"I'd offer a tour, but we've got a bit of a time constraint." The Archman walks through the lower decks of the ship, Eira and Glynis in tow. Glynis looks at the oil lanterns installed across the ship, fascinated by the unflinching consistency with which they illuminate the space. Eira looks to her mother, wondering if she had the same expression when she first walked through the Archman's vessel.
They stop before a closed door at the Archman's behest as he pulls the keyring from a belt compartment. Eira recognizes this door as the only one that is locked shut, except for the cells inside the brig.
"Just a quick detour." The Archman opens the door and steps inside, illuminating one of the oil lamps.
Eira and Glynis take a single pace into the room, not daring to venture another step further. The walls of the room are lined with a massive assortment of weapons: a variety of swords and cutting implements, dozens of firearms ranging from small handheld pistols to large long-distance rifles. There is no need to ask why this room would be kept under lock and key.
The Archman walks over to a dresser, pulling it open before him. The inside is filled with silver canisters, which Eira immediately recognises as the kind that releases that crippling white gas. The corner of the drawer is the only spot not occupied by silver canisters, where a leather mask is seen instead. It has a pair of tinted glass circles covering the eye holes, and a thick steel filter over the mouth. It presents quite a horrifying visage, even when it's not appearing in the wake of a cloud of deadly white gas.
Eira thinks back to that night she first met the Archman. It is hard to believe the person behind such a terrifying mask is the same person she is in the company of now.
The Archman takes the mask under his arm and extinguishes the oil lanterns before leaving with Eira and Glynis. He locks the door, then guides them through the corridors until they arrive at the study. He pushes the door open and walks inside, locking the chain around the foot of the desk.
Glynis and Eira step into the room together. Glynis continues to be absolutely astonished by everything she comes across. She tried to keep her reactions more reserved at first, but quickly gives up on it. There are simply too many beguiling sights to be engrossed by. She feels like she is stepping into an entirely different century.
The study is familiar enough compared to the many other technologically astounding features of the ship, though it is still impressive in its sheer magnitude.
The Archman goes to the door, turning back to Eira and Glynis before exiting. "Keep yourselves entertained here for the day. I'll come get you when I'm done."
Glynis looks about the study, trying to find a single vertical surface that isn't occupied with bookshelves. "Where did he acquire all these?"
"He didn't. They're all his own works." Eira walks over to the closest bookshelf and starts sifting through the many works.
"All of them?" Glynis tries not to sound as amazed as she actually is.
"He's been alive for thousands of years."
"That would explain it..."
~
The Archman steps into a dark chamber, setting down his cloth bag and leather mask and turning on a few oil lanterns to push away the darkness. The room is dustier than the rest of the ship, having been neglected for the past few months. There are dozens of glass beakers and containers strewn about the space, which the Archman starts sorting through, collecting the few ones necessary for the procedure. He brings them to an isolated countertop in the center of the room, then starts opening cabinets and drawers, pulling out a variety of substances kept in glass tubes and bottles. After several minutes, there is a miscellaneous gathering of translucent liquids and white powders laid out across the countertop. The Archman double-checks his materials, then pulls his booklet out of the cloth bag, flipping it open to the appropriate page. He puts his leather gas mask up and secures it to his head, ready to begin.
YOU ARE READING
The Archman
RomanceWhile departing for London to meet with her fiancé, Eira Pryce finds herself taken captive by a living legend, the fabled pirate known only as the Archman. As it turns out, the fables may not have been so accurate in their portrayal of this mythic f...
