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Lost The dark, murky waters of the ravaging It all started on that night…that
dark and stormy night when the heavens were asking for mercy from the
throbbing strikes of light. Roger Irons
walked with a cocky, confident pace, and had on clothes worthy of a
king including fancy boots, a long trench coat, and drizzles of
gold and silver on his back that not even the captain could
denounce. I think it was hypnotic in a sense of wonder and
riches. Gold, the one thing that makes all pirates living
leeches, was standing there in a form of a shadow, and we were hounds,
eyeing the visitor, burning with envy. The crack of lightning was
the only way to see the dazzling diamonds on the coat. Upon his
face, he bore a mask, a face of a skull with glowing ruby eyes, and our
captain seemed to enjoy the show that we put on for him as our faces
also became ghostly-pale. Pulling the man
into his cabin, the captain and the phantom seemed to have an eerie
glow from the dull lanterns that spooked the ship. The crew and
I, drenched with rain, were nonchalantly watching as we slowly tied a
rope down or looked like we were swabbing the deck. Following the
regular ritual, as seen in the pirate’s handbook, the captain
pricked the man’s thumb, blood smearing around the pad of his
finger, and pressed it down onto a piece of paper, keeping a permanent
record of his fingerprint, in blood. Quickly going back to our
duties when we saw them get up, we looked busy as the captain burst
open the door with a cordial laugh. “Men o' me ship, we be havin' new
blood about us! He`s called Rodger Irons an' we ought treat th' lad's
wi' equal respect as ye do fer yersef.” A small chuckle spread throughout the crew,
but stopped after a short time. “Give a hearty welcome t' yer new
shipmate an' pass round th' rum! Welcome
aboard, Mister Irons.” He patted Irons hard on the back, with a
swig of his rum, and slammed his cabin door shut once more, as the
mysterious stranger watched us pass around the rum.
As joyous as we were about having an occasion to drink,
nobody spoke a word. He be wanniond, or
cursed, the others said. Mister Irons took
a step forward and the crew took a step back. Gathering
up the courage, I asked through the still silence to the strange
phantom on our ship: “Mister Irons, be 't? How about we get
t' know our new mate a wee better. 'ere`d ye come from?” His eyes seemed to sparkle from the
moonlight with the blood red liquid flowing through his pupils. He
answered, “Yes, my name is Roger Irons. I
was born and raised in…in “Shen Daniels,” I answered. “So, how come ye decided t' join us,
Iron Roger? Didn’t ye be havin' any family?” “I used to…” he trailed
off, then continued, “but now, nothing matters.
I am here and am happy to become part of the crew. But I’d wager that my terminology around
here needs some polish.” He
chuckled, but nobody laughed with him. Whipping
his cape around, he then vanished. I think everyone on the crew, including
myself, raised a brow. Turning away from
Mister Roger Irons, one of the men whispered secretly and softly,
“I knew o' a Roger Irons once. He be a fierce sea dog who savaged
th' lands. Says he be searchin' fer someone. Searchin' fer a part o'
his soul. Crazy, they say. Killed lasses an' children. A whole city,
wiped clist. All that be seen be his shadow sweepin' across th' burnt
buildings. A devil, he be.” We all mumbled to each other, with suspicion
and fear reflecting in our eyes. Suddenly,
there, standing above us, atop of the crow’s nest, was the man
himself and his red eyes peering down. Scrambling
to go somewhere safe, the crew scattered to their cabins.
