Black White and Shades of Greyy

by ElissaBeth Frear

  Chapter 115

  “Well, Captain, it does appear that you are indeed a woman not to be crossed.” He said before leaping to his feet and tossing her over his shoulder in one fluid motion. His muscular frame was not hulking or overly impressive, but he wielded his charm and charisma as well as any weapon. Her squeal caused him to laugh out loud enticing him further to keep her as captive. His contagious manner made her smile, but not wanting to encourage him too much she beat on his back demanding he put her down. Placing her back on the ground he reached over to lightly caress her cheek. The look in his eye was unmistakable and she knew that a lesser man would have carried through with their lust regardless of her desire. His respect and playful kindness touched a part of her heart she had thought long dead.

  Before he pulled away to leave she took his hand drawing him back. Pausing a lingering moment, she gazed longingly across his face. The kiss that ensued caused the world to stop turning, even the forest held its breath.

  Time had stopped for them as they continued to give way to passion and desires. They would walk a short way then stop for a caress or kiss before continuing to a destination neither knew. They finally found themselves in a small furnished room at a local inn.

  In a sweeping movement he removed his shirt revealing a firm chest with a long alluring stripe of hair running from his belly button up and spreading across his pectorals. She was surrounded by men all the time, but none had the effect on her that this one did, he was enchanting and she enjoyed the spell.

  She was so captivated by his body that she couldn’t help but reach and touch him running her fingers through the soft fur. He took a step forward allowing her closer examination, and as she was distracted his fingers unlaced her corset and the skirt strings letting them fall to the floor at her feet leaving her standing in nothing but her top. A slightly stunned intake of breath she eagerly folded herself into his embrace.

  The night meandered along as the lovers entwined in each other’s bodies. The traveling minstrel and the sea harden captain blossomed into a man and woman with the wants, desires and passions of newlyweds. When they were exhausted and satisfied both collapsed in a pile on the small bed their naked bodies rested, she in his arms with his hands caressing her curves.

  Chapter 116

  At the first hint of dawn Greyy woke and carefully slid out from his embrace. The contented smile on his face almost kept her from the need to return to her ship. Dressing quietly she noticed his clothing laying near hers and being the pirate she is decided to take a souvenir of their most memorable evening together.

  She knew he would not easily be forgotten and hoped that at some point their paths would cross again so she could return his clothing. She stood in the door for a moment studying his sleeping form, burning the image of his body and face firmly into her memory before slipping out the door and heading back to the ship. She used the jaunt back to regain some semblance of “Captain Demeanor” hoping the crew would not notice her glowing smile.

  The early morning mists still hovered low to the ground softening her footsteps and masking sounds. In her mind she readied the crew for the next grand adventure, trying desperately to push the previous night’s events aside. This port town was far to the South West of Port Redgrave; with this in mind she juggled the choice of returning north or heading further South. There were still many places she had never been.

  Meandering out from the short path through the woods she entered the back end of the town. Most of the streets were empty at this early hour and those few who were awake were decidedly hung over. None she passed were her crew, and the town itself seemed relatively intact.

  The rowdy boisterous reputation of most sea farers would be horribly disappointed with her crew of cutthroats. They were vicious in battle, but the overall demeanor of the crew matched that of the captain. More given to subtlety than antagonism they proved to be a fearsome force with the added terror of stealth and silence as their ally.

  Chapter 117

  As she approached the harbor there were several other ships bobbing lazily in the low tide. Mildly aware of their presence she continued until one of the larger ships caught her attention. It was moored out a ways from the others due to its size and the inability to fit in the small marina. The colors that flew from the main mast were ones she was unfamiliar yet recognized. The last time she had seen those colors was at Minerva’s Cradle.

  Stepping quietly on the plank to board the morning fog still across the waves hid any sinister intent. The main deck was clear of crewmen and fairly clean of debris or other telltale signs of inhabitants, even the sea birds were still silent at this hour. Regardless of the early morning quiet the hair on the back of her neck stood on end and every fiber in her being was piqued for action. Stowing her booty near the rails she drew her dagger and faded into the mists moving forward to her cabin.

  The door to her quarters stood ajar and she could see a highly polished pair of boots propped on the desk at the far wall of the room. As she drew closer the body that belonged to the boots revealed. A tall man, clean shaven with hair neatly pulled in a ponytail sat behind her desk with an air of arrogance and utter annoyance. He was holding documents that had been loosely concealed under a long map.

  Her ire stirred she stepped from the silent shadows and threw open the door leaning hard against the wall with her arms crossed. A steady glare was lowered at the intruder but not a word was spoken between them. Never moving from her place at the door she stood and watched as the stranger slowly stood, glanced once more at the documents and strode towards her. He locked his gaze with hers and matched the intensity as he stepped right to her face. Neither blinking he gave a slight nod and a Lieutenant from Port Bistrot took her wrist and yanked it hard behind her back forcing her to move from the doorway standing dangerously close to the offending Navy Swine. Standing on her tip toes and careful not to wince she scowled a low throaty growl rousing Kegan the Mad from his feather light slumber.

