of his time, he smiled at us and nodded at Captain Rike who began to laugh to himself.
“Sailor, keep the cap’n company. I wouldn’t want no ‘arm to come of ‘im.” Rike padded me on the shoulder smiling and made his way between the crew back up to Roselyn’s gangways. We stood staring at Lupino, some of the deckhands whispered amongst themselves, others hastily made their way to other areas of the vessel.
“Sailor,” the man smiled, nodding, “I thank you for comin’ out to me upon your boat, I was surely a dead man wi’out the ‘elp of you and your cap’n.” We made our way up to Roselyn’s upper deck as we spoke.
“‘Twas not a problem, Lupino, no man should be left abandoned at sea. Tell me though, for what reason is it that you wish to be locked away at night, matey?”
“I, ‘tis ‘ard to explain, ever since I were a young lad I ‘ave ‘ad trouble with mi sleep. Sometimes the dreams be bleak, I often wake up in places I ‘ave not seen nor know of, ‘tis per’aps for this reason that mi crew mutinied. Fear, I suspect... And too, why Jones struck me down to the seas.”
“What do you mean, matey, when you say that Jones struck you down?” The moment I finished speaking, as though he was waiting for me to ask the question, the captain took a deep breath and rested himself upon a paddle ship in the midst of Roselyn’s upper deck.
“‘Twas a thunderous night mi crew turned upon me, I know not ‘ow many moons ago, though it were a storm like none I ‘ave seen, the lightning lashed out in the skies and me crew feared for the worst. I knew the crew were whisperin’ about me for they ‘ad ‘eard mi nightmares, though they did not approach me for they feared me. Upon that night, we rushed to get the water clear o’ our decks, in the commotion I took a mighty fall upon the deck’s slippery surface almost splittin’ me ‘ead apart upon the ships woodwork. In a most dazed state I saw mi crew rush to me, mi own first mate, ‘e dragged me with the crew each drawin’ their rapiers upon me and the bastards lowered the plank yellin’ out you walk you cursed bastard!” The male made great hand gestures as he told his story and his expressions changed with near each word he spoke, his loud charismatic voice had gathered a large number of the crew to where he rested, even Sollertis stood by my side listening to him.
“I stood to mi feet, with a struggle, for I were still in a bad state for the fall I ‘ad suffered. ‘ad I been approached in a state none like that, I would ‘ave butchered ‘em all for their disloyalty, yet as I made my efforts, with great trouble, forty men, with forty rapiers pointin’ at me, I knew there were no ‘ope. Mi first mate, with a great smirk on ‘is bastard face threw me ‘is rapier. ‘Twas the very moment I recall clutchin’ at the blade that I were stricken by Jones, a light brighter than the sun come upon me, ‘twas a strike o’ lightnin’, the sensation were most peculiar, for in a brief moment of seein’ n’out but white, I were halfway to falling down into the darkness o’ the North Sea. SPLASH!” Lupino slammed his fist into his open hand and the crowd became enticed by his words.
“Into the ocean I fell, down beneath its turbulent surface, down deep into the darkness, with n’out on me but the rapier which I ‘ad managed to keep a clutch upon despite bein’ stricken down to mi death by Davey Jones. I know not ‘ow many leagues under the sea I ‘ad sank before something most terrifyin’ occurred, a sound louder than thunder an’ cannon fire. It called out across the entire ocean I be sure, and upon the verge o’ death, I took one last gaze out as mi conscience faded away. Before mi very eyes, I kid you not, some enormous tentacle the size o’ an entire vessel thrust through the darkness o’ the water graspin’ me an’ draggin’ me down further beneath the North. Wi’ what were left o’ me last breath I ‘acked and slashed away wi’ mi rapier, cuttin’ and woundin’ the tentacle o’ the beast as it dragged me through the water. ‘Twas as I reached the deepest depths o’ the sea, and the entirety o’ the beast become alas visible to mi eye, that I could look upon the ‘orror that I feared would be me death!” Completely captivated, near enough the entire crew had gathered around the stray captain to listen to his tale.