I, on the other hand, quietly snuck into the
captain’s cabin to get some information from our leader. He had to have some reason to hire him. “Arrrr, Shen. Want a glass?” he
raised a cup of rum to me, but I shook my head. “Sir, Captain, I wanted t' ask ye
about…about Iron Roger,” I asked uneasily then put my
hands behind my back. “What about th' lad's, Shen? Ye be
havin' a problem wi' th' lad? He jus' got here boy’o!” he
chuckled with shots of rum in-between. Wringing my hands, I then asked, “What
be his qualities t' hire th' lad's, Sir?” Narrowing his eyes, he dropped his rum and
folded his arms. “Why such an
interest? Ye know me goals jus' as well as I do. Me ancestry be a
disgrace. I’m here t' prove me family worthy o' respect an' even
fear, lad. Iron Roger be a man who takes fear an' forces swabbies t'
bow t' his feet. We need that sort o' power, Shen. Our ship barely
shakes th' boots o' th' boats that sail these seas. E'en sailboats yo
ho ho. Power, Shen. Power o'er somebody be anythin' anybody
needs,” he smiled with his stone yellow teeth with chips and
holes. Grasping his hint, I then asked, “What
power do ye hold o'er th' lad?” Laughing with hard choking coughs, Captain
Hook gave me a grin. “Lad,
ye’re too smart fer yer own boots. Aye, thar be somethin' I be
havin' o'er th' lad's, but that wouldn’t be any o' yer business.
Be havin' yersef a toffee. Get ou' o' here, boy’o.” Grabbing the precious sugar he threw to me
from the air, I placed it in my jacket pocket and thanked the captain
for his time. When I exited the cabin, there at the main
mast stood the phantom, Irons, covered in darkness except for his
illuminated skull and red eyes staring at me, just staring. “Why so curious, Shen?
Afraid of my eyes like the rest of this childish crew? Captain has made me first officer which means
that I have control over as much of this ship as the captain.”
His voice slithered and stung like a snake when he spoke, poisoning my
ears. “What’s yer point, Mr.
Irons?” “My point,” he hissed, “is
that I control you. I can tell you
everything. Lies, truths, commands,
secrets.” Twiddling with the toffee in my pocket, I
nervously answered, “S-s-secrets?” “Oh, yes. Apparently,
there is a rumor on this ship; one, I might add, that I like. It brings fear into the men and with fear
comes control, Shen.” My name was
spoken in such a way was like a knife repeatedly stabbing me in the
face. “Why be ye here, Mr. Irons?” I
asked before my mind was beat with the mighty blows of his tongue. “Why am I here? I’m
here to control the seas. I’m here
to find power. I’m here to find
people. People…like you who try to
dig too far into my business. You have
touched the untouchable soil, Shen. And
you’re going to pay the price of your curiosity.
Everyone here knows that I am a man to be respected. You seem to be the only one who stepped out of
place. I don’t like that.” He pulled out his knife from his belt and with
one hand slammed me onto the wooden planks of the floor; with the knife
caressing my neck. “There’s
fear in your eyes, Shen.” He paused and continued, “Have
you ever murdered a man?” I shook my head and watched the knife start
to slide. Wincing, I answered,
“N-no, sir!” The skull seemed to glow towards my face,
and I squeezed my eyes shut. Lightning
crashed and lit up the skies. “Look at me, Shen!
I shall rule the seas with Poseidon’s trident! I will be feared, respected, bowed to! You will not be the one to bring me to my
misery.” Screaming through the echoing night, I
yelled, “Please, don’t do ‘t!” I cried, almost
with a sob. Shaking his head with a
pitiful chuckle, he started to slowly retract his knife.
Afraid, petrified, and shaken up, I did the only thing I
could think of to keep me from dying. I
snatched the toffee from my pocket and I tossed it down his throat. As I was running away, I started to hear him
choke on the chewy candy. My conscience
quickly panicked. Frantically, going back
to him, I pounded Roger Irons on his back for his body to spit it back
out. The toffee soared across the deck and
onto the captain’s face, who had just come out to see what was
going on. While Irons was catching his breath, the
captain tossed down the candy onto the deck and roared, “Shen,
ye’re swabbin' th' deck next high tide'! Roger Irons, what th'
devil be goin' on here?” Glaring down at me with hatred and disgust,
Irons then had an idea and sneered. “Captain
James Hook XIII,” he started, “Here with me tonight is a
murderer. This man tried to kill me and
then started to beat me: a violation of Article 3!” The captain’s eyes went wide. “Shen, that’s a Moses’
Law!” “But, Captain!” I tried to
argue, but I decided to hold my tongue. He
was still trying to get me back for trying to figure out who this guy
was. Turning to look at this slippery
serpent, I found that the captain pulled him aside and apologized
personally, but Irons spat at my feet. “The boy lost his bloody mind. I’ll just be getting to bed to rest up
for tomorrow, Captain.” He pretended to limp to the stairs and
hobble down the steps. Clutching my jacket to pull me up to his
face, the captain yelled with spit flying from his mouth and his ragged
moustache moving up and down with his expressions.
