Chapter Text
The warm breeze passing through the night would be a calming sign for most people. The ones that were unaware that is. But for Captain Athena, it only filled her with dread. The days to come will be unbearably hot, especially for the crew of the Krakken. Hopefully, she prays, the crew won’t whine too much about the coming heat waves. Thankfully, her crew had made plans to stay anchored to the next harbor they came across, which would be in about a day. Once anchored, they would station there for about a week. Surely enough time to distract themselves from the heat until it passed.
Deciding to leave her worries for the morning, the captain basked in the warm night air, letting herself be swayed by the siren song of peace. She didn’t get to relax often. When you’re the captain of a pirate crew, even a small one such as her’s, you’re bound to many responsibilities. Financial stability, paying everyone accordingly, stocking for enough food and supplies, negotiating with enemies and local governors, and so on and so forth. And not to mention having to be the middleman when it came to arguments and brawls among the squalling seagulls that were what made up her crew. If she were to be honest with herself, her real job was babysitting her merry band of misfits. Oh, what she wouldn’t give to slice their throats and disembowel their entrails just so she could be free of their constant screeching. Yes, one could only dream.
Letting out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, Athena turned away from the vast expanse of the sea and focused her attention on what she was standing on. With an all too proud smile on her face, she examined her greatest treasure of all. The Kraken. The floor tiles that were once a shining brown paint have faded into a dull shell of its former self. The rotten smell of corpses and blood surrounding the entire ship in a suffocating aroma. The piss and vomit stains huddled at the corners of the ship that she told Olivia (soon to be Odeadvia) to clean up ages ago. The best treasure she had ever stolen. She may not be much, but her baby was a lot more than meets the eye. Her ship was far sturdier, more durable, more deadly than any of those big old fancy ships that her enemies liked to show off. And her name. The Kraken. That’s a name that strikes fear into the hearts of anyone with the unfortunate luck to face her wrath.
“Ha!” She triumphantly laughed, “And little Tommy laughed in my face when he heard it. Well…” The Captain looked at the head pike of the ship, a fresh little corpse hanging below it, “Who’s laughing now you short bastard,” she mocked, laughing to herself at her own little joke.
She continued her laughing fit as it slowly grew more and more hysterical, looking more and more like she had finally succumbed to the madness of the sea. What did she find so funny about the little man’s death, anyway? She would ask herself in her hysteria. Compared to other rivals she had, little Tommy wasn’t all that noteworthy. Hell, she had been mocked far more severely by other people in the past. She guessed it wasn’t little Tommy’s death at all, but rather, she saw it as a chance to let loose for once and have a good, hardy laugh. Not one of those fake, mocking laughs she would give to soldiers or stuffy politicians to intimidate them, and not the subdued little chuckles she gave for her crew whenever they dicked around. No no no. This was a genuine laugh. It’s like having a heavy weight off your soldiers so that you may relax for a while. And boy, did it feel great. It was a good thing her crew were deep sleepers, otherwise she wouldn’t even be able to have this. She would eventually have to carry the weight of that boulder again, but for now, she was just happy to enjoy the moment.
“What are you laughing at?”
The voice was so soft and quiet, that she almost didn’t hear it, but she barely did. Her laughing session came to a halt, as she turned around with her blade whipped out at lightning speed, ready to strike whoever would be foolish enough to sneak up on her. Her fierce and hardened expression almost faltered when all she saw facing the tip of her blade was not an enemy pirate or one of her brain dead lackeys, but a boy. A boy that was about 12 or 13 if she had to guess. Eyeing the boy, she made a quick note of the rags that covered his very skinny body, how she could easily make out the ribs protruding from his chest, and his thick arms and legs that made the rags on his body look far too oversized for him.
Not that Athena was disturbed at the sight. No. She had seen kids like this before. She was once like them in her childhood, a treasure of memories she was more than comfortable to keep shut for the rest of her life. Ignoring the sudden void she felt in her stomach, she focused her eyes on the boy’s face. Her right eyebrow raised in confusion over the child’s reaction.
The boy was smiling at her. Not like one of mockery that was so common in all children his supposed age. Nor was it one of resignation that was to be found with those wishing to be done with the living. There was no fear nor anticipation in his eyes either. He was giving her a genuine smile, his gaunt face giving off a relaxed expression as if he wasn’t at swordpoint by a deadly pirate.
