Lierotica One-shots

Pirates...

On the open sea, darkness absorbs everything in sight, except for the moonlight, which with its stars guides the passage of Charlie, who had just filled his ship with cloth and spices, honorable merchandise he hoped to sell in the port, earning a mutiny to celebrate with his crew and treasured friends.

Charlie watched what little he could see, ensuring a peaceful voyage, but the shadow on the horizon changed everything.

A royal ship was approaching at full sail; there was nowhere to escape. Charlie saw the lights of that ship and slowed his own speed in case of an altercation, as the waters were full of pirates looking for easy work.

"Hold there!" shouted people from the deck. "By order of the crown." Charlie halted his ship. Some of his companions came up on deck to see what was happening, as the shouts caught their attention.

The guards laid wooden planks and boarded Charlie and his crew. "Captain, we are not smugglers, we only transport legal merchandise." The captain, standing in front of Charlie, pulled out a wooden staff, hitting Charlie on the knee. Charlie fell to the ground with a groan of pain.

"We don't care what cargo you carry, the ship will be searched." The guards moved onto the ship and began gathering the crew with unnecessary violence.

"Captain, I implore you, this is our job. If you don't search it, we won't be able to work. My crew has families and mouths to feed." The captain struck Charlie again, enraging one of his closest comrades. Ramesh took the captain by surprise, allowing him to defend Charlie from his unnecessary abuse.

The guards, still not listening, drew their swords, demanding submission. Charlie's men tensed, one of them spat on the ground, and in a second things spiraled out of control: steel against steel, screams, blood.

The end result was brutal: the crew were tied up like cattle. And worse, not all of them were taken. Some were arrested for starting the conflict, others were left on a dock with only what they could carry on their backs. Charlie still felt the weight of those handcuffs, watching helplessly as his life fell apart. His crew helped with a little cash they could sell, but it wasn't enough for a new ship, or for them to return home. Charlie wanted to look positive; he bought the few remaining crew members a few drinks as they saw how to rectify the situation.With his fists clenched, he knew he had to go after his crew; he couldn't lose them, not all of them.

The port was filled with screaming drunks and prostitutes looking for clients. The free crew drowned themselves in alcohol to forget, but Charlie couldn't; he played with a gold doubloon on the worn bar.

In the tavern, amid smoke and vulgar laughter, he heard a fellow sailor talking too much with a woman in a corset and lipstick. He was lying on her thighs while she stroked his hair.

"...They took everything from us. The ship, the cargo... and they took the boys."

The prostitute tilted her head, intrigued. "There's someone who could help you, although I don't know if you have the courage to look for her." Catching Charlie's attention, she looked at him, her voice breaking. "Who?"

"I don't know his name, he's a pirate. The most wanted in all the seas. They say he's sunk royal ships and escaped from their dungeons more than once, but if they find him... he could get his own people out."