He stormed, “Shen, what do ye think ye’re
doin'? Ye know th' Articles! A beatin' o' another man on this ship be a
violation! Forty whippings, Shen. That’s more than ye can
handle…but ye must be havin' them done, I’m lily livered.
E’er since ye came here as a wee boy, ye tookst yer beatings.
Now, I jus' hope ye can take a man’s punishments.” Dropping me back on the ground, he returned
to his cabin to start his slumber like the rest of the crew, but I
crumbled to the floor. Rocked gently by
the salty arms of the sea, I slept until the sound of the crew woke me
up. “Did ye really do 't, Shen?” “Why’d ye do 't?” “Be th' ‘Phantom’ actually
chokin'?” “Th' Moses’ Law…Hea'en be
wi' ye, when ye get th' Moses’ Law, Shen.” I rose from my slumber and a hush came over
the men. The captain pushed them aside
like he was swatting flies. “Get out of the way, you filthy
scallywags.” The captain let a tall,
strong, dark skinned man grapple my jacket and pull me up to my feet. Tying my hands together with strong knots, I
was strung onto a wall. Taking the whip,
my heart started to beat slow and powerful. I
closed my eyes, expecting my first strike, but none came.
When I opened them, there stood Irons smiling an evil
grin. “Ready?” he asked with a
venomous hiss. “I’m nay lily livered o' ye,
Irons.” “Oh, really? That’s
strange. Your eyes say that you’re
scared. I didn’t think you knew what
death tasted like, so I decided to give you a bit.
Because of our little dispute, I thought we could end it
simply. A little beating on a boy can
really turn him into a man. I hope
you’ll understand why I’m doing this. Just
remember, what I am has nothing to do with you, so stay out of my
business,” he snickered and dropped his arm.
Strike one. By the time the tenth whip came across my
back, I started to feel the blood drain from my body and the venom from
the snake entered. I looked over and saw
the smug look on his face and could only see the devil in his soul. The man was not simply cursed, but evil. “Twenty-two,” Irons sneered with
a look of content as I limped on the wall. My
body was sucked dry and I couldn’t sense the world around me. My heart was cold. My
mind seemed blank. The world seemed to die around me. “Thirty-four,” he yawned with
boredom. Come to find out, the crew had
long since turned around from the macabre sight, and they
couldn’t bear to see my suffering. The
snake had poisoned me. The venom had
spread. My eyes…so heavy. “Forty,” Irons applauded. But the crew took my limp, ill, nearly-corpse
body, down to one of the men who happened to understand medicine,
winced at the morbid sight of my back. “Lad, 't’s goin' t' be a hard,
long tide.” And that’s the last I heard. I woke up to the snake’s beady eyes
and my back screaming with pain. “Finally, you wake.
It’s been a week since your whipping.
