The BlackJack pirates 2
#2 of The BlackJack pirates
The BlackJack pirates 2
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-I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter, because BlackJack is probably my favorite character I've written so far, maybe tied with Patrick from one of my other series.
-BlackJack hates alcohol, possibly because I have the same opinion. It's a flavor thing. That, and it interferes with my anti-psychotic meds.
-I've written a lot of stories (like, three) but I still lack descriptive words, which is my only real regret in my writings, I'm working on that.
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~ "Hey Denmure how's the water?" I called up to the crows nest, but as usual, Kenmure answered. "The waters warm, come on in" he shouted back, attempting to be heard over the crash of the waves against the hull. The brothers Denmure and Kenmure are inseparable, always together, their fighting style depends on it actually, an impressive combination of acrobatics and berserker swings, though one of them is incomparably lazy, always sleeping on the job. The crew was going about their business, a few adjusting the riggings, some readying the cannons, and a few drinking rum when they think I'm not paying attention. I could smell the salt in the air, and it smelled like home. This is where I belong, out here on the sea, surrounded by friends, drunk friends, but friends all the same. The ship swayed under my feet, unnoticed from all my months on the water, but the new recruits weren't faring so well. Tazza and her butler could be seen losing their footing all throughout the day, the butler even vomiting over the rail a few times. Those two were going to need a crash course in pirating it seemed. "OOOOoooohhhh, fifteen men on a dead mans chest, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum. Drink and the devil had done for the rest, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum" the men sang. "To treasure island" called Phil, laughing.
~ "Miss. Tazzamen, you look beautiful" stammered Evans, his nervous voice audible through the wood paneled walls. "Oh, thank you Evans" she fluttered, obviously smitten with the young butler, though he was clearly too scared to take advantage of it. "Hey butler, either give it to her or shut up, people are trying to sleep in here!" shouted Rodrigues through the wall, rolling over in his threadbare cot. On ordinary circumstances I would have done something about him, but sleep makes a man cold... Cold. I was suddenly aware that my body was freezing, cold to the bone. In an attempt to move I realized I was sluggish. There was a huge space between my mind giving orders and my body responding. "Help me" I tried to say, but all that came out was a choked whisper.
~ "Carmine is dying. We found him lying on the floor, and nobody can figure out how it happened" said that Phil guy. "Captain BlackJack, can I have a word with you" Evans asked, struggling to get my attention amidst the havoc of the crew members running about. "not now Evans" I dismissed him, trying to calm the men, who were panicking thoroughly. Four people are dying already, and we have no idea why. Theories ranged from sirens to sabotage, and I wasn't sure which idea disturbed me more, the impossible or the unthinkable. Their bodies were completely devoid of any clues as to how it happened. They did have an alcohol level high enough to kill a bull elephant, but that's normal for them. "Captain, I need to speak to you, it's about Miss. Tazzamen" Evans interjected, drawing my attention instantly. "What about Tazza?" I asked, fear filling my voice. "I need your advice. I think she's coming on to me" he flittered, my brain at first not realizing what had been said, before the words sunk in. "She's what?" I was dumbfounded, Tazza, my dear Tazza. I had given up my family, my friends, my life, all for Tazza. And here she falls for the butler, how cruel life is, and yet it's funny, that one can lose so much and gain so little, while others give nothing and receive all that they could possibly want. It's a burden on even the strongest of souls. Heck, it's enough to make a man tired. Why was I getting philosophical all of a sudden? "Yeah, but I'm not sure what to do about it" Evans blushed, his voice bordering on squeaking. On an attempt to answer, the words were stolen from my mouth. I couldn't speak, which at the time I though was because I was in shock. On some level I know I felt my body hit the floor. With my last breath of air, I laughed to myself, my mind succumbing to delusions. And then, hardly more than an escape of air from the lungs, "I'm cold"
~ "He just plain out laughed" said Rabbit Jack, his ears twitching with every small sound. "That's what the captain did right before he colllapsed" he said, hopping up and down impatiently. Why would the captain have laughed, of all things" I pondered, sitting at the table with the highest ranked remaining members of the crew, which for some reason included me. Everyone was completely panicked, though they managed to keep from outright rioting, but that could only last so long. So far the captain is the sixth victim of whatever has been striking the men, and he's deep in a coma. "Wait a minute. There are a lot of women on the ship, but so far all six of the victims have been men, maybe that means something" said Oliver the owl, who is actually just a pigeon, but he's smart like an owl. "I don't know if it does or not, but we're losing someone new every few hours and if we don't figure out why, we'll all be dead and nobody will-" suddenly the ship skewed to the side, sending us all stumbling. "What the hell is going on!?" Shouted Riktor the bearded dragon, which I'm told is a type of lizard and not an actual dragon. "I don't know!" I yelled, me and the others running up on deck. "Aloe collapsed at the wheel, we're heading towards the rocks!" Panicked Leroy. Three people all grabbed the wheel at once, resulting in a total cluster fuck. Without the captain, the entire structure falls apart, people arguing and interfering with each other. "Much as I hate to say it, we need the captain" Grumbled Tazzamen's butler, struggling to keep his footing while the ship went out of control. "What do we do admiral?" Asked Tazzamen. I didn't have an answer.
