caught herself staring for a moment before Lawrence glanced up at her with those eyes. She quickly averted her eyes.

Her gaze reverted to Solomon instead. His entire posture was stiff and his eyes flickered rapidly in paranoia. She reached over to put a hand on his shoulder, making him jump a little. “Relax,” she muttered. His shoulders loosened a little, but his eyes were as untrusting as before. Kat sighed internally. This was going to be a long trip.

At shore, the poor dockworker tried to charge them twenty gold for the parking of the ship, but Kat giggled and acted like a foolish young maiden, hanging on his arm playfully. They ended up walking away with only half of the fee missing from their pockets. Kat winked at the man who had just stared at her. “Never underestimate the power of a woman,” she said.

They took care of business first. Truehound may have worked in clothes, but he and his team also worked with Darby Drydock to create sails. The group walked into the shop at the tinkling of a bell.

“Hello, I’m Nathaniel Truehound,” the tailor said with his back to them. He began turning towards them. “How can I-” He stopped abruptly at the sight of Kat. His eyes narrowed. “Out!” he shouted. He thundered towards them and tried to shove them out the door. “Out, out! I’ll not be serving the likes of you again!” Kat merely sidestepped the portly man and he slammed into the door.

“Now now Mr. Truehound, you wouldn’t be chasing away one of your finest customers, would you?” Kat asked as the plump man untangled himself from the ground.

“Finest? Ha!” cried Truehound as he brushed himself off. “Last time you were here, you ran off with a box of me finest clothes without paying! That completely ruined my budget that month!”

Kat waved the accusation off. “That was Blakely’s fault. He let it slip I was in port. Go ask him for the money.” Truehound huffed, but Kat ignored it. “Besides, if Blakely doesn’t sound another alarm, I’ll actually be able to pay this time, rather than running.”

Truehound seemed to battle with himself for a moment. “Fine, Ms. Crestshot, what is it you need?” he asked rather reluctantly.

They left the shop not long after, having paid for the sails. “Remind me to visit Drydock first next time I need sails,” she sighed when they were gone.

“Lawrence!” Josie cried when they walked into the Royal Anchor. She placed her broom down behind the bar and came behind it to give him a hug.

He embraced her with a laugh. “Haha, hi Josie,” he said.

“What am I, chopped liver?” Kat joked behind his back. Josie removed herself from Lawrence to give Kat a hug as well. “Good to see you Josie.”

It was then that Josie noticed Solomon standing silently behind Kat. “And who might you be?” she asked without preamble.

He stepped forward. “Solomon Sharkfury miss,” he said, bowing slightly.

Josie nodded her head back, plainly measuring the man up. “Good to know,” she said with a slightly furrowed brow. “Well, anyway, I suppose you all didn’t just come in here to chat. What can I get you?” She moved back behind the bar and began fixing them up something.

The night continued with Kat, Lawrence, and Josie chatting and laughing over rum and food, with Solomon throwing in the occasional witty comment. He sat rather stiffly, nursing a bottle of rum between his hands. Josie and Kat tried to engage him a few times, but he was rather distant. He mostly sat back and watched, not seeing the need to include himself.

Eventually, the seemingly endless chatter died down. Josie let out a content sigh. “Hey Kat, will you come with me in the back for a moment?” she asked. Kat shrugged and followed Josie back.

“Got a little something for ya,” Josie said, looking through a barrel. “Aha!” She pulled out a dusty little bottle filled with a brown liquid and handed it to Kat. “Came on a merchant ship a few days ago. It’s a pretty good 25 year old rum. Go easy on it Kat.” Josie winked at her.

Kat examined the contents of the bottle. “Wow… thanks Josie!” she said and began to head to the main part of the tavern.

“Wait Kat,” Josie said, all serious now. “I wanted to talk to you about Solomon really quick.” She sat on a crate and smoothed her skirts. “Where did you find him?”

Kat went to stand in front of her. “We found him yesterday aboard a Navy ship. They tried to attack us, so we boarded it and found him in the brig. Why, are you worried?”

Josie grimaced. “Only a little. I can assure you that he’s not Navy or EITC though,” she told Kat.

“And how do you know that?”

Josie raised her eyebrows. “Please Kat, I work in a tavern. It’s not difficult to overhear stories from sailors. Solomon is most definitely pirate. From what I hear, he’s rather ruthless; doesn’t care a touch about the corrupted Navy or EITC. I heard barely a week ago that he got captured aboard his ship. His crew gave him up in exchange for their freedom. They were supposed to be shipping him off here for a short trial and most likely a hanging.”

“No wonder he was jittery about coming here,” Kat muttered. It was beginning to make sense about Solomon, but she knew that the whole story was still hidden.

“Well, thanks for telling me Josie,” she said. “Shall we head back out?”

“One more quick thing Kat,” Josie said. She seemed a little hesitant now, but Kat waited patiently. “Kat… is there anything going on between you and Lawrence?”

Kat froze. “There’s nothing, Josie,” she muttered, her eyes downcast.

Josie studied the young woman. “Don’t be blind on purpose, Kat. I see him, the way he sees you. Don’t deny it.” She left Kat and went back into the tavern proper, leaving the young woman stunned.



I love Josie as a character, I truly do.

