The mud filled streets of Liverpool were nearly rivers tonight. The torrent which dumped sheets of rain upon the town over and over obscured the vision of anyone unlucky enough to be caught up in it. One could barely see to the end of the street. The gods themselves must be on the side of the pirates tonight, it was the perfect weather to conceal them as they all scurried into alleys and back ways, eventually all joining up in The Galley. An unmarked, seedy pirate bar in the basement of a butcher shop. Descending the cold steps into the cellar of stone left one with the feeling as if a ghost had passed through them.
It was remarkably large, in fact. After going through the thick oak door, there was not the roar of a raucous crowd to greet a newcomer. It was dark, windowless, ventless, and candle-lit. Any faces which cared to check who had entered quickly went back to their own hushed conversation, or drink. A small bar just big enough for one man to fit behind was in the far corner, with about four tables between it and the door. Some sailors lined the walls, as if waiting on something to start rather than waiting on a drink. To the far right was what looked to be a separate chamber. Almost like a jail cell with the bars removed, just a small outcropping dug into the wall and covered likewise with cobblestone. It was basically a twenty foot by twenty foot box.
In it, a man sat against the back wall. He was staring blatantly out over the room. Most of the regular attendants of the bar seemed to ignore him. Or was it, that they wished he wasn't there at all? Whatever the case, they didn't dare meet his gaze. The ones against the wall stared back at him, most mean mugging him right back. Though his face was neutral, not angry or threatening. In fact it was handsome. Squarish, young features with a scruffy full beard. His dark curly hair trailed around his face, held back by a red headband. He was shirtless, and muscular. It was clear he had not only fought for a living, but gone out of his way to train his body with exercise beyond that. Long, to boot, perfect for a swordsman.
His black wool sailor's pants were the only article of clothing, he had removed his boots and socks. He was completely unarmed, which made the tension in the air all the stranger what with all the armed men sitting at the tables. Besides the extra, otherwise empty chamber, was a black sailor with a yellow linen shirt and simple pants. He had a bandana wrapped around his balled head. If the white man in the chamber was muscular, this man was a bodybuilder. Each bicep the size of cannonballs, and his torso nearly as wide as the small writing desk he sat behind. After a few more painfully quiet moments, the bartender called across the room.
"ALRIGHT BONE CHIME!!! Get this damn traveling show of your started, and out of my bar. This many outlaws in one place, someone's gonna come looking for someone, and I don't want the trouble. No one else is showing up, anyhow," a few of the sailors at the tables changed a glance in his direction, to see how he might react. In response 'Bone Chime,' got up slowly, stretched, took a deep breath in, and sighed.
"Fine, you impatient old crustacean," the sailor walked to the front of his chamber, and addressed the crowd along the walls, "you all already know why you're here. I'm putting together a crew! Thing is, I don't need most of ya' and most of you are here cuz you can't get picked up by another crew! So we're not taking any freeloaders. Anyone with useful skills like cooking, carpentry, medicine, or navigation come see Ade at his desk. Gonna need a few deckhands probably, but I expect you to hold a sword and look scary when I need you to! As for the raiding crew, I don't want anyone useless watching my back. Form a line here, and you lot will be going toe to toe with me. To the death," Kobe let his last three words hang in the air to make a statement.
"Three at a time, to make it fair. Ade here can cast a blessing over this cell and make it so you can't die. Show 'em, Ade," Ade stepped up off his stool and walked around behind James. James didn't even have to duck down for the giant man to put a hand on his chin and the back of his head. He pulled in opposite directions, causing a sickening series of pops to echo off the stone basement walls. Some of the men gasped despite themselves, one full on screamed and left the room. Another followed him to throw up, and then returned soon after.
By the time he has, James's crumpled body was already turning over like a snake coiling around itself. His neck righted it's position on his body by itself, and light returned to his eyes one after the other. He gasped for air wildly for a moment, and then calmed down. Men started trailing out one by one. Mumbling under their breath 'fucking psycho' and 'not worth a job,' but this was exactly the plan. James needed people who wanted to be in the life, and were as batshit crazy as he was. He couldn't trust anyone who ran away at a reanimation spell. After he saw who might stay, he readdressed the issue.
"Now the spell only works on a limited area, so don't leave this cell unless you're sure you're not in danger! I'll play nice otherwise," some of the men drinking rolled their eyes, apparently thinking this was typical of him to think of an initiation so Ludacris, "bring weapons, bring magic, whatever you got! Oh, and we'll be doing three vs one to make it fair," a truly devilish grin graced his lips this time. His heart rate quickened, and one could tell there was true battle lust in this man. The matches may serve a purpose, but he was going to enjoy them as well.
"Any questions then, before we begin?" James's eyes scanned the crowd. The magic dripping off three of them intrigued him. One was bloody, visceral, and yet refined in some small way. When his eyes met the sense he had his brown furrowed. vampire? he thought to himself. No way any teenage girl would still be sitting in a room of pirates in that dress if she wasn't at least a very powerful witch. Then there was a another woman, young as well but not a child. She seemed followed by death, yet there was a sense of tranquility in her magic. A priestess of funeral rites, perhaps. And then a third, Indian woman who looked like she'd seen plenty of up front combat. He could tell at a glance she was one worth looking at on top of the unique aura she possessed. It reached out into the ether as if looking for something.