I must say that I was impressed. You
lived through it. How do you feel?” I wanted to tell him what I felt: hatred,
anger, and resentment, but I couldn’t say that to his face. “Perfect,” I mumbled. Slapping me on the back, my eyes soared into
my head. Screaming at the top of my lungs,
I froze, paralyzed on my bed. With a sneer, he smirked, “Wimp. You can’t even take salt on the wound. Take it like a man, boy. Stand
up for yourself; tell me what you’re really feeling.” His voice echoed through my head and slithered
down my spine. With a cold look, I told him,
“Bitterness, disgust, anguish, pain, torment, loathe,
resentment!” My voice grew heatedly stronger with every word. Smiling, with that devilish smile of his, he
whispered, “That’s right. That’s
what you need. That’s all it takes
to rule—hatred. Use it, and
you’ll have all the power you need.” My
eyes looked away him and he gave me a strong pat on my back. Handing me a mop and tossing across a
bucket, that I caught painfully, Irons started to leave, but explained,
“You didn’t think you’d get out of swabbing the deck,
did you?” I grumbled and moaned, trying to get up, but
my back sobbed. When I eventually got out
of the room and up the stairs to the main deck, I found the crew
completely changed. Their clothes turned
black, dark make-up circled around their eyes; wearing hats, belts,
leather boots, fancy peg legs, decorative knives and swords; even their
attitudes were sinister and ugly. The ship
was cursed and controlling the puppet show was the duo —Officer
Irons and Captain Hook, the snake and the fool, the manipulator and
manipulated. Noticing my stare, the captain tossed me a
patch, a white shirt, leather boots, a jewel knife, and a sharp-edged
sword. “Patch on them crossbones on yer arms,
boy. Wear them proudly on yer jacket. As ye be seein', this ship has
taken t’ some changes since ye’ve been away. Thanks t'
Officer Irons, we be havin' a new look about us. Now,
we’re ready t' take over. Today, we attack th' grand country o'
Zale! Officer Irons an' I be havin' agreed t' stand by ye side by
side!” The crew cheered, with their swords clanking
high in the air, making the sun reflect from the metal.
Watching the men drinking for their good fortune and
riches, I saw myself lost in the transformation. Once,
they were not pirates, but lost men who simply found themselves in the
wrong place. Now…I don’t know
where they are now. “Raise them swords high an' proud, me
men, fer at dawn, we attack!” An anxious cheer spread and rumbled
the deck. Holding my clothes, the bucket, and the mop
all at the same time, it hit me. As a
matter of fact, it felt like someone actually hit me square in the
chest. My back felt awful, and the change
stabbed me cold. I had to find the truth
about Irons. There had to be some reason,
some reason why a man would hate the world so much and be so protective
of his past. Dropping all of my things,
the crew passed me and patted me on the back. Rolling
my eyes from the throbbing, merciless pain, I grabbed the mop and
hobbled over to Irons. “Irons, we need t' talk.” One glance at who was speaking to him, he
scoffed and shook his head, “You? And me? You
must be joking, you bilge rat.” Grabbing him by his shoulder forcefully,
while ignoring my back, I scowled, “Nay, Irons. We need t'
talk.” “Who do
you think you are to grab me like that? I
am the officer of this ship! I could have
you punished for speaking to your officer like—” “Shut up, Irons! Jus' shut up! If
ye’re goin' t' give me so much disrespect as t' sell me fer a
rat, then jus' shut up an' listen fer once!”
I barked, surprising myself at what I just did. Silently, Irons sealed his lips but his
eyes, those red, scarlet eyes, looked down at me with utter detest. My thoughts catching
back to my head, I continued, “Officer Irons, I apologize fer me
rash order—” “Rash order? That was more
than—” “But I really need t' talk wi' ye
about some things somewhere private.” “If you simply must, then let us go to
the captain’s cabin. I can use it
whenever I want,” he bragged, but I still continued to follow
him. Inside, the newly-decorated and
largely-invested room was cozy and warm. Irons
sat down on the large leather chair and sighed with his hand holding
his face. “What do you want, you
scurvy dog?” he snarled. “I came t' ask if ye be
eremarried,” I confidently stated. His eyes softened for a moment, then grew
small and narrow once again. “Why do
you ask such a preposterous question?” “I once knew a lass, a matey o' me
mother’s, whose name be Perdita, or Perty, Irons,” I paused
trying to let him realize what I knew. He slowly started to sink in his
chair and looked down. For the first time, Irons looked like he had
lost a battle. “Be she yer buxom beauty, Irons?” Immediately sitting straight up, Irons blew
his top. “Mr. Shen Daniels, how dare
you ask about my personal life!” Shrinking down on my high cloud, I asked,
“So then 't’s true?” “Mr. Daniels, love never solves
anything. Power and fear is how humans are
supposed to want from others. Humans are
not meant to be kind, courteous, and giving. People
steal, lie, pretend to be somebody they aren’t.