  The two intruders were much taller than Greyylene but when Kegan approached he towered over them both. The first to speak was the one who had been behind the desk.

  “My name is Lieutenant Commander Horatio Washburn, and I am here to ensure these waters and towns remain Peaceful.” he said with emphasis. “I am well aware of whom you are and the contraband in your quarters is enough to take you away in irons. But I am a generous sort and today I won’t press charges. Know this, I will be watching you and your crew, Captain.” he said the last with a hiss.

  Chapter 118

  Watching the two men leave a chill began to settle over Greyylene as she pondered the meaning of what she had just witnessed. Kegan was still poised for a fight in which he knew quite well he would win. “Stand down, Kegan, his time will come.” she whispered to him before turning back to her quarters to examine what they had done.

  Reentering her chambers she found most was as she had left it, until she looked at the desk. The Lieutenant had been sifting through papers that were for the most part of little to no relevance to anything at all. But one piece of parchment was set aside from the others and the look of that made her breath catch in her throat and her blood boil. It was the recipe for her Savage Ale. The script was that of the Tabaxi so difficult to read, but the fact it was sitting on her desk meant other things were invaded also.

  She stood with such force that the chair slammed backwards crashing to the floor. Hearing the noise Kegan rushed in stopping short when he saw the anger of his Captain. He followed her gaze over to the chest that held the Savage Ale. Spread over her cot was the broken remains of the trunk. The upstart Lieutenant had taken an axe to it and split it into several pieces, and in the process breaking a bottle of the Ale. The soiled remains of her Ale along with broken glass and wood stirred a hatred she had never felt. Seething she gave the order to round up the crew to be ready to sail at high tide.

  After Kegan stormed out to roust the crew she closed the door with a calm that contradicte
d the inner turbulence she felt. Greyylene changed from the relaxed dress leftover from the night before into her Captain’s battle uniform and prepared herself for a bit of retaliation. The corset was replaced with a sleeveless top jacket with tails cut short in front at the waist over a long sleeved blouse that flared at the wrists. A long leather skirt slit at the sides for movement hung easy off her hips and just past her knees, her hair unbraided tied in a leather strap at her neck and low heeled boots finished the look of command.

  By the time the door to her cabin opened the mess on her cot was cleaned and the air of total domination and utter fury was firmly planted on her face. A short note was scrawled and ready to be sent via pigeon to Port Redgrave, and a devious plan was taking shape in her mind. This Navy fellow was not going to meander aboard her ship without invitation without serious consequences.

  Chapter 119

  There was little to no effort in convincing Kerrs or the other Pirates of the plan. A basic rule of piracy was to cause mayhem and madness whenever possible. Punching a hole in the defenses of the local authorities was enough incentive to stir action in the generally lazy crew of cutthroats. Knowing the added embarrassment of being outwitted by a band of drunken renegades would drive Horatio Washburn into madness was too much to pass.

  As the rest of the crew was preparing to take to the waves Captain Greyylene took a little trip to the local tavern looking for unruly and drunken young men to begin her devious plan. Entering the dark room she could smell the lingering scent of the night’s activities. It was not long to find exactly the motley bunch she wanted, and was less difficult to convince them to follow her even without them knowing her plan. A few nights of irritating greenhorns would be a small price if revenge worked.

  Greyylene was indeed an Elf, but her nature was peace and the love of nature. Her extended stay with lawless rebels had taken the peace and replaced it with the desire for controlled chaos. Her devious mind full of fun loving pranks and jokes turned sinister in the company of the men she now led. Her most hateful prank to date was unfolding before the eyes of both Pirate and Navy. Kerrs was more than thrilled to assist in her plan; Washburn had no idea what wickedness he had unleashed by invading the quarters of the female firebrand.

  Taking some ideas from the Dark Elf playbook the Captain prepared a note especially for the other young Officer, one Lieutenant Roland White. He was assigned with Washburn and would be found on deck of the same Navy ship moored just beyond the break waters. The crew gathered, along with the extras, and with high tide carrying the “Vharcan” gently to open waters Greyy waited for her perfect shot.

  As they passed the naval vessel “Avenger” she notched an arrow with her note. The one word, Prepare, inscribed in a lovely long sweeping script and impaled with an arrow whistled a menacing song as it flew to its mark just missing White’s head and embedding in the mast behind him. He looked up in time to see Greyy give a saucy little two fingered salute as their ships passed. Little did he realize the mayhem that would follow their brief encounter.

  Chapter 120

  Over the next few weeks her plan took on action and then became something of a monster with a life all its own. The idea was to recruit crews from every pub; tavern and inn that the crews stopped then train them enough to not destroy themselves within the first night. Once the new recruits were trained the grand raid on any Navy vessel and replacing the officers with the drunkards from towns would ensue. The crews that survived for more than a day or two learned quickly how to keep a ship afloat and away from those who originally owned it.

