First off, I am so so so so so so so so sorry it took so long to get this chapter out, but we all understand real life. Thank you so much for the reviews last chapter though! Hopefully you guys are still watching for this...hahaha. This chapter is a little shorter than the past few, but it gets the point across I think. And, also, I am about halfway through the next chapter (probably a little less) because I had a
HUGE epiphany earlier today. And, speaking of epiphany, I give you.....
Her Epiphany
Kat walked out of the tavern and back to her ship in a daze. She took the plank off of the dock so nobody would board the ship without her permission. Her crab was still sitting on the counter where she had left it, but she paid it no attention to. She was busy thinking about the task Gibbs had burdened her with. It had shaken her enough to kill one Cadet, and that was in an almost unconscious rage kill. How could she knowingly and willingly do it again… and again and again? Is this what her life would become? Would she do nothing but kill in cold blood, just become a thoughtless, insensitive killing machine? She pulled out her compass, hoping it would point her towards the right decision. The needle was spinning wildly, unsure for the first time. Her stomach grumbled suddenly, and the needle stood still, pointing to the crab on her counter.
Kat gave a weak chuckle. It seemed the universe had a sense of humor. Kat walked over and picked up the crab, eying it to make sure it was still good to eat. It may taste a bit odd, but it would do for now. She went to grab the pot and used the ropes she had tied to the handles earlier to lower it into the sea, catching some water that she could boil. The pot was hauled back up, and Kat brought the saltwater over to her humble stove. She lit a match to set the stove up, put the pot on it, and began waiting for the water to boil.
While she passed the time, Kat decided to explore her cabin more thoroughly. There was a small cupboard under the cot that Kat had missed on her initial inspection of the ship. She opened it up to find a note there. Sitting on her cot, she read the small letter while waiting for the water to boil. It said this:
To the new owner of this ship,
Hello. I’m hoping that you find this at a decent time. If you have this ship from Mr. Drydock on Port Royal, I’m going to assume you’ve turned to pirating, and you’re rather new at it. No experienced pirate that I know would get a crummy, old light sloop, nor would any merchant ship want a thing with such little cargo room. In any case, keep good care of my Banshee. She brought me out of more than a few tight spots.
I’ll also assume that if you are new to pirating, you have no idea what it truly entails. Listen, and listen closely mate: It’s not all about the gold and the riches, although some will tell you that it is. Those who believe that don’t realize the entirety of it. Pirating is about being free. When you feel the wind whipping at your hair and the smell of the salty ocean and know that you control your fate, it’s the greatest feeling in the world, and it belongs to only you. Not belonging to one of the snobs of England, or the controlling ways of the Navy, East India Trading Company, or Jolly Roger’s army…it makes you appreciate what you have, and it makes you want to keep it.
What you are charged with though, if you want to stay a pirate, is keeping that freedom. You must do anything within your power to keep the seas exempt from the control of anyone. The people of the Caribbean must be able to live as they see fit. If this means you must kill, you must kill. You will fight among your fellow pirates, all of which are charged with the same thing. They may not have a letter such as this to tell them, but they feel it in their bones. The Code is only there for guidelines mate; it allows for freedom, unlike the iron fist of everyone else scrambling for the ownership of all they touch. You must fight.
The killing aspect may seem odd to you, but it is necessary. All of the factions trying to bring us under their thumb must see that we shall not stand for anything of the sort. You must be willing; otherwise you shall not last long here. Don’t worry though mate; there’s plenty to help you along the way.
Welcome to the true Caribbean. I hope you’re ready for the battle.
It was unsigned. Kat tried to analyze the handwriting, trying to figure out if it was male or female, but it was so general that she couldn’t tell. She turned it over, looking to see if there was any other writing that could give her a clue, but there wasn’t. Kat sat there contemplating it for a moment until she heard a sizzling sound. Her head jerked towards her pot to see it coming close to boiling over. She ran to it and threw the crab in the water, watching the bubbles go down a bit. The time came to wait again, so Kat busied herself with looking for something she could use to get the crab out of the pot when it was finished cooking. She scrounged the drawers, finally finding a broken, tattered, wooden ladle. With it, she reached into the steam and scooped the crab out, dropping the scalding thing on the counter. Once more, she had to wait, this time for the crab to cool to a decent enough temperature to eat. Her stomach rumbled. She looked down at it. Apparently it wasn’t as patient as she was.
Kat touched the crab gingerly after a few minutes and felt it was cool enough to eat. She tore into it ravenously, not caring about manners as she wrenched the meat from the shell. Manners didn’t matter at this point; her stomach was empty and was calling out to the crab. It was finished almost too quickly for her liking, and Kat wiped the remnants of the juicy crab from the edges of her mouth with her sleeve. Now she could concentrate on the mission Gibbs had given her.
She referenced the compass again, but it was still spinning wildly. Kat put it away. She grabbed the letter that had been left for her and left her cabin to contemplate under the Caribbean night sky. As she exited her door, she noticed the mast standing in front of her, with a crow’s nest at the peak. She gave a small grin. Climbing had always been a passion of hers as a small girl, but it wasn’t accepted for young ladies in England, so she had been forced to stop. Well, she wasn’t in England anymore, so she placed the letter in her pocket and grabbed onto the ropes.
At the top, she fell into the small basket, giggling. She felt exhilarated! The height, the wind whipping through her hair, the unsteadiness of the ropes, threatening to toss her off at any moment; these were all things she had forgotten about that gave her a sudden rush. She stood up and looked at the town of Tortuga, which appeared much smaller from up here. This was the feeling she wanted for the rest of her life.
A realization hit her. This is what she wanted for the rest of her life. Her smile faded slowly. She took the letter from her pocket and skimmed it over.
It’s the greatest feeling in the world, and it belongs to only you.
With a sigh, she looked up at the stars. She knew what she had to do.
Kat gently climbed down from the crow’s nest and headed back into her cabin. She stripped off her coat and vest, unclipped her cutlass, slid her shoes off of her feet, and put them all in the closet. Her bed called to her, and she fell into it, trying to let sleep come to her on the hard, lumpy mattress. She needed her rest. Tomorrow, she had work to do.
So, Kat has some issues to work through. I will have the next chapter up next week though. If I don't feel free to PM me or post on this board (I get an email as soon as someone posts here, so I'll know) and tell me to get my piratey self moving. Real world is slowing down though, so hopefully more epiphanies will come with it.
Again, thank you for the reviews you left. Constructive criticism always has a home here (but no trolling of course). Oh, also, I was thinking about doing cameos in this story, but I don't want to just name someone, say, Harry Truesteel (I don't know a Harry Truesteel, just throwing out a name) and then have Harry PM me saying "Hey, I never wanted to be in this story!" However, if you want to be included in this story, go ahead and PM me and I will try my best. Ok, that's it for now. Thanks for reading!
-Kat Crestshot