The Blood In My Veins | Black Sails (Under Constructions)

The Deciding Fight

I turned around Charles' chair and his arm went around my thighs to pull me onto his lap while in the meantime Flint had left the table. Teach had also left us alone and both men were making themselves ready for the pistols and swords.

~~~

In the distance the both of us watched Flint choosing his sword and gun and I softly jerked my head back to glare at Charles.

"I don't think he will stand a chance." I sighed while staring back at Flint and Teach.

"I'll talk to him." He tapped me on my thigh so I would raise to my feet and he slowly grabbed the chair's backrest to pull himself upright too.

Instead of sitting back down, I leaned my lower back against the wooden table where not a minute ago the argument had taken place and kept my gaze at Charles who approached the red haired man.

I sort of felt bad about turning my back on Flint for the second time, but if I wanted to help Flint gain his fleet that meant risking losing almost everything I have and I don't like the idea of it going totally wrong, losing everything.

~~~

(POV Charles Vane)

"You can't win." The man before me grunted in disbelief. "I heard you spent weeks becalmed, deprived of food and water. At your best it would have been a dogfight, but diminished...."

"I'm not that diminished."

Flint stated as he switched his gaze my way, elevating his hand, within it the sword he had chosen.

"He's been off the account for years. He'll be more vulnerable than he remembers himself being."

"He's not that vulnerable. And for what? You subject yourself to certain death for an island full of weaklings and Ingrates?"

"Those men will go where they are led." The man hissed through his teeth, believing everything he said himself. "Rogers captured their minds before you could, but let's not pretend that they can't be won again. And let's not pretend that either of us believes for a moment that I'm doing this for their sakes." Narrowing my eyes I started to grow tired of the stubborn man that had no interest in listening to my advice. I was aware of the sentence, if a man wanted something he would get it because I was just like that, but I did understand when I was outnumbered in strength and it was time to stop.

"I gave you my word. Shook your head. Pledged to defend the island with you. But my pledge to him began a long time before I ever knew your name. What I owe him-...."

"I don't care."

Confused, I backed down a bit as I smirked to myself in annoyance.

This man was unbelievable sometimes.

"I don't care that you shook my hand. I don't care what you feel you owe him. This is too important to be clouded by any of that. They took my home. I can't walk away from that. Can you? Can she?" I lowered my head.

She hadn't agreed with me and my opinions at first, though she respected them.

I didn't do the same for her which made me regret it now, even after I had apologized to her.

I knew why she hated to let Nassau go, but I didn't want to put her or that little one's life in danger.

The voice of the still talking man made me look back up, first to Naida, then to Flint.

"Forget me, forget Teach, forget loyalty, compacts, honor, debts, all of it. The only question that matters is this. Who are you?" Slowly I closed and opened my eyes while inhaling deeply.

Flint had left me alone and in the corner of my eye I had noticed Naida looking empathetically at me.

Perhaps I should listen to Flint a bit more.

"Charles?" She softly asked, me knowing she wanted to hear the answer he had given me.

"He won't stop."

Naida's face changed from hopeful to sadness and I felt the urge to change my mind once more.

Something deep down told me to stop playing games with myself and stop trying to brainwash myself by trying to convince myself Nassau is dead.

Lost in my thoughts, Naida had nodded at me before she smoothly moved with her boots over the hot sand, joining the group of men on the land-side of the island with me joining her later.

"This is a matter of honor to be settled once and for good in the here and now. The parties have agreed to combat and have accepted common practice. The parties have further agreed there will be no quarter asked nor given."

~~~

(POV Naida Jones)

The man was explaining the rules while standing in the middle of Flint and Teach and afterwards stepped back to give the sign to the men who were instructed to give the chosen weaponry to them when the sign was given, like it was given now. The pistols were placed in their hands and Flint and Teach didn't break their gazes from one another's eyes as they grabbed it.

Lowering their hands with the pistols in them, they turned themselves around, both the other way, and started to walk a certain distance between each other, stopping at their chosen swords which were pricked into the white sand as a border to clarify the outlined space between them.

"Cock your pistols!"

I could hear the hammers click and both pistols were loaded, ready to make the perfect shot.

"From this moment, there's to be no movement until a count of three! One.... two.... three!"

It went too fast to see who had shot first or who had the best aim, though, the sound was clear that both pistols worked and Flint was the one standing upright while Teach was the one on the ground, making it easier to declare who had the best shot.

All the men around me from our side started to gasp and whisper things while I could feel the hand from Charles slither around my waist.

It looked like Teach wasn't standing up soon and maybe the shot had been fatal.