Hungry Pirates

"What did he write, then?" Serenica asked. She didn't feel like participating in any of Spade's nonsense right now. She was already mentally preparing herself for battle and that didn't go well with the shenanigans of the captain that were usually quite stressful in nature.

"See for yourself," Myorka said and pulled out a piece of paper.

Serenica read the text out loud. "I must do what I have to in order to ensure our success, even if it means an illusion of a great sacrifice."

"There," the bookkeeper said, clicking her nails on the old, smelly wood of the ship. "Doesn't that sound bad to you?"

"I wouldn't be on the edge about that," Serenica replied slowly. "The mention of an illusion is what sold this to me as something quite beneficial."

"Suit yourself." Myorka shook her head. "If he dies, I will chain you to a wall and let you rot. Fancy a cup of tea?"

Despite the threat, Serenica gladly agreed. It had been a long time since she had had any tea.

They gossiped about the crew for a few hours and went to sleep.

The morning bell rang earlier than was humane to wake anyone up. The men were getting ready. Pistols were already clean and loaded. Even though the movement of the cannons did offset the balance of the ship a bit, they had to be prepared as well.

As the Admiral gave out swords for those who preferred to fight with a longer blade, he pulled Serenica aside and spoke to her softly, whispering, as if talking about great secrets.

"You need to stay out of the action. I want you on the background, ready to cast a healing spell if something goes wrong."

"Do you think something will go wrong?" Serenica asked.

"I don't think so. I know it will happen," the first mate said. "I will show you your spot."

The sun was creeping up above the tropical waters and the merchant ship could be seen in the southeast, basking in the light like a pudgy lizard on a stone.

The men gathered around the yawning captain. Myorka had already retreated to the cabin. The air smelled like danger, like the kind of pungent sweat a grown man emitted in an exciting situation. The musk was heavy inside Serenica's nostrils.

"Before our good captain says a word, I must speak my mind," Heike said loudly.

Everyone turned towards him, surprised and shocked. It was unheard of that the old sailor would draw attention to himself.

"I know we've had our quarrels and all. Still, we're heading for a great prize. The person who dropped the clue into our shared and warm lap is here today. She's sworn to help us, to heal us if we get wounded in the battle. Is that correct, Serenica Ingram?"

"Aye," Serenica said, puffing her chest, proud to use pirate speech as one of them. "I will do what I must to ensure your health and wellbeing, both in battle and in times of peace."

"Can I hear you scream for her?!" Heike roared with his hoarse drunkard voice.

A deafening commotion rang across the deck. Encouragement was thrown at her like raindrops in a storm. She was thoroughly marinated in gratitude for a small moment that felt eternal.

She was the guardian of life, she was someone to whom even the kings and princes paid tribute to. She was Serenica Ingram, the healer of thieves.

The general chaos passed by and the last hands drumming the wood ceased their motions. Spade raised his left hand.

"Thieves!" he yelled, straightening his posture to stand impressively in his full opulent glory. "Wretches and dogs! We're merely hunting for food today. Don't let your hunger fool you. We are not looking for fox bollockwort. Don't be hasty! Save your bullets and your limbs."

"But we are awfully hungry, though," a man called Kairi commented. "Surely the good captain knows we can't all survive on fat deposits alone?"

"Where did you learn that word?" Spade laughed. "No, I do know. Still, a hungry pirate is more useful than a dead one."

This was thought of as something very sensible judging by all the nodding of heads that ensued.

They engaged in a chase.

They were sailing at top speed, leaving no room for imagination. This ship was hunting. No one pursued small talk with this many knots, with sails this puffed from the steady wind. They gave away their intentions, but it was all purposeful. The merchant had to be wary. It was common knowledge that this was not a safe trade route.

Serenica felt the sea air mess up her hair. She tied it up with her scarf.

Someone had found a drum and was now playing a rhythm that was an exact copy of the music of Aja Vana. It drove the thrill of the chase into Serenica's heart, pulsating in her veins and making her question why she had not hopped on a pirate ship much earlier.

The excitement was almost too much for her. It was a sweet poison, though, as the musk of the fighters mixed with the strange scent of elderflowers that lingered aboard the Princess. The ship was downright throbbing with bloodlust.

With a motivation this high during a time of hunger, there was no way these men would fail to take down the city watch. The plump and oafish men in their dull uniforms didn't stand a chance against the elite pirates of this ship.

Serenica read the magical papers she had already prepared. It was a tricky process, as the tiny pieces of paper were glazed with a sugary concoction that supposedly made them easier to eat but stickier to handle. Spade had told her it would be the best way to ensure a spell found its proper target.

There was a locket full of hair inside Serenica's coat, one strand from every head.

Someone in the crow's nest yelled that the merchant raised up a flag, red and yellow, that signified a warning to the pirates. They knew what the Princess was up to. They would fight if they were forced to get closer to the pirates.

"Seems like a lot of blood's about to spill!" Gadfly hollered.

