Skyrun

Chapter 19; The Red Thorn.

In no time at all the Red Thorn's ship had crept up on them, throwing grappling lines over the sides of Valentine's ship and trapping them in place.

Well, not really in place. 

Airships were like sharks in the skies; they had to keep moving, or they died. Thus, the ships moved at the slower speed now, but they moved all the same, Liam noted with interest.

But once the gangplanks had been lowered and bits of the enemy's crew had climbed aboard, swords drawn, Liam forgot all about the stupid airships. Rather, he focused on the motley crew the dared to step aboard Valentine's ship.

They were a fierce bunch of men and while Liam had always thought his own crew members were terrifying, they were cogs and gears compared to this lot. Most were missing limbs or ears and one of them had lost a whole chunk of his face.

They were dressed in atrocious colours, armed with a mismatched collection of arming swords, messers, and cutlasses. A few held strange-looking contraptions that seemed to be a mesh of gears, screws, and other odd bits and pieces.

Needless to say, they were an ugly lot, Liam decided.

But the worst was yet to come and it came in the form of one of the most frightening men the boy had ever seen. 

Across the gangplanks he bounded, a coal black pipe in his mouth held between lips that bore a striking resemblance to two wriggling worms. Unlike the others, who were gaunt and ragged, this man had all the subtly of a battleship. With a belly that deserved a title of its own, this was no doubt the Red Thorn that now marched across to Valentine's ship, bold as butter.

Stooping over the edge, the Thorn regarded the short hop he would need to take to reach the deck and quickly barked, "Ryder! Where are ye, man? Seems as though Valentine made the sides of her ship higher again, bloody heck!"

"You've gotten older, is all." Valentine snapped as a dark haired pirate who must have been Ryder strode to the Thorn's side and helped the man's considerable bulk off the gangplank and onto the deck below. Granted, the Thorn had to sit down on his great fat bottom and scoot to the edge before his feet touched the wood of the plank. 

An undramatic entrance, to be sure, but Liam found it quite amusing, and off to his left he heard Tophsy and Ezra snicker, turning to whisper to one another.

Behind him, however, Sinclair remained stoic, watching the Thorn with a piercing gaze-- a glare fixated on his handsome face as he scowled at the man. But as Liam followed the silver-haired pirate's gaze closely, he realized he was not simply staring at Thorn, but at Ryder as well.

And while the other pirate was quite stunningly handsome from the rest of the crew, with jaw length brown hair the colour of warm chocolate, eyes to match, and a sturdy jaw line, Liam could only see distaste and boredom in Sinclair's eyes.

With a growing sense of unease, the boy noticed that Valentine was equally unhappy; her usual easy manner was gone, replaced with an icy coldness that made him shudder.

Continuing to watch with held breath, Liam fought the urge to snort when the Thorn ambled somewhat clumsily across the deck, the enormous red plume in his hat bobbing up and down. Beside him, Ryder walked like a silent shadow.

"Valentine!" Thorn shouted boisterously, waving his arms about wildly as if he might take flight any moment.

Liam wished he would-- preferably right over the side of the ship.

"It's Vix Valentine to the likes of Ryder, and Ma'am to you." Valentine growled.

"Same sharp tongue, eh?"