We are creatures from the underworld sent to serve our
purpose. Mine happens to be to serve this
ship and lead them to victory tomorrow. Then,
my duty will be complete. Even if I found
my wife…my beautiful bride.” He turned away and snapped
his head back around. “Get out! Get
out! Leave me in peace!” Rushing out of the cabin, well as fast as I
could with my injured back, I tried to piece together what he said. “Even if I found my wife…” What did he mean by that?
Was she killed, maybe taken or tortured?
I’m not sure, but I needed to find out.
I needed a plan. Captain Hook was found celebrating the
‘victory’ already with his rum in the bow of the ship. I guess there were some things that clothes
and riches couldn’t change. “Captain, sir?” “Aye? Oh, Shen, 't’s ye. Come
in, come in, dear boy. Be havin' a drink!” Taking
a glass of rum, I held it without taking a sip. “Captain Hook, I jus' wanted t'
propose a tactic I came up wi'.” “A tactic? What kind o' tactic,
lad?” Holding my head high, I tried to persuade
the drunk captain, “I be thinkin' that we could dock off th'
shore an' get t' know th' swabbies thar. Ye know? Maybe t' try t' find
ou' the'r tactics. 'T would benefit us t' learn what they would do in
an event o' an emergency. Like if th'
Zalians be t' figure ou' our plans an' use 't against us.
Let us attack Zale in two days. That
would give us enough time t' figure ou' the'r weak points.” Thinking as much as a drunkard could, he
exclaimed, “Well spake boy’o! I couldn’t be havin'
thought o' a better plan myself! Ha! Well then in two days, we shall
attack Zale, th' central part o' th' world! We
will rule!” Thanking the captain for his time, I went to
the doctor to see if there was anything to ease the intolerable pain. Taking my glass from me, he set it on a table. Unwrapping my bandages, he scolded me for even
getting up that day. ‘Ought ben
resting today,’ he said. Telling me
to lie on my stomach and close my eyes, he tipped my glass onto my
back. The sun started its cycle early for my body. I felt better, my back didn’t ache, but
it was stiff. Dressing in my old clothes,
for my things were too far away to grab, I noticed how the crew was
nowhere to be seen. The captain must have
sent them off the ship already. Carefree,
I started walking onto the dock that the ship was decked on. Shrugging, I continued. Captain
Hook yelled from behind me, “What be ye doin', boy’o?
Nobody but Officer Irons be goin' t' get th' information fer
attacking.” Backing off of the captain, I tried to
concoct a plan to get out. As I entered my
cabin, I looked out the window. I had to
go for it. Taking off my jacket, with my
white shirt left, I dove into the warm, clear, water.
