(A love story between a female first mate and a new addition to the crew of a pirate ship)
Almost all of the ship's crew was on the Merry Watch in celebration of their new catch, the Kingfisher. Rack after rack of fine eastern wines fueled the partyers who guzzled it down like cheap beer. The Orchids, men and women alike, mixed eagerly with the new members of the ship's company. Dice games and wrestling matches and song circles had erupted spontaneously. Propositions unspoken were everywhere. Anto watched with a grin as his friend, Valora, disappeared below-deck with a crew-woman in her arms.
The crew had spotted Anto about a week ago, clinging to the wreckage of a safety boat while he leaked blood from his legs like a broken faucet. A quick interrogation after they hauled his sorry ass from the water revealed he was the lone survivor of a ship hit by a strong storm off the coast of Cuba. Three days he'd been adrift, so needless to say he took the oath of piracy almost as soon as he recovered enough to speak.
Anto watched the merriment from the fringes of the starboard side, his feet dangling off the edge of the raised quarterdeck. The advice from the doctor, who was currently lip-locked with one of the carpenter, was to stay off his feet as much as he could or he'd risk opening his stitches. Sadly, this meant he couldn't grab his own bottle but it was much better than losing his legs to infection.
Footsteps approached from the left and a quick glance revealed it to be the First Mate, two cups of wine in her hands.
"Good show you put out there, ma'am," he said. "I watched the whole thing from here. FOund oout something scarier than sharks, too."
(This looks cool, may I join?)
(Indeed! Go ahead and post your starter, if you wish!)
(Oke doke! Quick question first, does the new crew-member have to be female?)
(Ah, well, I'm RPing as the new crew member. Like the starter says, Anto was fished out of the water only a week ago)
(Aha ok! I see that now, I must’ve read it wrong
I’ll get my starter up real quick)
(Sorry it took so long! I had dinner)
Natália Cruz strode over to the seat-ridden new crew member who had joined their team not even a week ago, or had it been a week? She had lost count after the third day. She held two wine glasses, one in each hand and offered one of them to the new crew member. “Fine day to be on a ship, hm?” She curled the corner of her lip into an amused smile.
Natália wore a greying trench coat just like most of the other men on the ship, a buckle cinching the coat closed over the fabric, leather boots, and a tricorn hat. Large amounts of other jewelry layered around her neck, particularly necklaces and personal everyday jewels. She kept her brown hair tucked back in a tight bun behind her head, just below the hat. Her eyes held a gentle sternness in their contradictory kind stare, slightly squinted. It was a composure she mostly adopted from spending time with the captain, a particularly close friend of hers. She wore her title proudly in her gate and stature: first mate.
"Yes, it is," he said, giving a nod of appreciation when the cup was handed to him. "Better than the alternative, too."
Anto's attire was much more simple, making him feel a bit underdressed. He wore a simple pair of linen pants held to his waist by a piece of sting taken from the hold of the ship. He was shirtless, exposing a lean, muscular body with many fading bruises after his days-long dip in the deep blue. He was shorter than most of the other men on the ship, but his posture made him seem much taller while he was sitting. His light brown hair was cut so short he was almost bald, and the stubble seemed to glow in the fading sunlight.
He took a sip of the cup given to him, a single ring on his left hand glinting in the light as he raised his hand. "Seems the Captain doesn't hold expenses when it comes to alcohol."
Natália dipped her head in agreement before lifting the glass to her lips. When finished her sip, she wiped her mouth with a sleeve, “Indeed. While I do love this wine, the rum is better,” she chuckled, glancing around to find a barrel or abandoned chair she could pull up to sit beside him. Eventually she found one nearby and dragged it closer to Anto.
"Why aren't ya down there, if you don't mind me asking?" He gestured towards the thick of the party with the hand unburdened with a cup. On cue, an empty bottle was thrown through the space between Natália and Anto. After a few more seconds, the sound of a splash told them it met its home in the water.
Natália blinked at the strange occurrence of the bottle for a few seconds before she recollected her thoughts to answer Anto’s question, “It gets pretty crazy down there…as we just witnessed. I prefer the quiet human conversation instead of yelling over drunken-stupid sailors, she snorted, casting a glance over to the chaos.
"Hm. Fair enough." He took another sip of the wine, rolling it around in his mouth for a moment. "I must admit, if it wasn't for my unfortunate condition I'd be down there."
Natália nodded, “That makes sense. Is your condition permanent?” She set the glass on her knee, but kept it stabilized with a hand, “If you don’t mind my asking.”
Anto shook his head, kicking his feet slightly. "Not at all. No, the doctor says that the stitches can me removed in about another week."
“Oh wow,” she nodded, leaning in a bit closer to him with her elbows resting on her knees. She took another sip of wine, “That’s good. You’re looking forward to walking again, I assume?”
"Yes," he agreed, gulping down the rest of the cup and setting it down next to him. "Sitting around doing nothing all day is dreadfully boring."
Natália chuckled, “I can imagine it is pretty boring. If I were in your state, the captain would find me pretty useless as a first mate.” She joked and took the last sip of her drink before setting it down next to his. “Do you have any dreams? Any ambitions to rise up in the ranks on a ship like this?”
"T' be honest, ma'am, my ambitions consist of getting the hell off of this ship as soon as we get to a port an' disappearin' into the forest. The sea is an unforgivin' bitch, and I have had received nothin' but ill favor from her," Anto said, tossing back the rest of the cup and setting it down next to him.
Natália looked off over the side of the ship, towards the sea. She pursed her lips ever so slightly to consider this. The sea was, at times, a bitch. She agreed with that. And yet her opinion of it was very different from his. “The land has ever only given me ill treatment. The sea’s a refreshing douse of unpredictability and… nobility of sorts.” She tapped the side of her glass, “I’ll be sad to see ya go when the time comes. You seem like a very pleasant fellow.”
"I never got the chance to get to know you very well, but the impression that I've gotten in these few moments seems to reflect the same," he said, reaching his right hand down and rubbing one of his knees gingerly. It wasn't just the stitches that hurt. It was also the deep ache in his joints from swimming for 5 straight days.