~ Unconsciousness. I don't know how long I've been out of it, and all I can see is black. I could feel only cold, sapping my muscles of their strength. Sometimes I hear muffled voices, their words lost in the realm of dreams, but undeniably voices. Now and then there are even slight flashes of color. So brief they could just be my imagination. "Auugh" I groaned. "I'm so bored" I've been floating here for what feels like days and I can't stand it any more. My biggest source of entertainment is sleeping, which is thoroughly weird. I'm already unconscious, so if I sleep... It hurts my head just thinking about the sociological ramifications of such an inconceivable atrocity. There, now your head hurts too. And I just broke the fourth wall, dammit. I'm so cold.
~ "The captain, I saw him move. He twitched" Jack seemed excited, hopping lightly. Under normal circumstances this would have been good news. "That's great Jack, but I'm a bit busy trying to repair the ship after we crashed into a fucking island!" I almost shouted, frustration wearing my patience thin. Hammering nails into planks, attaching planks to the ship, hammering more nails, it's weary work. A couple people went exploring, searching for whatever they may happen to find. The remaining crew is twenty men and fourteen women, with each new victim the women vs men theory is seeming more and more credible. I'm still wondering why the crew keep going comatose, and why the captain seems the least affected. If it's a poison, it could be because he's so large, diluting the poison over a larger area. If it is a siren, maybe she just doesn't like him because he's ugly. I had to laugh at that, the captain isn't all that bad. Maybe it's just a fluke, those things happen, however rarely. While repairing the ship, I had time to think about why I'm still here, following these pirates around. My answer? I have no idea. I shouldn't be, I should be doing everything in my power to either escape or sabotage them, yet I've done nothing but help them. At this point I'd probably be court marshaled for aiding pirates. I suppose that's one reason, though it's not much. I think the thing that troubles me the most is that I'm not torn up by this. I'm an admiral that got kidnapped by pirates, I'm helping those pirates. I'm disturbed by how little I care about the consequences. There's just something about the captain that makes me want to follow him, and that's a dangerous thing. If he can turn a navy admiral to his side, imagine what he's capable of.
