The Vengeful Tide Ch. 10

I think the silence was getting to Maeloson because his fingers began moving to his bow that rested on his back. Just to show him that I was also taking the situation as seriously as he thought I should have, I also reached for one of my pistols.

This proved to be unnecessary because the whole bar suddenly exploded in boisterous laughter.

"Hahaahahahaha! Pay up Callamum, this one makes 10! I told you Boreli would get himself into even more debt! The kid would make a great merchant if he could back up about half the shit that comes out of his mouth!" someone cackled as they held out their hand. The person I assume to be Callamum grumbled as he dropped a small pouch of jingling coins into the hand of the one who spoke.

"Damn good for nothing bastard sure makes me lose money like any other merchant. He knows how to run up a tab like no one else I know that much," this...Callamum growled out before he walked out of the bar.

Meanwhile, I turned my attention back to the barkeep. He pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled.

"Sigh, a good guy that one is, but he's about as responsible as a poor bastard is with money. I told him that this was the last time I would cover for him, but no longer. That one needs to find his own way and I have paid the debt to his father as much as I can. Just...go easy on him. He's never lacked for ambition, I'll give him that. He can usually be found around the west side of the city," the man said.

I frowned but there were no words to escape my mouth. Instead, I ushered my mother, Maeloson, and Alteria out of the tavern. I looked to the right and then to the left. Then, I turned towards the east side of the city.

"Eric, he said...,"

"I know what he said, mother," I replied, cutting her off before she could finish her sentence. Yes, I knew where I was going. The thought of it only made me angrier.

"Then why are you...,"

"He lied. He had actually given it away the last time he spoke. He said this was the last time he would cover for his friend. In other words, anything he said would be a lie from that point on. He said West, so the captain goes to the East," Maeloson said.

It was as Maeloson had said. I had been debating whether or not to kill the fucker for lying to me, but I figured that it was more trouble than I cared for at the moment. As it stood, in order to properly gather my revenge, I would need Boreli. I would need my Boreli. I would need the Boreli I had sailed with for so many years.

What joy would there be in shanking a traitorous, conniving, thieving, sea slug that didn't even remember you? Where be my pride as a ruler of the great seas if I gave Boreli such an easy death?

My mind took me to places that I wished it would not. I could see Astell's face as I sank further and further into the cold abyss of death. I remember watching him partake of My Beloved's lips like a hungry predator for a free meal. I remember seeing his cock sliding up and down her leg like a horny dog, all while he mocked me along with the rest of them.

"Eric?" my mother called which jolted me from my thoughts.

She placed a hand on my shoulder, and that was when I heard the familiar sound of the angry skies. I looked up and noticed a storm begin to gather. The sky grew grey and I found myself with my head in my hands.

"Let's just find the bastard before the storm falls tonight," I ordered.

"Aye aye, Captain," My mother and Maeloson said. I'm not sure if I heard Alteria or not, but there be a heavy doubt that I did.

As we entered the eastern part of C'ula, I began to take notice that unlike the port entrance of the city, the eastern side quickly seemed to delve more into weaponry, carpentry, and more products that would make for either a great home or a great warrior.

People still flooded the streets like insects on a hot day, but this part of the city was much easier to navigate. No one paid Maeloson a mind and I saw no hint of the bounty hunters from before. I be sure they lay somewhere, but they have not interfered with me yet. They would also stay alive if they continued that way.

I believed we had been on this little search mission for over an hour at this point. I find it laughable that my mother looked at so many things when she thought I wasn't looking at her.

"Eric, who be Boreli Astell? Is he why you came to this City of Merchants?" my mother asked me.

Ah, I am now remembering that I had not told my crew of my past life and the plans I continued to craft for my former crew. Well, the former crew that...wasn't my crew yet. You best know what I mean!

"He's one of them. As for who he is then you could say he be The Poor Man With Hands of Gold. The bastard loves coin and treasure so much that I wonder if his belly be solid gold since he tries to breathe the stuff whenever he can. Some would even think him to be a Draegnarian born in the wrong part of the sea," I replied.

