Red

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

　

I couldn’t look back at the damage I had done. I tried as I scrambled up the stairs and towards the trapdoor that lead to the deck but I couldn’t. She could just be wounded, she could have risen and been following right behind me, she could have been dead. It was in that moment that it dawned on me. I had just attacked a pirate, and not just any pirate but a female pirate I suspected to be from one of the most vicious and threatening crews on the seas. I didn’t need my father’s attention, I didn’t need anyone to tell me I was doing things right. I could do anything feeding off my own courage and strength, not from the hatred of my father and my need for his attention.

With my newfound confidence and insight, I poked my head above deck. The action had died down and the air was close to silent. Lifeless bodies littered the wooden deck, blood flowing from their open wounds and swords still clenched in their pale, stiff hands. A full moon illuminated the scene, giving it an eerie look. Up on the quarterdeck, a crowd of females dressed in an assortment of mismatched clothing and black hats whispered among themselves. They didn’t seem to notice me until one turned her head and her icy blue eyes fell on my face.

“I think we just found our princess” she whispered, her strong voice drifting to my ears in the slight breeze. She had light blonde hair that fell to her hips in waves, and her heeled boots tapping on the wood was the only sound. Every pirate’s head turned in my direction and I found myself shrinking down in humiliation.

“Get down there!” she shouted, turning to the rest. She spoke with an air of authority, and she stood with confidence as she commanded the others. The crew hurried down towards me, one hauling me out of the hole and onto the deck. The others jumped down below, and I could hear their boots thundering down the hall before a shocked gasp echoed towards us. "What did you find?”

 “Janessa’s dead!” the pirate replied with a hint of a whimper. That must have been the black-haired woman’s name, Janessa. For some reason, I didn’t think a name so beautiful and innocent as that could belong to such a terrifying woman.

The blonde-haired pirate turned her steely gaze on me. “Were there guards there to help you?” she asked quietly. I shook my head once, keeping my eyes trained on the ground because I couldn’t meet hers.

 "There was no one there to assist you? A maid, the cook, one of the sailors……..?”

 Again I shook my head. I didn’t see her expression, but she was silent for a few seconds before replying. “Who are you?”

 My voice shook as I lied in a small voice that relayed exactly how I felt.

 “The-the kitchen maid”.

Her cold blue eyes seemed to stare right into my soul, analysing my very being and I had the urge to look up into them. I wanted to drag them away, glare at anywhere but her eyes yet I couldn’t. She held them there in her gaze, and it was like she could read my thoughts, because she suddenly whispered “We both know that isn’t true” before turning back to her crew with a flick of her long hair. “Get the remainder of those chests on the ship. I want to be back at full speed by dawn”

One brave pirate managed to say in a barely audible voice "But what about the girl? We can’t just her live, not after she killed Janessa”

The blonde pirate’s eyes blazed as if the ice in them had caught fire, and it was enough to make the crew member cower back in fear. “If she had the strength, skill and courage to kill one of our own by herself, it would be a waste to condemn her to death. She will join us, as a slave. Maybe, if she behaves herself, she will survive longer than the last one” Without looking back at me, she turned on her heel and strode across the ship, over the gangplank that connected the King’s vessel to their own, and towards their own quarterdeck.

The rest of the crew separated into their own ways, some jumping downstairs to complete the transfer of the dowry, others scrambling after their Captain. I joined them, tripping over my cloak as I climbed the gangplank. I had no where else to go, no where else to hide. However much I opposed of the idea, I was to join their crew and become a pirate, a criminal. Someone hated and outlawed by most of Larilia. Someone who had once been on the highest platform of society, respected by everyone, and was know reduced to a lowly pirate slave at the bottom of the hierarchy. And worst of all, I didn’t have Will.

Not knowing where to go, I wandered to the side of the ship, leaning against the railing. My heart hammered in my chest with both shock and anxiety. I pulled my cloak tighter around me with shaking hands to keep out the cool breeze that made my red hair flutter around my face. No-one paid any attention to me, but ignored me as they had always done back at the castle. Yet now, it didn’t bother me so much. I knew I was an outcast to them, an aristocrat who knew nothing of their hardships. Eventually, though, I knew I would become one of them.

I stared across the ocean, watching as the water rippled, formed waves and crashed against the vessel. Moonlight shone across the scene, reflecting the giant silvery orb and surrounding grey clouds onto the surface of the ocean. The scene was peaceful and relaxing, and my thoughts settled and cleared. I imagined that days from now, the daily sea patrols would find the abandoned navy vessels. They would discover there were no survivors, and that my body would be no where in sight. They would presume I was killed and my body taken, blaming Arandell for the whole attack. The war would continue, more people would be murdered, and someday even I would be forgotten. They would forget there was ever a High Princess of Larillia before my Lyra, that she was promised to Calix of Arandell. They would forget King Michael had a daughter named Marissa, who feel in love with a boat-maker’s apprentice and attempted to sail away with him. They would forget that Will was beheaded by the King, and that Marissa’s heart became numb. They would forget everything about me, about him, about our story. And do you want to know the truth? It didn’t bother me, not at all.

“All is good” I whispered into the midnight, imagining a small wooden boat sailing amongst the stars, a man with dark hair and brilliantly radiant eyes waving as he passed across the moon, his smile glowing even brighter than the stars “Don't worry, Will, I shall never forget”

From that day on, I was no longer known as Marissa. I wasn’t the rebellious, selfish girl who would spend her days wishing for things that she thought could never be. I changed my name, knowing that if my true identity was discovered, I would unwillingly assume my place in the castle once again and be completely disgraced. So now, years later, I stand upon the quarterdeck like the blonde captain had, my green eyes looking upon the crew members bustling below. Now, I am known as Red. Captain Red.

THE END!!!!

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There we go, guys! Did it end how you expected? Do you think Red will make a good pirate captain? Is what happened to Will really what it seems, or is there something that went amiss?  I'm sorry for how short the chapters are, but it is a short story. Thank you for reading, and please vote and comment! :D  I'd really like some constructive criticism so I can improve my writing. Thanks!!