Revolution

6

It was midnight at the port of Virginalia. The Prince jumped head-first onto the land, not waiting for Captain O to lower the plank. He planted his feet on the ground, raising his head and giving a triumphal roar.

"Fear not, citizens!.....Prince Leo has battled and won his journey on the sea!"

He received weary glances from the night-guards and beggars that were about at this time of the night; who quickly looked away, not wanting to catch his eye. Captain O rubbed his face, trying to hide behind the ship's railing.

Prince Leo placed his hands on his hips and smiled at the sky, his face glowing. 

"Now I wait for my faithful soldiers!" he said, settling regally on a box of gold sheets, smiling at anyone who chanced near him. The glittering robes and medallion caught the attention of many vagrants, who were soon crowding around him, raising pitiful cries. 

A woman, dressed smartly in a dress and black coat, stalked to the crowd and threw them a severe glare. They scattered, making lewd signs behind her back. She had dark, ebony hair tied neatly, dark-rimmed glasses framing her eyes and she held a neat leather briefcase in both of her hands. She nodded to Prince Leo.

"You might catch a cold if you stay here." she commented as he waved at her. "And you will definitely get robbed." 

"Don't worry about me.....I'm indestructible!" he replied, "....Farewell Virgo! Farewell Captain O!"  Captain O sighed, but waved back. The lady curtsied to him in greeting when she was on board, walking with purposeful, sharp steps that clicked on the ground in an authoritative manner. The sound reminded Captain O of impending retribution, even though he owed her nothing. He bowed, noticing how her eyes and mouth did not allow any emotion.

"I am Virgo, as you must have already gathered." she pointed to a cabin door. "That is mine, I presume? I hope it's been properly cleaned."

Captain O blushed. "Of course. No one has used that cabin ever since the journey began. It was furnished according to your preferences."

She raised a skeptical eyebrow. "No one has stepped inside for five months?.....I'll be welcomed by dust and insects." she shrugged, "Ah....I didn't expect much."

Captain O opened his mouth to protest but she held up a hand. "Please let us talk in the morning. I've been working since dawn and would like to rest. I won't take any supper. Good night."

Captain O felt as if he had been slapped. He stood unmoving for a few moments, staring at her cabin door, before quietly going to the wheel. 

Virgo liked to comment a lot; on the ship's interior design, the color, the deck, the food and how it could be better. Her cabin had been 'passable', but the toilet needed to be improved. She also believed that there was a faster way to get to Scalein. Eventually, Captain O made it a point to only reply to her in phrases or monosyllables, but that did not deter her.

Thus, they traveled for twenty nine days.

On the last night, there was a sharp silence in the air. It stuck to him, dampening the very pores of his coat and plastering his hair to his scalp. There was no way to know how, but even his arms were heavier than usual, as if they were moving through soup. Captain O ran to his cabin, eyes immediately latching to the brown map that lay fixed on his table, his miniature ship which bobbed steadily onwards and the serene black chasm that waited for it. 

"That's ridiculous." Virgo said when Captain O advised her to move below deck. "The wizards did not forecast anything like that."

"The wizards aren't always right."