It was remarkably large, in fact. After going through the thick oak door, there was not the roar of a raucous crowd to greet a newcomer. It was dark, windowless, ventless, and candle-lit. Any faces which cared to check who had entered quickly went back to their own hushed conversation, or drink. A small bar just big enough for one man to fit behind was in the far corner, with about four tables between it and the door. Some sailors lined the walls, as if waiting on something to start rather than waiting on a drink. To the far right was what looked to be a separate chamber. Almost like a jail cell with the bars removed, just a small outcropping dug into the wall and covered likewise with cobblestone. It was basically a twenty foot by twenty foot box.
In it, a man sat against the back wall. He was staring blatantly out over the room. Most of the regular attendants of the bar seemed to ignore him. Or was it, that they wished he wasn't there at all? Whatever the case, they didn't dare meet his gaze. The ones against the wall stared back at him, most mean mugging him right back. Though his face was neutral, not angry or threatening. In fact it was handsome. Squarish, young features with a scruffy full beard. His dark curly hair trailed around his face, held back by a red headband. He was shirtless, and muscular. It was clear he had not only fought for a living, but gone out of his way to train his body with exercise beyond that. Long, to boot, perfect for a swordsman.
His black wool sailor's pants were the only article of clothing, he had removed his boots and socks. He was completely unarmed, which made the tension in the air all the stranger what with all the armed men sitting at the tables. Besides the extra, otherwise empty chamber, was a black sailor with a yellow linen shirt and simple pants. He had a bandana wrapped around his balled head. If the white man in the chamber was muscular, this man was a bodybuilder. Each bicep the size of cannonballs, and his torso nearly as wide as the small writing desk he sat behind. After a few more painfully quiet moments, the bartender called across the room.
"ALRIGHT BONE CHIME!!! Get this damn traveling show of your started, and out of my bar. This many outlaws in one place, someone's gonna come looking for someone, and I don't want the trouble. No one else is showing up, anyhow," a few of the sailors at the tables changed a glance in his direction, to see how he might react. In response 'Bone Chime,' got up slowly, stretched, took a deep breath in, and sighed.
"Fine, you impatient old crustacean," the sailor walked to the front of his chamber, and addressed the crowd along the walls, "you all already know why you're here. I'm putting together a crew! Thing is, I don't need most of ya' and most of you are here cuz you can't get picked up by another crew! So we're not taking any freeloaders. Anyone with useful skills like cooking, carpentry, medicine, or navigation come see Ade at his desk. Gonna need a few deckhands probably, but I expect you to hold a sword and look scary when I need you to! As for the raiding crew, I don't want anyone useless watching my back. Form a line here, and you lot will be going toe to toe with me. To the death," Kobe let his last three words hang in the air to make a statement.
"Three at a time, to make it fair. Ade here can cast a blessing over this cell and make it so you can't die. Show 'em, Ade," Ade stepped up off his stool and walked around behind James. James didn't even have to duck down for the giant man to put a hand on his chin and the back of his head. He pulled in opposite directions, causing a sickening series of pops to echo off the stone basement walls. Some of the men gasped despite themselves, one full on screamed and left the room. Another followed him to throw up, and then returned soon after.
By the time he has, James's crumpled body was already turning over like a snake coiling around itself. His neck righted it's position on his body by itself, and light returned to his eyes one after the other. He gasped for air wildly for a moment, and then calmed down. Men started trailing out one by one. Mumbling under their breath 'fucking psycho' and 'not worth a job,' but this was exactly the plan. James needed people who wanted to be in the life, and were as batshit crazy as he was. He couldn't trust anyone who ran away at a reanimation spell. After he saw who might stay, he readdressed the issue.
"Now the spell only works on a limited area, so don't leave this cell unless you're sure you're not in danger! I'll play nice otherwise," some of the men drinking rolled their eyes, apparently thinking this was typical of him to think of an initiation so Ludacris, "bring weapons, bring magic, whatever you got! Oh, and we'll be doing three vs one to make it fair," a truly devilish grin graced his lips this time. His heart rate quickened, and one could tell there was true battle lust in this man. The matches may serve a purpose, but he was going to enjoy them as well.
"Any questions then, before we begin?" James's eyes scanned the crowd. The magic dripping off three of them intrigued him. One was bloody, visceral, and yet refined in some small way. When his eyes met the sense he had his brown furrowed. vampire? he thought to himself. No way any teenage girl would still be sitting in a room of pirates in that dress if she wasn't at least a very powerful witch. Then there was a another woman, young as well but not a child. She seemed followed by death, yet there was a sense of tranquility in her magic. A priestess of funeral rites, perhaps. And then a third, Indian woman who looked like she'd seen plenty of up front combat. He could tell at a glance she was one worth looking at on top of the unique aura she possessed. It reached out into the ether as if looking for something.