“‘Twas n’out other than Jones’ kraken itself, its wounded tentacle draggin’ me in wi’ a vile eagerness to its gapin’ beak, it roared once more and the entire sea become as warm as the sun on your bare chest. Wi’ a new found spur for life I took one last mighty swing at the monsters tentacle, the blade cut clean through its bastard skin and at once I were free. Down to the depths I swam, to where no man ‘ad been, the bastard were consumin’ all things that were livin’ or dead. Suddenly, all upon me rushed many a tentacle” the stranger glared at us all with focused eyes. “Out from the darkness they thrust! Ten o’ ‘em at least, though I managed to evade ‘em all wi’ swift movements, I pushed onwards to the great demons beak, and as ‘e were feastin’ ‘pon beasts unknown I saw its beatin’ ‘eart pumpin’ away under its thick purple skin. Wi’ vigour I swam amongst its lashin’ tentacles, ‘twas wi’ many a great effort I evaded its finest attacks upon me ‘til alas, there, before me, its life source thrust away, beatin’, beatin’ louder than the most colossal drum you could imagine. Wi’ a great roar I thrust me rapier deep into its ‘eart, deep into the ‘eart o’ the beast that might o’ devoured me ‘ad I much longer given it the chance. Twice Jones ‘ad tried to claim me, yet twice I ‘ave avoided ‘is clutch, I fear ‘e will not stop until I’m a dead man, trapped in ‘is locker for all o’ time.” With the audience enthralled Lupino lowered his arms and stared at the crew.
“‘ow did you survive?” A most immediate response called out as the captain came to his conclusion. For the time the stranger had spoke Sollertis had stood with his chin in his hand, seemingly making conclusions over the stray man’s story with each turn of his tale, and with no words needed to be said I could tell by his single raised eyebrow that he thought it was most ridiculous.
Sometime between the start of Lupino’s story and the end Rike had come from his chamber, and until the very latter stages of its entertainment I had not noticed his presence. As I turned about and acknowledged him he made a gesture at me and we left the crew to the captain’s explanation as to how he survived sinking to the very depths of the Caribbean Sea.
Together we retreated down into the orlop deck; from there we entered Rones’ room to investigate what occurrences had caused such trouble the previous night. We stood upon the orlop and within a brief moment he forced open the door. Within caused as eerie a reaction as it caused confusion, for all upon the walls were rapier scars, numerous in more ways than a man could imagine, as though it was a lifetimes work, yet I knew it was not so for I had seen the state the room the quartermaster had left it in and any such damages to the vessel were fresh.
“What be this, Sailor?” The captain asked me, scraping his rapier along the walls of the small room.
“Seems as though our guest be ‘avin’ trouble with ‘is sleep, cap’n.”
“These words, lad, what be these words.” He drew his rapier over the words of Damien Rones and I knew not what to say.
“Those were etched before the stray cap’n came to be amongst our crew, cap’n.” For some time Rike was silent, he drew his blade lightly all across the walls. ‘Twas most chilling to be within the room for fresh carvings lined the woodwork, it seemed as though a mad man had been let loose for the walls had been ravaged by hacks and slashes. Rike looked once more at the etched words then at me in a most irregular fashion and as we both stood without answer, he made the same expression he had when Davey had announced he was leaving the crew.
“Were it shock or ‘orror, cap’n?” I did not have to mention names nor anything else, for I knew what was on the captain’s mind. He took a moment then sat upon the woodwork that Davey had used as a bed, he spoke quietly and slowly.
“I saw that light, ‘arvey. The light that Davey spoke of, I saw ‘im kneelin’ in it. I thought it were a trick o’ the mind for the stern were alight with fire, but it were real.” The captain rested his head in his hand for a moment. “I called out to ‘im, bu
t ‘e were entranced. I ‘ath not seen such a thing in all mi days alive, light in the midst o’ the darkness, ‘twas for me own mistakes it ‘appened to ‘im too.”
“‘ow so?” I looked at the man with a puzzled stare.
“After Davey rushed over the plank to the Martona and the rest of the crew followed, I made mi own way to the chamber upon the vessel that were identically positioned as mi own in search of the crew’s cap’n. I ‘oped I would find the coward there, yet it were a trap, for four of the Martona’s crew rushed upon me within the room and I were assaulted.
Amidst a struggle I ended up pinned in a corner of the room upon mi knees, though within the room were a stairwell, and comin’ up from beneath I ‘eard screams o’ pain, ‘orrifyin’ moans o’ agony and sufferin’, and too the bloodthirsty roars o’ Rones. You ‘ear that? I ‘uffed with a bloody mouth at the fear ridden scum. You stupid bastards ‘ath no clue, do you?
Up from the stairwell Rones come, ‘is face were grizzly with blood and the mere sight o’ the man were enough to cause one o’ the cowards to drop ‘is rapier and flee the quarters. Somethin’ were up with ‘im, upon ‘is