The rest of the men cheered.

Serenica squeezed her pistol. She didn't expect to be using it, but its coolness felt comforting against her fingers. Her hands had killed and they could kill again. She was mostly concerned about their healing properties.

Even though the Princess was sailing a lot faster than the merchant, the wait seemed to last forever. The drumming on the pirate ship never stopped.

Serenica's heart synchronized its pumping with the beat of the battle drum.

"This is the Battle of Maggots!" Spade declared. "Feed the waves! Feed the grave!"

Serenica thought the name was rather fitting.

They slid closer to their prey, in an angle suitable for cannon fire against the wide rear of the merchant.

A cannonball split the wood of the Princess. Another shot made a big splash not too far away from them.

Serenica looked around. Everyone seemed to be safe. The men were not satisfied, though.

"Rear cannons! Who has rear cannons?!" Gadfly screamed.

Serenica crouched.

She made it to the level of the deck just in time. A cannonball whirled over her head, striking a hole in the deck.

"Turn her around! Turn to face them! Less surface for their guns!" the captain yelled.

The Admiral appeared out of nowhere, shielding Serenica with his body.

Serenica tried to crawl out from her hiding spot. She didn't want to waste a valuable individual like the first mate.

"Stay still, damn it!" he commanded her.

She was too scared, too tiny against the tall man.

The Princess was turning around to face the merchant, but apparently the rear chasers were being loaded again and the pirates had no time to waste.

"Fire!" Spade roared.

The men fired the cannons as ordered.

Many blazes of light appeared.

A blast of a different kind destroyed Serenica's hearing for a small moment. It was such a total change in the atmosphere that she thought for a momeng that the captain had enchanted the cannons.

When she dared to get up again, she saw the merchant gaining a little distance, badly damaged from the cannonfire. It would have to stop by in a port to repair what the pirates had torn down with their impeccable aim.

The Admiral pressed her down again.

The movement was well timed. The rear chasers shot again, this time at the sails, but all cannonballs missed their targets, all except one. One of the newer pirates fell down on the deck without his head, blood squirting from his neck.

"Stay down, idiots, until I tell you!" the captain yelled. "Reload! Fire at will!"

The merchant was slowing down now. When the next rain from the pirate cannons tore into its rear, its structures took enough damage that its sailing became crippled. Serenica could actually see it sink a bit, as it had managed to get a hole in a critical area.

The Princess was nearly in the correct position to continue the chase. Serenica got up before the first mate could prevent her.

"Is anyone hurt?" she asked loudly.

No one answered, but she could still see someone, a man in his twenties whose name she didn't remember, lying on the deck and holding his arm.

Serenica darted towards him.

He could barely even lift his head to face her. He seemed to be delirious from the pain.

There wasn't a lot of blood, but a splinter of wood had pierced the arm and rendered it useless.

Serenica asked for his name.

"Jali! Jali!" he cried.

Serenica took her papers, all ordered by the first letter, took out a piece with the name written on it and began to stuff it in her mouth.

Jali looked at her, amazement and agony taking turns in his beautiful brown eyes.

She had a hard time chewing on the sticky, sweet paper, but at least the taste was good. Now her hands were free. She could take out the green panacea. She applied it generously on the wound, not removing the splinter, since it would have only caused more bloodloss. She gave Jali a mixture of herbal extracts under his tongue.

Cannonfire rained upon them again, but this time the aim was awful and no pirates were hit. One sail got torn, but at least it could be easily replaced. They had a master sailmaker on board. There would be time for it later.

If they survived, that was.

Jali seemed to be feeling better. The edges of the wound were somehow melting. Serenica had only looked away for a couple of seconds, yet the arm had already mostly healed itself around the splinter.

Wooden Arm, they would probably call Jali from now on.

The Princess fired, absolutely destroying the rear of the merchant. It could not get away anymore. It could not move. It was a golden opportunity for the pirates.

The Admiral came to cover Serenica again, but there was a hassle with a cannon that had shifted from its rightful position and strong men were needed.

Serenica was left alone, looking for those who were wounded or scared and finding none.

The pirates managed to reload the cannons in an amazingly short time, but Spade yelled:"Hold your fire! We will take her by swords! Don't want to sink our next meal!"

They were quickly sliding next to the immobile merchant. There was just one thing that made Serenica's palms even wetter with sweat.

They would be in the range of the cannons placed on the sides of their prey.

"Low, low, stay low!" she screamed.

The pirates heard her. Most of them ducked in time, but Heike was too slow. His skills were in the sailing and finetuning the ship in times of peace.

One of the three surviving Johns tackled him onto the deck just before the cannonfire hit the ship.

Serenica hadn't considered taking her own words to heart. As she glanced towards the merchant, her blood froze. Time seemed to slow down.

A man-sized chunk of the gunwale of the Princess was flying straight towards her with a speed that made its considerable heft lethal to take a hit from.