  Kerrs and Buddy took to the plan like a fish to water using their vast experience and the resource contacts they had hiding in alleys and boardwalks along the Eastern Seas. They used the argument of an Empire that oppressed its “law abiding citizens” turning them into ruffians to survive, and this was a perfect time to bring a message to the “laws that be” that privateers were tired of following someone else’s rules. For the logical, that argument is somewhat weak, but for drunkards and petty criminals it seemed almost patriotic. Kerrs’ had a silver tongued mastery of persuasive speech and stirring the locals was barely a challenge.

  Greyylene, however, used a much more base argument in her recruitment. Not only would the pathetic and lonely be given the chance to earn a big boat, but they would also be able to sail and learn under her supervision. The salty jokes and jeers of that idea caused some to drool unabashedly, but in the end she had little trouble in gathering a crew.

  The first half of the plan was well in place and progressing famously. Each of the new crewmen was given a task to learn and perfect within a day or two before moving to another. Most became an asset and quite proficient even in a very short time. As the sailing lessons progressed each ship grew closer and closer to the specific target. The Navy ships that were attacked first were those of tiny outposts and lone patrols. They were generally smaller vessels that would be easier to handle by a crew of greenhorns.

  Chapter 121

  Within a month’s time Kerrs, Buddy and Greyylene had spread through dozens of ports and taken five of the Navy’s ships. When they rendezvoused just outside of Port Bistrot a new plan began to take shape. Not only were they taking the Navy ships, but they would spread panic and fear throughout the lands with rumors and stories of mass destruction. A key member of that plan was Greyy’s former crewman Donny Porter.

  Mr. Porter was tasked with the job of assisting the local gossips in spreading a tale as grand as the Emperor’s own castle of how the Navy was being decimated by sea creatures. The idea was to take a bit of the focus off the Pirates and let local fishermen go hunting for deep sea creatures. Without the fishermen the economy of local sea ports was destined to flail about in helpless indecision bringing the Empire out of its comfortable apathy.

  Donny’s reports were delivered with a precision of a surgeon as he would sit in a drunken stupor on a bar stool, or rushed into a place in a crazed panic. His “strange reports” passed from town to town of vanishings of questionable origin. Town’s people were in a panic knowing that the Navy was under attack by supernatural forces and deep sea monsters hell bent on destroying the world. Other tales circulated of officers going completely insane and throwing themselves overboard due to an odd illness that invaded their minds. Every possible explanation toured the towns and ports, except the only one that was accurate.

  Chapter 122

  The note that Greyylene had shot into the mast of the “Avenger” forced a hand James Bishop had to that point been unwilling to play. He knew he had to return to Headquarters and report all that had happened in their scouting expedition. It was far too important now to disregard the order to return home. Lieutenants Washburn and White had stirred a hornets’ nest and the consequences would be severe if there was insufficient preparation.

  Once news reached the desk of Captain Bishop of the missing ships, he knew at once who was ultimately behind the chaos of the fleets. He had no option but to recommend that they send out search parties to bring in the missing ships, hoping they were still intact and afloat. Still impressed with for how well he was taken by the saucy vixen Greyylene; Roland White was assigned the task of rounding up as many of the “missing” vessels as possible.

  Horatio was now on a rampage and his goal was to hunt that sea wench and send her to the bottom of the ocean. Captain Bishop was mildly amused at how engrossed his First Lieutenant had become with the Pirate and opted to allow his tempter to run its course rather than try to rein him in. Her along with her cursed crew had made it to the top of Washburn’s most wanted leader board, which he had hanging on the wall in his quarters. He determined to himself that he would personally hunt her, her crew and her treasure then justice would be the least of their worries.

  Reeling with indecision as to what to do and pacing back and forth in front of his desk livid from the actions of this Woman, Washburn was desperate to return order. Suddenly he stopped mid stride as an idea struck him like
a club between the eyes. She had played pay back as motivation to institute this current action; he decided to up the ante by returning to the cave they first met to take her “Pirate Treasure”. That he was sure would bring her crawling in begging for mercy. Every pirate’s weakness is their treasure, or so he figured.

  He sat at his desk and began to devise a strategy on how to best bring the Pirates back into order. A light rap at the door made him jump leaking ink all over his newly formed plan. There was a call to order on deck.

  Chapter 123

  The “Avenger” was almost back at the Headquarters docks and several other large ships could be seen on the horizon. Captain was on deck and the rest of the crew was busy about their duties when a large Ship of the Line loomed over them. The gang plank was hoisted across the rails and a small entourage of Military guards from both Imperial Guards and Navy crossed. The Commander who seemed to lead the escort was short on manners as well as in stature. He never requested to come aboard only marched to James Bishop and stood right in his face.

  “Captain James Bishop, you are here by ordered to relinquish control of your crew to ME, Commander Horace Flintlock of the Imperial Guard!” he stated with a smirk and a satisfied gloat.

  Bishop took the orders but before there was time to comment the Commander turned on his heels and retreated to his own vessel with a pounding stomp of his heavy boots ringing on deck.

  “New orders will be arriving Shortly, Captain. I expect you to comply completely!” he said over his shoulder still walking away at a brisk pace. It was a lovely sight to watch as the massive ship sailed off to find its next prey.

  Orders arrived shortly after Flintlock had left as he said they would. One look at the proposed plan made James Bishop laugh out loud.