"And what do you need him for?" Maeloson asked.

I don't really remember the expression on my face at the time, but I must have shaken my mother, Maeloson, and Alteria when I spoke.

"...a coin...and a trout," I answered.

We all fell into silence after that. Luckily for Boreli, I had no way of tracking him as I had nothing familiar to him to trace. So this took some of my time, but I know the bastard well. I say again, but I considered the man like my own brother. I knew him well, almost too well. I also knew the only place he would go in this city to get money quickly. I only hoped my fortune made it so that it was in the same place.

As it turned out, my fortune was still rather good as I spotted a C'ula gambling den. I noticed a shiv dangling in the middle of the air thanks to a red rope. This told me that I had found the right place.

It was nothing grand. The building was about four stories high. The smell of drugs and smoke permeates the air and stings the nose so badly that even I can't hold it in. I imagine it is much worse for Maeloson.

It's also not good for my mother since she be in her final stages of recovery. I'd rather that not regress now, but the products I had received from Liara were only the highest grade. I would need to put my faith in them.

"Let's get this over with," I said.

I stepped forward and opened the door.

"HA! HAR! The Goddess Tyche be upon me this day! 500 scrads all for me! I be the King of the Drunken Cards!" I heard someone yell while others grumbled and women swooned.

I watched men and women gamble their very futures away at tables filled with all manner of drink, coin, and cards. Others led their partners away to the upper floors for a day and night of duo singing.

In any case, I began looking through the crowds. I spotted neither hide nor hair of Boreli. I had known this to be one of his favorite dens to visit. Then again, if I know that piece of shit as well as I think I do, then...

I ignored the dens full of men and made my way towards the very back of the building. The lights grew dimmer and so did the smoke. I was tempted to send my mother and Maeloson back since the elf crashed into her at least once during our walk.

Luckily, there came a separate door guided by two large men. They asked no questions and gave us no acknowledgment. They just opened the door and allowed us to pass through.

Once we were inside, it did not take me long to find Boreli. It was obvious that this room catered to the more dangerous, and desperate individuals. I saw cowering men in tears as they where forced to place guns to their heads and pray for the click of an empty chamber in the hopes of winning a bet to pay off whatever debts they have accumulated.

I see a woman tied to a spinning wheel as other patrons make sport of her with blades and daggers. Her eyes are blindfolded and her mouth is gagged. The occasional thud of blade sinking into wood drums into my ears.

"Despicable," I heard Alteria mutter to herself. I don't reply. I am sure Maeloson would like to say something about all of this, but whether by his hesitance or the smoke in his lungs, he did not speak.

I had no fear of what my mother might thing. She was a former pirate. No doubt she has seen and done worse in her lifetime. I know I had. Whether the people I did it to deserved it or not was up for thought, but they were in my way and that was enough for me.

Anyway, I noticed Boreli. I could never mistake that black head of hair, forehead wound, and face that only a liar can wield. He was strapped to a chair, one hand forcefully stuck to a table while the other laid chained to its legs.

"Heh...heh...heh, come on guys! I've won about a million gold coins by now. Surely that's enough to rid me of my debt! I need these hands to work!" Astell exclaimed, nervously laughing as he did so.

THUD!

Just like with the wheel and daggers from before, I heard a sharp knife stab into Boreli's table...right between his thumb and forefinger. The knife was then drawn up and stabbed between his forefinger and middle finger. It then began its travel back and forth as fast as it could just waiting to sink into his skin.

There isn't much I have to fear from this since, when I had met him, Boreli had all of his fingers at the time he robbed me. So I assume he paid off whatever debt he had accrued to his debtors. Of course, I can't lie. Watching him squirm did place a smile upon me face.

"When we get close enough, Maeloson, cut him free. Lady Knight, prepare your blade just in case. Mother, grab your pistol, we're gonna blast out these lights," I told her.