Looking back at the ship, I laughed and started to swim. Although the brutal waves fought against me, I
strove towards the sand. Finally feeling
the sand wiggling between my toes, I pulled my weighted feet from the
water’s last grasp. When I approached the city gates, I saw Zale
for my first time. Majestic marble
structures with domes, round ceilings, gold and silver trimmed linings,
and artistic murals with etiquette designs flowed throughout the city. If I was to imagine the perfect, most
attractive city, then this was one step better. The
people were polite and tender with gentle, graceful togas running down
their bodies. Struck at the sight, I asked the nearest man for
directions to a bar. ‘Straight down,
pass two roads, take a left, and it’s the first to your right. Have a wonderful day, good sir.’ I was stunned at the respect I was given for
the first time in my life, wet and all. Walking into the bar, it was filled with men
of all ages, young and old, drinking and enjoying themselves. Going to the bartender, I asked for whatever
the others were drinking and tipped the man with a few gold coins. Trying to remember my English from my
mother, I cleared my throat. “So,
gentlemen, how is it going?” They chatted with me and eventually I asked,
“Do you know anything about a family called the Irons,
gentlemen?” They laughed. “What about him, bloke? What’d you hear?” “I heard something about Mr. Irons
losing his wife, or maybe I am mistaken.” I swirled my glass
around while I waited for them to respond. “Well, Mr. Roger Irons was a loving
man; a man who grew up with the same morals as the rest of us. In fact, this is the only bar in the town. Actually, it’s planning to close because
it’s not right to drink. Most of the men don’t around here
but—” I cleared my throat. “Mr. Irons,
gentlemen.” Another continued for the other man,
“Like my friend here was trying to say, Mr. Irons was a kind man
who we all knew. Perdy, the most beautiful
Zalian woman, was destined to marry him. Together
they were the perfect couple. Love at
first sight, I guess you would say. Then,
his wife was beaten, taken, and left only a note behind for her husband
to return to. It said something like,
‘I will love you forever, my darling.’ You know, those
cheesy love lines when you die. Rumor had
it, that she was alive. So, Iron Roger
fled to find her. Caught in the traps and
lures of the devil, he signed up to be an assassin by some pirate. He was promised his lover if he killed
everyone in the towns that he slaughtered. Crazy
with love, he complied. Of course, the
devil lies and he did. Killing the man who
promised his wife, he moved on. They say
he is with another pirate; still trying to find his mate one more time. The latest gossip is the pirate is the famous
Captain Hook XIII. Promising to give him
his gal as well as a margin of gold, together they bound their souls in
one. They are inseparable.
So, where did you come from again?...” But all that was left was a small pile of
gold I left for those gossiping drunkards for their scotch and rum. Walking out of the city, the grand city that
controlled the world, I knew I didn’t belong.
So, Irons was a man after all. Why
did he wear his mask; the mask that bears the skull of a haunting
specter? “…Fear brings
control, Shen.” The ship was seen sitting on the edge of the
world by the setting sun. Cannons were
being prepared for the glorious battle tomorrow.
Gliding along the water, I swam to the ship
once more. There was a rope hanging from
the side of the ship. I decided to climb
up and swing into my window. My goal: get
into the ship without getting caught. Walking
across the side of the ship, I slid my body into my room and turned
around with a smile. Changing into my new,
dry clothes, I slipped my sword to my holster and slid on my new
leather boots. Suddenly, standing at my
doorway, was the famous Roger Irons. His
eyes were red, skeleton mask on, blue royal coat on, but he
didn’t intimidate me anymore. I
wasn’t afraid. The facts I found
brought out the truth and truth kills the fear. His hiss—died and seemed…normal. “Mr. Daniels, what were you
doing?” Finding an excuse, I simply answered,
“Clistin' th' abroadside o' th' ship, sir.” “How dare you tell lies to your
officer. I saw you swimming.” I cocked an attitude and spat back,
“Does 't matter, Zalian Roger Irons?” “I never was a Zalian!
You spy! You devil sent from
Hell! What a disrespectful title! Here I was trying to help you out, to tell you
how we were going to attack, but you slap me in the face.
Goodbye, Mister Shen Daniels.” Lowering my guard, I stopped.
“Officer Irons, I didn’t mean 't. A Zalian be
an honorable title. Ye deserve t' find yer buxom beauty. Accordin' t'
yer belief, ye sold yersef t' th' devil. Why did ye turn away from yer
religion?” Turning away, he dropped his guard. “…Perdy made everything whole. Religion was true, the world was round,
everything made sense. Then, when she was
taken…not just taken, stolen from me and I couldn’t deal
with the world. I was trapped! Lost, abandoned! My
world dissolved!” He started to sob. Taking off his mask, he covered his face to
wipe his tears. “Officer Irons—” “No…I’m Zalian Irons. I need to get out of here.
