"From a dream to a nightmare..." Marc whispered to himself as he struggled yet again, trying to get the ropes binding his arms behind his back to budge and only succeeding in making them dig further into his skin. He stopped trying after another wave of pain rippled through his skull, sure that a bruised welt had already formed upon his head where the ugly pirate had slugged him from behind earlier that day just as he had woken up. The shifting of his boat that morning had been more abrupt than normally and he instantly knew as he woke up with Aliha still cuddled up to him someone had boarded his boat. Moments later as he hurriedly tried to wake up Aliha they burst into his cabin, pirates of all shapes and sizes and as he tried fighting them off something slammed into his head from behind.
He grimaced wondering what had happened to Aliha, the last he had seen of her was her trying to fight off four pirates at once until a rather large wicked looking dark skinned pirate appeared behind her slamming a steel harpoon pole against her head with a sickening impact. Struggling again with anger at the thought of the lovely Scylla in danger, Marc growled as the bonds held fast then jumped a little as light suddenly flooded the darkness around him.
"Oi, Greiger, the lil' whelp is awake!" It was some scrawny, dirty looking pirate who peered into the dark cramped storage space of the boat and a moment after he spoke he was joined by a larger figure. Greiger, he was the same one that had knocked Aliha out Marc thought, recognizing him easily from the creepy wicked gaze coming from those dark eyes and something about him chilled Marc to the bone.
"Well ya are a tough one lad, that's fer sure, but we ain't got time to watch over ya and the girly!" Marc caught a glimpse of two pirates hauling Aliha's body just behind Grieger and he struggled wildly with his legs, his arms bound but his legs still free to move. But Greiger leaned in faster than Marc imagined someone as large as he was could move and the impact of that heavy boot on his face bloodied Marc's nose while at the same time sending him sprawling back to the ground in pain. "Feisty too I see, well you better save that energy 'cause when the cap'n finds out you been messing with his girl you are in fer some rough seas!"
The door slammed shut as the echoes of laughing from above crashed over Marc's ears just as the sound of the rough seas around the boat pressed against its hull loudly. They traveled for what felt like hours and during those hours Marc worked his brain trying to figure some way to escape with Aliha, but eventually he felt the thump of the boat brushing alongside something else as it was probably docking somewhere. Shuffling footsteps and the dull echoes of the pirate's voices were the only things Marc could hear for a long time until finally large heavy set footsteps approached him.
The hatch opened to reveal the ugly grinning mug of Greiger who quickly reached down grabbing at Marc only to receive a swift kick that barely missed his out stretched hand. The same hand that dodged the kick reacted quicker than Marc could have imagined and he felt a steel like grasp upon his ankle making him groan in pain as it squeezed tightly, more than likely bruising the area it grasped. Then with a grunt, Greiger yanked Marc upwards out of the small hold then slammed him onto the open deck of the smaller boat making him yell out in pain. "Ok lil' fella, it's time fer ya ta meet da Cap'n and you better be on yer best behavior!"
"Like hell and what happened to Aliha!?" That outburst earned Marc a stiff punch to his gut nearly making his empty stomach give up what little contents it had and he coughed loudly before Greiger grunted hauling Marc back to his feet. The skies above Marc were colored grey with storm clouds and the distant rumble of thunder still could be heard from the storm they passed through and even more imposing was the massive black ship they were nestled against. It stood taller than any other sailing ship he had ever seen and Marc could see its huge grey colored sails fluttering slightly in the wind as it rocked only slightly even in the rough seas. The next moment though Greiger hauled him to his feet and with a sword pointed into Marc's back pressed him towards the rope ladder leading high upwards to the main deck of the large pirate ship before him.
A few minutes later Marc was pushed down upon the immense black wood main deck of the ship and right before a large group of scurvy looking pirates who immediately parted to the side when an imposing figure began making its way through their midst. Captain Morgan wore clothing colored in a charcoal black, but this wavering fiery red hair shimmered with golden highlights running through it, tempered by the steely ice cold gaze of his powerful eyes. "So... My first mate tells me you are the young rascal who decided to taste of my lost forbidden fruit..."
"You're talking about Aliha... Where the hell is she!?" A hushed silence came over the group of pirates gathered around him, a sign Marc had said the wrong thing and a moment later that proved true as his face was slammed to the deck of the ship by Greiger. A thin slight grin appeared upon Morgan's face and he waved to Greiger indicating to let the boy up and Greiger slowly lifted his foot off the back of Marc's head, unhappy he was not allowed to stop the boy's face into the wood further.
"You are a brave one little boy, but let us see how well your bravery lasts. Greiger, unlock his bonds and hand him a sword..." For a moment Greiger stared back at his captain and a question began to form on his lips, but the moment those icy cool blue eyes pierced his own dark ones Greiger silenced himself. Marc looked around searching for any sign of Aliha even as the tight fitting binds on his wrists were cut free and he looked to them seeing that they were nearly rubbed raw from his struggles. The next second a sword plunges into the deck before him, a rusty old looking blade on it still sharp enough though to easily cut flesh and Marc stares at it for a moment.
"Take it boy and stand up!" The sharp lash of Captain Morgan's tongue whipped Marc of his hesitation and with a grim look of determination he grabbed the sword using it as leverage to stand up on his feet and yanked it free from the deck. It felt strange in his young hands, he was unfamiliar with the ways of a sword having spent his life as a simple fisherman and yet something in his blood tingled. Captain Morgan noticed it too, almost as if he felt it within his own blood, there was something special about this fair haired boy before him, but in the end he was still a mere boy barely worth his attention. "So ya have some spirit in there still, well I commend ya fer that, but it takes more than spirit sometimes to win. Aliha is the key to me ruling all of the seas, nothing more... and I will use her to gain immortality for me and my crew. Then when we are done using her in every way we desire we will throw her away like so much worthless trash..."
