Skyrun

Chapter 31; When Hawk was no more.

Things passed by for Liam in a blur after that.

In a way, it was almost as if his soul was separated from his body and he was seeing it all from above-- watching himself as the day went by in a cloudy haze filled only with familiar faces tending to the wound in his shoulder or comforting him with empty words.

To Liam, everything was simply a snippet of time; the way Sinclair had stitched his wound, muttering darkly about how it could grow infected. Or the times he had sat with Topsy while she sobbed in Ezra's arms, listening to her cries while the other boy soothed her, his voice smooth as summer silk. Or perhaps the way Liam had caught sight of Valentine at the front and center of the ship, gazing out into the sky, a half-empty bottle in her hand.

And yet for all the dismal qualities of the ship that now limped like a wounded dog through the skies, the nights were often the worst for Liam.

Nightmares plagued twisted his dreams into dark shadows that raced about his mind with furious speed; at times, he dreamed of Sinclair holding out the rope to Liam as the boy stood on the back of the metal sky monster, a voice screaming in his head to jump before it was too late. Yet every single time he did so, the rope twisted and writhed into the form of a snake that snapped in half the moment Liam touched it.

He always fell to his death in the end.

Yet the worst dreams were of the entire crew being devoured by the sky serpent, their lifeless bodies impaled on harpoons of metal. And there, in the center of them all was Valentine-- blood dripping from her cold, blue lips, her eyes leaking tears of blood.

And it was during these dreams that Liam would awake in a cold sweat, his arm throbbing painfully as he gasped for air, his skin slick with a sheen of sweat.

For, despite the fact that in most of his dreams he ended up dying, the worst part was not simply that the crew died with him. Rather, his dreams spoke of endings that would have happened if he had not been able to kill the sky serpent. They spoke of what would have happened if he had failed.

Then, it would have been all his fault.

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The memorials were held the next day among a troupe of half-dead pirates and fully dead ones-- their mangled bodies lain out in a line before the edge of the ship, faces pale, eyes sightless and closed for the last time.

It was a grim sight, to be sure. Mostly because not all who had died had a body to mourn over; Raven being one of them.

Some had gone over the side of the ship, plunging to their doom, others-- such as Raven herself-- had been caught up in the metal jaws of the beast, crushed into oblivion by the whirring mechanisms of death.

Yet perhaps it was best that their bodies had been lost, Liam thought, for the corpses who had died on-ship were simply set on fire and dumped overboard-- the excuse being that if the ship landed it was not liable to take flight again what with all the damage.

Looking about and ignoring the dull ache in his shoulder, Liam gazed at the many dismal faces of the remaining crew, noting that, among all of them, Valentine kept her expression strong. And though her eyes held sorrows deeper than the murky depths of the sea, she never once waivered. She never once cried.

She was staying strong for the crew, the boy thought, watching as she stepped forward before the crowd, her shoulders straight and proud, her face set in a grim line. For if the captain could not be strong, the crew could not hope to be either.

She was doing it for them.

Sweeping them all with her gaze, the captain cleared her throat, the sound harsh and forced, making Liam wince.

"I never expected in all my years on the sky-- however few they may be-- that I'd run into a creature of the Abyss such as that which we fought today." she said, her voice clear and ringing as it carried over the quiet sniffling of a few of the crowd members.

 "Burn and Raven were bloody good pirates-- I'm not going to say otherwise. They were smart, strong, and while Burn never talked, Raven spoke enough for the both of them." Valentine's tone waivered slightly then, "I never had crew members like them... and it's likely I'll never have their sort again. But now they sail on to better skies; may they find their treasure in the clouds."

"May they find their treasure in the clouds." The pirates intoned as one, leaving Liam to ponder at the words, at their meaning.

Finally, however, Valentine finished her speech and turned to Liam and Tophsy, beckoning them forward before the crowd of pirates where they stood awkwardly, wondering why they were there.

They found out soon enough, however, for in that moment Valentine's voice became strong once more and she shouted loud and clear.

"Pirates of the skies, here before me stand the two crew members who risked their lives to save us all! Their bravery is unmeasured and for an act such as this they shall be rewarded... even if it was a bloody stupid idea in the first place. Nevertheless, from this day forth, I shall promote Tophsy to the rank that Raven once was-- that is, Head Treasurer. Tophsy, do you accept such a duty?"

Liam glanced at the dark skinned girl as she nodded, her eyes wide.

Valentine raised a brow, "It's likely to be boring."

"I'll do it anyway."

"That's the spirit I like to hear! Well, I suppose it is settled then-- everyone, our new Head Treasurer!"

A cheer rose up from among the pirates and Tophsy bowed her head modestly, her lips pulled back in a grin as Liam shouted jovially along with the others for his friend. However, once the noise died down, Valentine turned to him, arching a brow.

"Hawk." she said, just as loud as before, "For your bravery and ingenuity-- however stupid you plan may have been-- you managed by the grace of the gods to save us all and for that I think it is time we made you one of us."

Another booming cheer sounded from the crowd, ringing in Liam's ears as he took in what the captain had just said.

He was about to become a real pirate.

So why did he feel so empty?

Looking at Valentine, at the pride in her eyes, he felt nothing but a vague sense of emptiness-- shock, perhaps, still left over from the days events. But there was something else as well; a sense of guilt at something she had said earlier, about how his plan had been stupid.

It had been, and now two people were dead because of it.

It was his fault, he realized with a jolt, feeling as though he was going to be faint; HE was the reason Burn and Raven were dead. And it did not matter if, technically speaking, the monster itself had killed them or the fact that Valentine's orders to follow him had gotten them killed... but had he never thought up the idea in the first place, they might have escaped, might have lived.

And as Valentine declared that 'Hawk' was no more and that from that day forth, Liam was to be called by his name-- for he was a true pirate now, deserving of his true name-- Liam found that he barely heard her.

Everything was muffled as the pain in his shoulder steadily grew, coming seemingly from nowhere, and the thoughts blurred in his head as, for the first time possibly in his life, he accepted that something might have been his fault.

Then from the crowd of cheering pirates, someone slapped him on the shoulder, sending a bolt of pain coursing through him. 

His vision blurred and he had only the brief sensation of falling before everything went black.

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