Raw Winter

Chapter 4: Sailed Ships

"Come, girl," Hades said to Winter as they docked. "There's no need to fret over what you've seen. There are worse fates, my dear. Trust me on that. It's an important lesson to learn here and now."

"Was I the one that killed him?" She asked.

"No," Hades answered. "That was me. If any bastard is to blame, blame it on me. Curse my name, girl. It'll do you well." He leaned down to where she was sitting on the deck and stroked the tears from her eyes. He ran his hand through her dark, thick hair and laughed. "You're going to be fine, girl."

Though she knew she should, she couldn't hate the man as she looked up at him, at the way his dark eyes danced with amusement and seemed to twinkle with such honesty in what he was. She let him tug her to her feet, holding still as he dusted her off.

"Are you going to tell me where we are?" She asked as he led her off the ship by her hand.

"You'll see," he said.

She glanced back and caught sight of Daverel. He looked terrible, as if he hadn't slept. She hadn't known, but Hades had ordered him not to leave the ship, and following orders was something he was good at.

As they walked, the captain held her hand like a father. He had led her to a place where stalls were along the walls of what seemed to be a cave, though there were cracks in the roof that let in enough of the sky that it didn't feel enclosed. They were selling all kinds of things, and she could see swords with wicked edges, smell expensive perfumes in delicate and complex glass bottles, and hear various instruments.

"That's a nice dress, little girl," A man said as they passed. "Nice dye."

He reached out for her, but Hades casually took his hand before he could touch her. He gave the man a wide grin before his grip tightened, his nails digging in. Winter gasped as she heard the delicate bones in his hand shatter. Hades effortlessly tugged him forward past her and threw him into another stall. The man screamed and writhed as he landed in a pile of sword and Hades kept walking, dragging Winter while she was busy remembering how to walk.

They turned to find a gouge in the ground, stairs leading down into dark depths. There were torches inside and it gave it an eerie red glow as they entered. Hades kept dragging her, making sure she didn't trip herself on the stairs until her legs obeyed again.

"Stay brave, girl," Hades chuckled. "Everyone has their first time here, and it makes everyone antsy. Showing fear makes them even antsier."

By now she could hear people talking, laughing, and cursing below. It sounded like the crew of the Red Liar after a rowdy round of drinking, but multiplied over and over again. She could hear instruments playing, but they weren't playing with each other. Rather, it sounded like they were competing to be heard.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, she was absolutely shocked to actually see it. The stairs opened into a cave that shown signs of being cut by tools—like the stairs had been—but some was left as it was, the edges jagged. What wasn't natural was how many people were there. There were pirates and nobles alike, and they were all entirely unique in their dress and all intensely colorful. Hades laughed at the way her eyes widened.

"Not too bad, is it?" He said, guiding her along, moving to the front of the crowd. They gathered around a center stage and seemed to know him well. Some of them thumped his back and others eyed her through weird masks and craned their heads around to look at her. She felt fingers brush her skin and pinch her dress, but this time Hades didn't seem to notice or mind.

The center had a chain encircling it to keep the crowds from coming any closer. In the center was a man that appeared to be skin and bone under his suit, but he was smiling and grinning and waving at the crowds. He wore a suit that was bright and flamboyantly green and purple, and most notably a mask that had a sharp beak and feathers of all colors sticking out of it like a wild display.