The three agreed though I did chuckle when I saw Lady Knight glare at me for her name.

I cleared my throat.

"And look at what we have here, a rat trying to keep from being cut cheese. Should I join the line of how much you coin you owe, Boreli?" I asked which made the table give pause to look at me. Even Astell turned around to view me and nothing angered me more than that stupid, bewildered look on his face. How I kept that anger beneath me surprised even me.

Before Boreli could even question who I was, his patrons already started laughing. "GEHAHAHAHA! Another one, Astell? You rack up more men than a brothel's prostitute! Looks like it'll be another fifty rounds before ye leave this room!" someone else said.

Boreli laughed, but I could feel the unease seeping into his voice. He turned to look me over and then his eyes, of course, had to linger on the females I had come with.

"Well, I suppose a man such as I am always bound to have debt, but I wouldn't mind being in debt to two beautiful jewels of the sea," he said.

As much as I didn't appreciate the comment, I don't think my mother was any better. She took her gun from her holster and stabbed the barrel of it against Astell's skin.

"Keep the chattering and the only jewels of the sea ye shall be viewing be your own," she growled, her hand on the trigger for emphasis. Unfortunately for my mother, I know how Boreli can handle shit like threats.

"Only if you promise to do it, fair lady," he replied.

It be about this time that I am reminded of just how much I love and adore me own mother. She grabbed the back of Astell's head and slammed it against the table...twice. The second came harder than the first. Her actions caused an eruption of laughter among Boreli's patrons and me.

Once she released him, I spoke. "Seas, I never thought I'd love to see you fuck someone up so much," I whispered to her. She then kissed my cheek which surprised me a bit since my mother was not known for outward, or inward, displays of affection until recently.

"Then I'll fuck up more people for you, Eric," she answered.

As much as the thought ran through me to see her do that, it could not be now.

Instead, I focused on the laughter of the men around Boreli as he painfully clutched his bleeding nose.

"Yahahahaahar, good on ya, Lass. Apologies, but ye will be waitin' for a good little while. This man's got a lost list of debts to be paid and we only be in the middle of paying mine off," someone said.

My lips curved upwards.

"Aye, but...I ain't got that kind of time," I replied.

Before anyone could figure out what I meant, my mother and I pointed our pistols at the dimly lit ceiling lights. Then, we fired!

The lights went out and chaos erupted through the room. People began crashing into one another as screams of pain from whatever game some had been playing rushed through my ears.

Scanning my mind through Liara's memories for a spell that would help me, it was not long before I spoke the tongue that she would have if she were here.

"Faeg Ghaf Hai Lmir," I uttered.

A wave of magic covered my eyes and the darkness became clear to me. I watched people tumbled over one another like an avalanche of colliding flesh, furniture, and blood from sharp objects. I then casted the spell for my three companions.

While Maeloson began freeing Boreli, my mother, Alteria, and I began brawling with anyone who dared come within our immediate vicinity. Aye, it reminds of the many barfights I had been in during my previous voyages. The rush of adrenaline through my body, the force of my fist against someone's face, and the harsh thumps of my chest drove me wild.

Have I also mentioned that the sight of my mother nailing a bastard in his crown jewels got me harder than a steel blade? I believe that be worth a valuable mention.

Anyway, whether by the time my mother threw someone over her arm and into the crowd of raving men and women or by the time Alteria struck a man beneath his chin, Maeloson had freed Boreli. I grabbed the pain in the ass and held him over my shoulders and neck. The fucker was not exactly light either.

We charged for the door and Maeloson kicked it open before he tossed out two smoke pellets. The smoke stung like hot onions and stunk like rotten eggs. The guards covered their eyes and the noses while we charged through.

"Mother, fire into the crowd. They're gonna mask our escape," I ordered.

"Aye Aye, Captain!" She said, and for the first time, I thought I saw that smile on her face that all pirates wear when the thrill of adventure and the glamour of glory strikes like lightning upon their faces. