» Mon Sep 07, 2009 10:44 pm 4E 24, 22nd Rain's Hand
Somewhere in the Abecean Sea, far south of High Rock.
"Captain, there is an island a few miles off the port bow!" Heem-la, Silasson's first mate, shouted through his door.
"Very well," Silasson replied, and slipped through the door. Heem-la was right. There was a small island, perhaps 2 miles wide sitting amongst the waves. Silasson turned to his men.
"This could be it, men," Silasson yelled. "And ladies." he added, glancing at Rathmi and Aeta, his Dunmer mage and Nord ballista runner, respectively. "Long have we searched for this island, our fathers, and their fathers. Long have we searched for our inheritance, our treasure, our birth right. And we shall take it! No skeletal minion or lich has the right to keep it from us, no matter how much we have betrayed our ancestors! And though betrayal it may be, do we care? Of course not, we are pirates!" The men cheered and shouted, and Silasson drew his saber from its sheath, raising it into the air. At the sight, his men returned to their posts, and Silasson took his place at the helm. In but a few minutes, the ship was docked at a rotten old dock protruding from the beach.
Silasson pointed at Heem-la and his son, Penald. They grabbed a rope from the side of the ship and rappelled down to the sea. Silasson and Penald broke into a briaststroke and moved quickly towards the shore. Heem-la merely kicked his feet slightly and swiftly caught up to them, then overtook them. They arrived at the shore in mere moments, to find Heem-la resting on the sand.
"I see you found your way," Heem-la said in his Argonian rasp.
"Get up, you lazy ne'er-do-well. While your Argonian swimming techniques are impressive, we aren't here for showing off." Silasson grunted. Heem-la jumped to his feet.
"So what exactly are we looking for?" He asked.
Penald pointed to a cave mouth in the side of a cliff. "There," he said pointedly.
The threesome ran towards the cave, Penald arriving there first, being the most athletic of them all. He waited patiently for them to catch up, which did not take very long. "Lead on," he said to his father. Silasson nodded and walked into the cave. The cool walls were covered with a mossy slime. As they continued deeper into the cave, the temperature continued to drop, until they could see their breath. Silasson suddenly ran into a wall of air so cold, he stopped dead in his tracks. A thick mist rose from the ground, and a creaking sound emanated from the gray mass.
"I think we should head back," Heem-la whispered to Silasson.
"Not yet. I want to find out exactly what this is." He replied. His answer came quickly. A bolt of lightning shot out of the mist, striking the Argonian in the chest. He fell backward, and his eyes became glassy.
Penald stared at him with shock, his hand covering his mouth. Silasson grabbed his shoulder and pulled him towards the exit. Coming to his senses, Penald broke free and ran away, out of Silasson's sight. Just as he was about to come out of the cave, he heard an anguished scream. Increasing his pace, Silasson arrived back on the beach to find the mast of his ship sticking out of the sand, and his crew slaughtered, blood soaking into the sand. Penald was kneeling next to Rathmi, his tears splashing on her face. Silasson walked over to his child, his steps slow and methodical. He knelt next to Penald.
"You two? I didn't know." He said in a pained voice.
"She was the only reason I joined your crew. I wanted to join the fighter's guild, remember? But she joined, and then? I knew I had to as well, if I was ever to be with her. And so we were, but now she's gone." He said, tripping up over a few words. Silasson closed his eyes, and rose to his feet.
"I'm sorry, but we need to leave." The captain said, his hand on his son's shoulder. Penald rose to his feet, and walked with his father to the sea. As they reached the shore, spikes of rock rose from the depths of the water, creating a wall around the island. They were trapped.
