Iron Roses

"Things have an interesting way of coming full circle... wouldn't you agree, Montegue?" In the center of the room sat a man many years my senior. He wore naught but his under garments, which had been stained crimson after the hits he had received from my crew. The older man wavered in his chair, obviously struggling to keep himself upright, stubbornly clinging to some vestigial honor he may have once carried as a young man. Those days, however, were far behind him, replaced by a trail that ran red with the blood of my kin.

There he sat, the living embodiment of my hatred and torment, the one person responsible for my ambition to captain my own ship, the one upon whom vengeance would rain down and destroy anything and everything he held dear. "Ten years ago... What an auspicious sign it is that I would find your ship on the tenth anniversary of your attack on a quiet little harbor town. Can you still here your cannons blasting metal balls of death off your stern?" Once again my fist slammed into the man's jaw, which hung unnaturally by that point. It was likely that the joint had been destroyed almost completely. No matter... he wouldn't need it anyway.

I followed up with a fist to his stomach, forcing the old captain to spit blood on my coat. "Did you not think that someone would come for you eventually? Did you think that God himself would turn a blind eye to your acts of barbarism?" Roughly I grabbed his collar and pulled him closer. "I am no angel, sir, but I believe the powers that be will understand what I do to you today. The last thing you see in this life will be the fading of light as you plunge down into the depth."

--

For a few more hours the beating continued. Every time Captain Montegue lost consciousness, we would wake him up with spirits or a branding iron. We waited until sun began to set before taking his limp, broken body above deck. The bloodied captain could not stand on his own anymore, so we sat him down with his legs dangling over the side. Much to my surprise, Montegue was still capable of speech after all that time. As per tradition in my crew, an iron rose pin was a attached to his collar.

"Captain Montegue, for the crimes of murder committed to no less than 128 souls within the port town of Alomir, and having evaded the inquiries of your government through the falsification of witness accounts, I commit to you the penalty of death. Have you any last words, man?"

Montegue chuckled slightly, staring out at the sunset. "It doesn't matter what you do now, pirate. You'll kill me and my crew, but our navy will not cower from you. Fly your standard proudly. Amass your fleet. Rally every pirate in the world and it will not be enough. We will see you and yours wiped off the face of th..." It was impossible to hear Captain Montegue finishing his sentence after I kicked him off the ship. I listened to the splash as flesh and iron pierced the ocean, then waited a moment to watch the bubbles stop surfacing.

"That's rude... leaving in mid-sentence. Didn't his nanny teach him any manners while she wiped his arse?" The crew joined me in a laugh as I ascended the stairs to the helm. It was time to move on. "Mr. O'Connell, take me home, if you'd be so kind."

It was well past sunset when I found myself on the desk of my fathers ship. It was docked, of course, but that didn't really mean anything to me. The crew was off in their homes ashore, and there was none on the vessel but me. The news had come rather abruptly that my father would no longer be voyaging out with his crew, as he had chosen to live the rest of his days with mum. Retirement. Could one like us ever really retire? I half wondered if he would change his mind before daybreak, but he seemed sincere. He had given the crew the night off, but they had insisted on the grandest of farewell parties.

I had left before the festivities had come to an end, needing a break from the drunken men and whorish wenches. I loved that crew as if they were my family, having spent many years under my father on his ship, and I knew they thought of me the same.

"I thought I would find you here." My father's voice stirred me from my thoughts, and I turned and smiled at him.

"Why would I be anywhere else?" I responded, feeling the wind rustle my orange-brown locks.

He returned my smile and turned me to face the vast seas, placing a large hand on my shoulder. "You were made for the ocean, my daughter." Holding up a hand to silence my response he continued, "I had always hoped for a son to take my place as Captain of my crew once I decided to leave the seas behind me." He chuckled seeing my crestfallen face. "However, I do not think any son would Captain her as beautifully as you."

"Papa don't be silly. Whomever you have chosen as your replacement will do wonders more than I ever could." I couldn't help but feel jealousy for whoever got the chance.

"I have already chosen my replacement, and the crew has been notified. They might have staged a mutiny had I not picked who I did." I looked at him impatiently, brow furrowed.

"Well who is it then? Do I still have priveledge to walk aboard?"

"I would certainly hope so. A ship cannot sail without her Captain."

~~~

That was how I inherited my fathers ship, and we have sailed flawlessly since. There were rough patches of course, some crew members, newly added, had to be properly put into place, and news was spreading of the new female Pirate Captain storming the seas. There weren't many of us (female Captains I mean) so it came as no surprise to me or my faithful crew when men thought they could easily overrun and take what was mine.

"What shall we do with him, then?" I called sharply, circling the nearly fallen Captain on my latest run in. There was a long thin whip wrapped tightly arpund his throat, keeping him on the edge of consciousness by constricting just enough air flow to his lungs.

"Feed 'im to the sharks!"
"Send him to Davy Jones!"
"Slit his throat and toss 'im!"

"So many options." I mused, stopping directly in front of the man who mistakenly underestimated my ability. I knelt down and narrowed my eyes, leaning in close to him, watching him squirm away from me. "Gut him, and hang him out to dry. Once he's good and dead cut him loose. What say you?"

A chorus of 'aye's' rang out, and I released the whip as the majority of my men descended upon the poor man.

"Turn this ship around, and we can go home for celebration. We have some stories to tell."

The Banshee sliced through the waves on its way to port. The ocean parted as we sailed into the bay, as it the water itself knew who we were and what we did. Soon enough we had come to a stop, causing me to sigh ever so slightly. The crew loved being on land, but I had always felt most at home on the Banshee. I didn't like leaving her, but sometimes I had to.

In this particular case, I was out of good drink.

While my first mate stayed aboard with some of the crew to watch the Banshee, I and a few of my deck hands went into town to purchase supplies. The order was placed and paid for, thanks to Captain Montegue's generous donation to our cause, and sent out for delivery. I needed a break.

"Head back to the ship and secure the delivery. I'm going to stay in town for a while." Neither of the crew members seemed to keen, but I was the captain and they new better than to second guess me. Once they disappeared, I made way for the closest reputable tavern I could find. I'd drink. I'd eat. Maybe I would find some attractive company for my bed that night.

Revenge was mine, and I was ready to have fun.