~ It's the admiral. He shows up and almost immediately after, everyone starts going under, that can't be a coincidence. And he's also one of the few people still awake, that's even more evidence. "We need to take this bastard down before he does to the rest of us what he did to the captain " I said, in the center of an intense argument with the rest of the crew. "I don't know, he seems ok to me" replied Nuttania. "Listen to me you deranged squirrel, this man is out of his damn mind and we need to get rid of him" Riktor hissed angrily. Nuttania was visibly disturbed by that, tears glistening in the corner of her eyes. "You dick" grunted Janet, knocking Riktor out with one well placed punch. "You don't talk to a woman that way, epecially not Nuttania. You know how sensitive she is" and I had to agree, Riktor may be right, but there's a way of going about it, a way that doesn't include upsetting Nuttania. "But how do we go about it. If we kill him the captain will have a fit" complained Riktor, regaining consciousness. "The captain won't mind" chuckled Sunny Day, a guy with a full back tattoo of a cartoon sun smoking a cigar. "What makes you think that?" Asked Nuttania. "Because" Sunny said. "We're planning a mutiny"
~ It's been a few hours as close as I can tell, but it feels like it's been weeks. Time is impossible to measure in here, here being, as far as I'm aware, my own mind. I have had time to think though, about many things. For instance, what's happening on the outside. And I don't just mean what's happening in general, I mean what's going on with my crew. They've never gone this long without a captain before, and while I've the utmost confidence in them, I'm still plagued by doubts. "Piña colada" I thought out loud, and with no warning whatsoever, I was sipping my favorite drink. My limits in here are undefined, though so far I've mostly used it for drinks and some tarot cards, because I can. Tarot, an old game whose origins I don't know. Used by many as a type of divination, but that's not how it started. "The origins of tarot" gives me a blank book. Literally. This being my mind, it stands to reason I can't summon knowledge I don't have.
~ "You can't do thi-*mphh mmMMm*" the admiral tried to say, before we had him gagged. "My name is Sunny, and I would be captain. Who here would challenge my right" I yelled the challenge to the crew, the loyalist all responding in fury. The crew has been split, the mutineers comprising the bulk of the new order, the loyalists already bound to the main mast. A pitiful eleven people. Phil, Janet, Tazzamen and her butler, Poe the crow, Aloe the doctor, John the sniper, Johnson the fisherman, the twins Denmure and Kenmure, and Jack the rabbit. And the admiral as well, but you can hardly consider him one of the crew. "I would challenge you" called Riktor, brandishing his cutlass. At one with his call, several took up arms to join him. "Riktor you coward, stop hiding behind others and come fight" Jeered one of the people who had rallied to me. "Come, be blinded by the light of the sun" I laughed, jumping into the crowd.
~ Traitorous bastards. The captain's been out for just a few hours and they think they can just take over. "Bastards" I grunted, struggling against the rope holding me to the mast, the rope digging into my skin. "You should be quiet. If you don't make any noise maybe they'll leave you alone." said Nuttania nervously, her voice barely a whisper. I wasn't aware she was sitting there, though I shouldn't have been surprised. Nuttania always avoided confrontation, shying away from just about everything. It's a wonder why she even became part of the crew in the first place. "Let us go" said Denmure and Kenmure in unison. I have no idea how they do that. "I-I'm sorry. I can't. I would if I could though" Nuttania replied, obviously torn. For better or worse, it seemed she was still on our side, and we can always use more supporters. "Thank you milady" spoke Denmure and Kenmure. "Oh, boys" she said, her cheeks betraying the slightest blush. "Ok let's keep this conversation PG" I muttered. Nuttania and the boys have been subject to quite a few rumors, ones that I'd prefer to remain a mystery. "Can someone get the captain off me" said Poe, ruffling his feathers. "Stop being such a crow" "that doesn't even make sense" "well you are a crow, so it doesn't matter" argued Phil. Outside of our own little world, a fight raged. Sunny Day and Riktor were going at it. Luckily they managed to keep their followers from joining the fight, though they were uneasy. Sunny day was sweating and bleeding pretty much all over. He had small wounds mostly covering his body, and a couple more serious wounds. Riktor fared no better, except for sweat. He has no sweat glands. They were attacking each other furiously, If they weren't mutineers, and if he were awake, I think the captain would have been proud of the way they fought. Not that he likes violence... But he enjoys a good fight... It's complicated... The point is, they were an impressive sight. "This is unacceptable" grunted Aloe, struggling against the rope as well. "The captain is in no condition to be out here in the midst of all this" he continued to fight against his boundaries. He was going to rub himself raw if he kept that up. While Sunny day and Riktor continued to go at it, a horrifying thing happened, something that would forever change the BlackJack pirates. A shot rang out.
