[IC] Crimson Tide (MegaraFoxfire and I)

[Optimist]

Roger nodded. Indeed it was strange. He put his ear to the door, to try and see if he could hear what she was saying. He hoped that it would give him some insight into her tortured soul.

Across the sea, in the French Town of Petit-Grove, as man was boarding a ship. He wore a hooded robe, like a monk, but it was black. His face was scared with a slash across the right side of his mouth. He had three days of beard grow and a wooden leg.

The ship was the privateer sloop Anna Maria. He had one purpose in joining the crew. In fact, the entire crew and ship was dedicated to that purpose also; to hunt down and exterminate the pirate know as Wolfbane.

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane was muttering loudly now, silent tears running down her face. "Take me instead....please leave them alone...,they've done nothing to you it's me you want....no....stop!" She shouted the last part and bolted up in bed, breathing hard as her wild eyes looked around for her foe. But no one was there. She cursed and rubbed her eyes, her hands shaking. "All a nightmare then...reason I don't like sleeping...."

[Optimist]

Roger knocked on the door, and gestured for the maid to move on. "I''ll take care of her. Go about your business." He gently opened the door, and headed in. "Good morning. I hope your feeling better captain. He walked over and sat on the side of the bed. "The fact is, I did not mean to overhear you, but you were talking in your sleep about someone not hurting others, but taking you instead. I am worried about you. Obviously you have been through some sort of trauma and are not dealing with it well.

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane looked at him, trying to decide what to say. HEr whole life had been a trauma. But the last two years had not been very easy...and it haunted her. Plus her curse...things were not going well. She needed to tell someone, and maybe this gentlemen was her way to finally work through it all. She sighed and rubbed her face and said "YEs...I have been through..a few things...somethings I have been trying to run away from...but I guess I can't anymore..."

[Optimist]

Roger listened silently, not wishing to interrupt her, if she was finally going to share with him. As he sat on the bed listening, the baroness came through the doorway, looking as lovely by the light of morning as she had by the light of the evening. Roger realized that he did not even know the baroness's name. He had been introduced to her simply as The Baroness Fairfax. He nodded at her, but did not speak. He hoped that the spell had not been broken and the the captain would still share.

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane looked out the window, her hands shaking. "I had a strong crew...loyal to a fault...all of them searching or running from something...but it was great. It was a hard life but it was worth it. They were wonderful people...they didn't deserve what happened to them..." A couple tears ran down her face as she said "I lost them....it wasn't fair...they didn't stand a chance..." She rubbed her chest, like an old ache was starting up. "Now all that's left is me and my ship..."

[Optimist]

Roger leaned closer and took her hand in his. "Yes, what happened? You can tell us captain. You are amongst friends here." The governess nodded. "It is true."

What ever happened must have been terrible, to kill everyone except for the captain and her ship. He knew that she had been a prisoner of pirates. Where was her ship then? Surely it was lost, stolen, by now. Never the less, he wanted to know. If it was anywhere near Port Royal he could start to investigate these matters more closely.

[MegaraFoxfire]

She paused, getting her nerve before going on. "We were on a normal run...heading off pirates off the coast who had hijacked a navy ship....I'm sure you know that story. We caught up to them and took fire. We knew better then to let the ship go on sailing, unsure who would get it next....then a sudden storm took us....I was at the helm when it hit and I tried to keep her upright but...I lost control and I was hit hard from behind, it all went black. When I came too...." She stopped, closing her eyes as tears streamed down her face. "I was on the deck...and my crew was...was..." She covered her mouth, taking a few deep breathes. "My crew was on the deck...all dead...blood staining the place....I was dazed and I looked down and saw I too was covered in blood. My own. And those of my crew....I don't know what happened....the only reason I was still alive was because of my curse...."

[Optimist]

Roger thought it a horrid thing to have lived through. He knew what he would feel like if he had survived and all the men under his command died. He reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it slightly. "What is this curse you speak of. How could a curse keep you alive?" He waited patiently for her to answer, unsure if she really believed she was cursed or not. He was unsure if he believed in real curses, but the fact that she had survived when all her men had died, was certainly miraculous.

[MegaraFoxfire]

She looked at him then said slowly "if I am wounded in battle...as long as I shed someone else's blood...my wounds will heal. When I fight I feel no pain, no weakness...no fear...not until the fight is over. Then I feel it and if I have killed...my wounds heal. It's a black curse...it's why I'm called...the demon of the shadow strike.."

[Optimist]

"Yes, but what causes the curse? Did a voodoo priestess curse you, or something?" He looked at her with concern. Surely she needed another life, other than that of a pirate. What future could she have with such a curse over her? The baroness stood close by and looked at concerned as he did. Before this, Roger would not have believed in curses, but he had seen her fighting like a demon and had little doubts.

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolf sighed and said "I don't really remember....I guess I've always had it. I thought it was a curse of my ship so I left it and put it in a safe place....then went to the land to see if the curse was gone. But after the battle a few days ago...it's still there. I fear it's apart of me now and I can't stop it....or fight it"

[Optimist]

Roger nodded. "Well what are your plans now Captain? Your with out ship or a crew, stuck in Port Royale." He knew that for the sake of the lives she had saved, the baroness would keep a room for her indefinitely, but surely this was not life for such a woman; to be caged in a mansion.

The baroness sat close by, listening carefully.

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane looked at him and said "to be honest...go back to what I'm good at. Hunting down the scum of the sea...until I find another path. Maybe find a new crew...get my ship back...I don't see what else I could do really..." She rubbed her eyes, flinching slightly

[Optimist]

Roger nodded. He wondered if the baroness would be willing to help her. He did not know how far her gratitude would extend. He turned to her in question. Part of him wanted to accompany this captain on her voyages. He found that he liked her, and he liked her mission. There had not been much which engaged his curiosity or loyalty, since his wife's death, but now he felt alive again.

He turned toward the baroness, not knowing quite what to say, and hoping for the best. The baroness looked thoughtful, but did not speak immediately. Finally she said, "What sort of ship and crew would you need, to recapture your ship?"

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane blinked and after a few minutes said "bare bone crew will do...navigator, cook, weapons master, first mate, medic, bare basics. My ship wouldn't be hard to recover. Any medium sized ship would do to get us there...in the hopes the Shadowstrike is still hidden" she looked at the baroness and asked "why do you ask?"

[Optimist]

The baroness was silent for a moment, and then spoke. "I have a small sloop of my own. It is my personal vessel, for quick runs. Could it get your there and back, in one piece? Do you think you could avoid pirates? It only has ten guns and can't carry much of a crew compliment."

Roger held up a hand for a moment. "I am going too, if you go, and don't try to tell me no. This is the most alive I have felt... for a long time."

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane held up her hands and said "hold on both of you. I can't ask you for anymore then you have already given me. I've already put you at risk enough. I can't ask this of you"

[Optimist]

The baroness shook her head. "I don't think you understand. I hate the scum of the ocean as well. To think about you out on the waves, fighting them, would stir my heart. I have more money than God and little enough of it is spent on decent goals. You must let me do this. As to what Mr. Hawthorne wishes to do, he is a grown man and you can not very well tell him what to do."

[MegaraFoxfire]

Wolfbane sighed then started to get up, holding her wounded side. "I will need to think on the matter...is there somewhere I can walk and think that's out side?" She looked at the pair, her eyes calm and stormy at the same time