The sheer look of innocence combined with his gaunt features made something stir within Athena, the feeling of a void coming back stronger than before. But she ignored it best she could, doing her hardest to keep whatever was stirring inside her head down. She had questions that needed to be answered after all. Keeping her sword pointed at the curious child, the Captain gave a boy a stone cold expression to match his cheerful one.
“How did you get on my ship,” she sneered, giving the child a dead eyed stare that would make the mighty Gods cower under her gaze. Yet the boy simply smiled at her, hands clasped together as if he was waiting for something exciting to happen.
“I followed the sound of your laughter,” said the boy with his oh so cheery expression. She wasn’t sure if this brat was either stupid or trying to do some sort of elaborate trick. Judging by his expressions, she would have to guess he was stupid.
“I answered your question, but you never answered mine. Don’t y’know it’s very rude to not answer someone’s question. I did ask nicely.” Yep, definitely stupid. And irritating. Especially with that sweat little voice that was starting to get on her nerves. She all but growled at the boy, hoping to receive some fear out of him.
“Didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s rude to sneak around someone else’s home? And you still didn’t answer my question.” She really wasn’t suited to give that kind of advice. What with being how she had snuck around the homes and ships of rich nobles and rivals to steal their money and valuables.
Regardless, she saw the boy’s smile falter ever so slightly, as he slowly lowered his head down, seemingly more content to stare at the rotting wooden boards of the ship. The night shadows made it hard to make out, but she could swear she saw something glistening at the end of the boy’s eyes. For a while, the pirate and the boy remained where they were standing in silence, nothing but the night wind and the sea currents interrupting the tension.
Her patience almost depleted, the Captain tried to grab the boy by his right arm. It should be an easy enough feat, what with his skinny stature. But when she almost made contact with his arm, something in her body shivered at the hauntingly cold aura surrounding the boy as she immediately took a couple steps away from the child. Every instinct in her body told her that she had to fight, fight, fight the little brat or run, run, run, get the hell away from this tiny demon. It didn’t make sense. It shouldn’t make sense. Yet, try as she might, she couldn’t get her body to move the way she wanted it. Her body just remained frozen.
She shut her eyes, trying to calm herself down by taking a few deep breaths. But the more she thought about what was going on, the more enraged she felt. He was just a little boy. A small, defenseless child. The Captain had fought against bloodthirsty pirates, imposing mob bosses, equally bloodthirsty governors, and fought ravenous sea monsters without so much as a lick of fear. And yet here she was. The deadly and ruthless Captain Athena, frightened of a small, sickly child. There was no way in hell or heaven that she was going to have her reputation as a fierce pirate squandered by being scared of a child.
After what felt like hours, she was finally able to move again. Opening her eyes, she was left to gawk at the empty sight before her. The little boy was nowhere around her. In a panic, she ran around the entire ship, from the main deck, to the kitchen, to the beds, and every other nook and cranny that a small and thin child could hide under. It was her luck that her crew didn’t wake from any of this, otherwise they might have questioned their Captain’s already fragile sanity.
After not finding a single trace of the little boy, Athena settled down, but only a little. If anything, she felt relieved at not finding anything. There was no little boy hiding on this ship. There simply couldn’t be. It wouldn’t do any good for her sanity or her crew’s reputation if word got out that a small child could sneak upon their ship undetected.
No, she rationalized after calming herself down with a few deep breaths. She merely imagined the sickly and thin little boy, obviously brought on by a lack of sleep and too much stress weighing her down.
Yes, certainly, that was it. Nothing to worry about at all. The night is still very young. A few hours of good sleep will set the old noggin right back on straight, she surmised to herself as she made her way to her chambers to settle down for the night.
Settling down onto her bed, she hoped to fall asleep quickly so as to forget this silly little night ever happened. Instead, she found herself staring at the wooden ceiling above her, contemplating what had happened earlier.
Why did she imagine a sickly little boy, and why was she so unsettled by his presence? Maybe it was the heat. Or perhaps she was suffering from sea madness after all, she mused. Spending a few days on land would definitely do her some good.
Finally succumbing to the call of sleep, she began to close her eyes. The peaceful atmosphere of her chambers was only broken by the cold wind of the night whispering in her ear.
“You never answered my question.”