I don’t want to do this anymore.
Her light shines too bright into my eyes anymore! I cannot hide from the burning light! Yes, I want to find her, but the more I think
of her and what I’m doing, the more I get angry with myself. Everything she taught me, I disobeyed. Love betrayed me; so instead, I went towards
hatred, Shen. The pain I caused
you…I hated you, because you were a reflection of me when I met
Perdy: pure, free-spirited, young, talented.” he chuckled to
himself then stopped. “I saw that I
never knew that side and you…you seemed to always go against the
darkness. Oh, I’m sorry; so sorry,
Shen. I’ve messed up my life. Ever since she was taken away…I messed
up my life so bad.” Slowly going towards him, I put my hand on
his back for support. “I
understand.” I couldn’t
imagine losing the one I loved. Then it
hit me. “But we can fix this, Irons.
We need t' save Zale. Save yersef. What would she do?” Looking up, his face still away from me,
nodded. “Yes, she would save her
home. It wouldn’t be right to burn
it down. Yes! We
have to save it, Shen!” Grabbing me by the collar, he dragged me to
the captain. “Captain Hook,” he started with
my eyes popping out with surprise and confusion. “This man needs
to stay at post in the city. Make sure
everything goes to plan. If something goes
wrong, he is to send a signal. His sword,
shall glimmer in the sunlight and give us notice. Two
shines is ‘trouble’, one shine is ‘everything is
going to plan’. Don’t you
agree, captain?” I finally got a
good look at him. He was as old as my
father would be, forties or so, but his face was clean and cut. The girls would think him handsome should he
ever get out of this hold and return to his life. Not even glancing up, he continued writing
on his papers. Dropping his quill, he
looked up. His face looked quite shocked
at Iron’s appearance, but answered the proposal presented,
“Aye! Splendid! We shall drop th' lad's off at th' shore next
high tide' mornin',” the captain approved Iron’s plan and
turned to me. “Search th' city. Look
fer any signs o' alert or gossip. Let us know when th' sun be above th'
sky’s line. We’ll drop ye off
before th' sun rises. Be seein' ye in th' mornin', Shen.” Kicking Irons and me out, I turned to Irons. “How does this help?” “You’re free, Shen; free from
this devil piracy. Go to Zale. If you don’t like it there, become a
sailor; an honorable man! That’s the
last I ask of you.” Morning came. I
was already walking off the deck before anyone walked off.
The captain had docked behind the forest to hide. Running into the city, I decided to find his
wife. She was the city’s only hope.
Meanwhile, I later found out afterwards, the captain heard
Irons pacing back and forth mumbling how he should escape. “Be ye tryin' t' get ou' if 't,
Irons?” Captain Hook lowered his eyes. “Oh, no! Of
course n—” “Ye an' I be bound by th' devil t'
stick t' our promises, Irons!” “Don’t you think I realize that? I know I can’t deny the promise. I’m thinking that you are trying to
escape your promise!” “Ye scurvy dog! I give ye nothin' but
kindness an' ye say I won’t give ye yer buxom beauty?” “She’s dead!
When I came to town to find out information, I saw her
tombstone. The town knows it, I know it,
everything from my life is taken from me. In
fact, I should end my life now!” He cocked a gun at his head. “Now, let’s nay get
c-crazy.,” the captain slowly stepped towards Irons. “No! You’re
the crazy fool! No! I
was because I believed that you would give me her!
I trusted you. I sold you my
soul to find her. I became a pirate -- the
largest sin a man could make in life, according to my beliefs!” “Yer beliefs sank t'Davy Jones' locker
th' tide yer buxom beauty be killed. Come, let’s go win o'er this
city. 't’s th' city that tookst yer buxom beauty!” “No, it’s the city she and I
lived in. My greatest memories come from
that place. I cannot burn my home!” “Ye must! I will find a way fer ye t'
get yer buxom beauty. By me captain’s honor, we shall find th'
lass'. Stand by me in battle an' finish yer duty.”
