The Venerate Order

Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Strafe

A castle-town, and now real-life pirates!? How could the day get any more magical? It was like an entirely different world inside the tent, with gypsies telling fortunes and performing magic-tricks, players putting on their face-paint and even a blacksmith making weapons! Some of the pirates smelled like the locker-room but others smelled like the sea. There was a large fire keeping the room at a comfortable temperature. Brutus joined the dogs running around to play with them, even though he was much larger.

The interior of the tent was much bigger than one would have expected on the outside; as a matter of fact, it was two stories tall inside. Somehow, they had made a small Mag-Car sized tent appear deceptively bigger whenever somebody entered it. It amazed me.

Captain Flint escorted us back to his private quarters and told us each to take a seat on one of the many furred chairs, couches and beanbag seats in the room. Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw Rousseau and Captain Flint holding hands, but I couldn't tell for sure. Rousseau sat closest to Captain Flint's large beat-up wooden pirate desk, on the couch to the left.

The Captain's room was quite luxurious, with a large chandelier dangling from the ceiling, beautiful pictures of sky-ships hanging on the walls and antiques from what looked like all over Eternia scattered around his room. The dim candle-light of the room made me feel at ease.

Before we started talking, the Captain started up a machine next to his desk. It looked like some sort of hookah. He pulled out a long hose with a nozzle and began to puff on it. Zon didn't seem pleased with the tobacco smell.

"So, Rousseau, introduce me to ye friends here. I be very grateful they kept ye safe," Flint said between coughs from the hookah.

"This is Zon, he is from Shinjo, Roya, from...," Rousseau began.

"Zindaqe," Roya helped.

"And Strafe, from New Santa Barbara. They saved my life while I was away on that mission in Dhenfen'Ce," Rousseau finished.

"New Santa Barbara? Ye ain't from Arrouegadin or any place I ever heard. Ye some kinda alien?" Flint said to me.

"I'm not from this world Captain," I replied.

Captain Flint looked me up and down and nodded his head, "Hat's off to ye boy. I would usually call bullshit on meeting somebody from another planet, but look at where we are! This place might as well be from outer space too! And ye, Shinjin? Quite a far ways away from home. Beautiful place I must say."

"There are many things I must clear-up over here. Things I had to leave my country to find," Zon said with his arms crossed on the opposite couch.

"What ye got? Cabin fever?" Flint joked. He turned his eyes to Roya and looked her up and down, "Zindaqe, I've only been there once but I'll never forget the floating islands, or the lovely people, me darlin'."

"You know of the Dream Islands? I'm happy to hear this, Captain Flint-Sah," she gleamed.

"That's right, me lovely. Now, tis' me pleasure to introduce me 'self. Like Rousseau said, me name is Calico Tom Flint, but me crew calls me Cap'n Cali. We here are the Rodin Pirates, which as ye guess are based in Rodin, Yuwheria. A town south of Arrouegadin about 40 kilometers, 'tis a port town of the trades. We ship contracted goods all 'cross the world, legitimately nowadays, ahaha!" Captain Flint laughed.

"I hope your actions are as good as your words Captain," Zon said.

"A Whisper-Warrior like ye should'ave nothing to fear here me friend, as long as he keeps his hands to himself! Besides, we owe ye friend Rousseau a great bit'o gratitude for saving our less-than-honorable arses," Captain Flint replied.