Thanks go out to KeeperoftheCode for the use of his character again. I'm gonna have to be saying that a lot... haha.

Well mates, what do ya think? I anxiously await for my phone to buzz, telling me in an email that I have a new review, haha. As always, Thanks for reading!

-Kat Crestshot

[KeeperOfTheCode]

Mind not making me sound quite that ruthless? I'm a bit insulted. Follow through with your story, but if you wouldn't mind? He's not cruel by any means. Do what you will, but please?

[muffin pirate]

First, Crest, Happy Ban Crest Extravaganza.... Second, I Am Dying To Know What Happens to Kat and Law.... (Notice the Itallics on Dying.... I don't want this story to end tragiclly...)

[Crestshot]

Ahoy mates! I'm going to post this really quick because I won't get home till late tonight. I'll add all of my little side comments later!

Flee!



The group spent the night on their ship before starting the hard work of the next day. They headed to Darby Drydock’s to get the sails. He granted them the supplies and a small team of people to assist them (for a fee of course). Kat went in the boat with Darby’s team, many of which kept glancing at her nervously, leaving Lawrence and Solomon to take the sails.

The crew worked all through the day, making sure the sails were set up properly, as well as providing minor ship repairs that Kat hadn’t taken care of in Tortuga. At the end of the day, the Cutthroat Wolf had gleaming white sails, and there were fewer holes in various parts of the hull. Kat had a time of getting one of Darby’s men from investigating their cargo or wandering through her cabin, but by the end of the day, she was relatively stress free.

They spent another night at Josie’s tavern, just enjoying themselves. Solomon seemed to open up a little more, and Kat couldn’t help but smile at his activity.

There was a sudden pounding at the door of the tavern. “Open up, it’s the Navy!”

Four pairs of eyes widened. “Kat, all of you get up to your room! Get out through the window!” Josie said in a terrified whisper. Kat hesitated, then grabbed Lawrence and Solomon and fled from the main room and up the staircase.

Kat paused at the top of the stairs, to the dismay of Solomon. “Kat, let’s go!” he whispered sharply. She just waved him off. “Kat, I’m not overly fond of nooses! Let’s go!” he urged.

Kat whirled on him with narrowed eyes. “Josie is my friend, and I’m going to make sure she’s safe, so shut up! The room is right there if you want to get out!” she turned back to the stairwell to listen to the going-ons downstairs.

“Good evening gentlemen,” Josie said politely. “Coming in for a drink?”

Kat could practically see the glare of the Navy soldier as he said, “We are here strictly on business ma’m. There was a report filed by a shipwright that you are housing pirates.”

“I can assure you, sir, I am not housing pirates here,” she said in an affronted voice. “Do you believe I would go against the law like that?”

The soldier paused, and then said, “If you don’t mind, we’ll just come inside and search ourselves.” There were thumps that Kat assumed were the Navy soldiers pushing their way through the door.

Kat turned to the men behind her. “Go! Out the window!” she ordered. Solomon bounded out, landing on a ledge just outside of it and then landed hard on the ground. Kat watched him just long enough to see him sprint to their dingy on the beach.

Lawrence turned to Kat. “I don’t want to leave Josie alone, Kat!” he whispered.

“It will be better for her if we’re not found. Now go!” she said, pushing him towards the window. He grimaced, then leaped out after Solomon.

Kat took a moment to open a loose floorboard under the bed and grab a small shoulder bag. She hooked it on, gave a worried glance backwards, and then fell out of the window after the other two.

The ground came towards her quickly, but she landed catlike on the balls of her feet. She ran into the shadows underneath an awning, but stayed a moment to watch the window. A faint light appeared where she had just fallen from and the cold face of a Navy soldier flickered in the candlelight.

“What did I tell you?” she heard Josie yell. “There’s nobody here but Job passed out in room 3!”

The soldier scanned the area outside carefully and Kat shrunk further into the shadows. She apparently hid herself well, because the soldier moved from the window. “Alright men, move out!” he barked. Kat grinned and ran to the dingy where Lawrence and Solomon were waiting.

“Where were you?” Solomon asked crossly, already in the boat. Lawrence just looked relieved to see her. He helped her push the dingy off the shore. They leaped in, and Lawrence took the oars to row them out to the ship.

“I couldn’t really escape with that commander staring out of the window,” Kat said sharply, responding to Solomon’s question. He just grumbled and turned away.

They got to the ship and made haste to set sail. Kat thanked god they had put the new sails up that day. Solomon worked to raise the anchor as Kat and Lawrence released the sails. He continued to make sure the sails were set as Kat took the wheel, steering them away from Port Royal and hoped nobody saw the pearly white sails.

“Let’s hope none of those soldiers wise up and follow us,” Kat said to the men. She pointedly travelled east rather than west, which would have passed them under the fort.

The group sailed in complete silence until Port Royal was lost in the depths of the night. “Alright Solomon, speak up. What’s your story?” Kat finally asked, breaking through the quiet.

Solomon raised an eyebrow. “You really want to know?” Kat nodded. Solomon sighed. “Very well. First, though, what’s in the bag?”

Kat glanced at the bag still slung over her shoulder and grinned. “Rum, of course.”



Thanks for reading!

-Kat Crestshot