The captain’s heart beat with a heavy heart
nervously and anxiously waiting for Irons’s answer.
His dream, his fantasy of being the most feared pirate
would be complete…should only this man be by his side. Captain Hook knew he could never control a
country. Irons’ had fear and the
intelligence to rule a country. All Hook
had to do was control his puppet. Wincing because it was what he had said
about his duty to me, he replied, “Fine.” I went around the city, door-to-door, asking
for people who knew anything about Perdy Irons. Once
house I came across had a woman open the door who wore a white
porcelain mask. She bowed and curtsied to
my presence and invited me in. I explained
that I had to continue on, but I wanted to know if she knew anything
about Perdy Irons. “Perdy Irons?” she asked,
mumbled through the mask. “Yes, ma’am.
Do you know her or where she may be?” “She…is…she is no longer
alive.” “I’ve heard that, ma’am. But her husband is looking for her and if he
doesn’t find her, this city will—” “Her husband is looking for
her?” she asked with interest and somewhat surprise. “He was looking for her for his entire
life. Do you know where she is?” “Why I told you earlier, she is
dead!” A sob broke out from under her white mask.
“I’m sorry to cause you so much
grief, Ma’am, but I have to find her.”
As I started to dart for the next door, she caught my leg. Clasping my hands, she cried, “Good
sir, you are looking at her!” Standing
up with a bolt, she wrapped her arms around me and flung her mask away. “Dear, God! Take
me before my master wakes! That evil man
stole me so many years ago for his own! Take
me away! It is early morning and you
tapped so gently on the door that it did not startle him.
Oh, my savior!” Taking her hand, I brought her down the city. Down, down, down. If
only I knew, it was too late. The battle
had already begun. Captain Hook, impatient
for my signal, was burning the top of the city and ready for its
downfall. And I was at the bottom, the
last to be burned. Reaching the beach, I didn’t find the
boat. Looking back, smoke streamed from
the beautiful homes. “No.” My eyes were wide and fearful.
“No!” Perdy
turned and saw her city start to burn. Together we ran up the city, watching woman
and children fleeing and howling. There,
high above on a balcony, stood Hook and Irons, the proud and the
guilty. “Irons!” I shouted up to him,
but he didn’t hear me. Behind him,
soldiers battled out and were slayed by the captain’s mighty
blows. The crew had wiped out the entire
top of the city, and Zale was getting desperate. His wife, terrified, ran up to where her
husband was. The captain turned around. “Kill th' lass', Irons! 't’s a
Zalian! All o' them shall sink t' Davy
Jones' locker!” When Irons saw the ghost of his past
standing there before him, he looked over at the captain who urged him
to kill her. As I reached the balcony, I
saw him drop his sword and wrap his arms around her.
Crying with joy, they kissed and held each other tight. Infuriated, Captain pulled out his sword. Ready to slaughter his betrayed pet, he
stopped. Shocked, he looked down at his
chest. There, right in his heart, was a
sword; a glittering sword stabbed from behind. Falling
on the floor, the lovers’ eyes were horrified.
The captain died, and I was the one who had killed him
– my first murder, and it was for a good cause.
My crew and I were baptized into the Zalian
religion, and sailors of a new kind took over the ship.
Even Irons, with his wife, stayed with us, except now, we
had a friendship. This time, I had control
over Irons, but I only had power over him through respect.
After all, respect creates greater power than a power
created by fear. White sails, traded with
the black, were filled with wind, the boat was painted a new coat of
blue, and a changed man became captain. Some people may say we changed, but some say
we’re still pirates at heart. Humans
may be seen as evil, but even in evil, there is good.
The same goes for good, for there can be some evil that
can be found in them as well. And as for the bar, it still remains in
Zale.
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