~ A sharp pain in my chest, and suddenly there's sunlight. "What the hell" I groaned, both at the pain in my abdomen and at this sudden intense light. Everything was so bright, blinding even. Everything grew deathly quiet, as if everyone were awaiting the big climax in the play. "Oh my god! The captain's awake!" Cried a voice that could only belong to Nuttania. A few people cheered, they sounded close. My eyes were adjusting, and I could almost make out a few shapes. Before sight there was scent, all my senses coming back to me slowly. The air smelled of sweat, blood and gunpowder. A fight had happened here, recently too. Very recently. I became aware of something wrapped around my chest, which upon further investigation, was rope. "What the hell is going on" I groaned, my voice weak and thin, lacking air. "Mutiny, that's what" laughed Sunny Day, reeking of sweat and blood, with an unmistakable undertone of fear. Mutiny? On my ship! I struggled against the ropes with all my might, achieving nothing short of nothing. With no other options in sight, I did absolutely nothing.
~ The captain is awake. Under ordinary circumstances that would be great, but it does no good when he's tied to the main mast. "Miss. Nuttania. Please, you have to cut us loose" the twins begged. I wanted to, but the situation didn't bode well, and if I cut the rope and we ended up losing... No! This isn't about winning, this is about doing what's right! I pulled my knife and was prepared to cut the rope, when I got hit over the head.
I hit the floor, painfully I might add. "I knew you didn't have it in you. Damned squirrel" grunted Rodrigues. I looked over, and I realized something. The entire crew was in a huge brawl, and they were on completely different sides than they were a moment ago. Men that a moment ago were allies were beating eachother senseless, and men who were beating eachother up were now allies again. Could it be that they had rethought their side when the captain woke up? " ENOUGH!!!" Someone shouted, so loudly and so full of anger I swear it shook the ground. It was the captain, who was still tied with those blood soaked ropes. Wait... Oh no. At his call the entire ship fell into a dead silence, not even the shuffle of feet or murmurs of discontent. " UNTIE ME! NOW!!" I was certain of it this time, his rage shook the earth. Collie stepped forward, and no man, high or low, moved against her as she cut the captain free. Never once, in all the time we've sailed, has the captain ever raised his voice or shouted at the crew. Everyone was shocked, none knew what to expect from the captain in such a state of anger. He stood, shakily at first but eventually more steady. Blood flowed freely from a wound that looked as though it had pierced his heart.
" NEVER HAVE I BEEN SO DISAPPOINTED IN YOU ALL. I'M GONE FOR A FEW HOURS AND SUDDENLY YOU'RE ALL A BUNCH OF FUCKING ANIMALS!" His rage did not subside, if anything it grew, as if to tear the very earth asunder. A tear glistened on his cheek. " YOU'RE ALL PATHETIC!!!" And with that statement, he collapsed, a pool of blood slowly forming around him. Everyone went into shock. Few moving, and fewer still moving to help the captain. Someone shouted for bandages, four carried the captain to the infirmary. Everything was slow, voices were distorted, seemingly far away. My mind was shutting down, failing to respond to the world. Then the captain died.
~ He's just laying there. His heart stopped over a minute ago. Aloe is doing everything in his power to try and save him, but it's not doing much good. Everyone was either in here or outside waiting, save for Sunny and Riktor. They had vanished into the forest after he collapsed. "Wake up you son of a bitch!" Aloe shouted over and over, still operating. He barely had time to breathe before he was saying it again, each time with less and less enthusiasm. By the end it was a mix between a sob and a whisper. The bullet had shattered a rib and collapsed a lung, severing an artery along the way. We like to think that Aloe was the best doctor in the whole world, but we doubted that even he could fix this. The person who seemed the most upset, to everyone's surprise, was the admiral. Aloe had finished the operation, fixing the lung and the artery, even setting the rib. To this day we don't know why he bothered, the captain was dead after all. He kept trying to revive him, but eventually he just gave up. The admiral though, in a fit of rage, slammed a fist down on the captains chest. "Wake up dammit" he just collapsed and, ignoring both blood and fur, laid his head on the captains chest. thump
This was the day I died.
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-Suspenseful? Check. Emotional? Check. Compelling? Also check.
-I may be tooting my own horn here, but I'd say this is one of my best works yet.
-in case you didn't get that, the thump was his heart beating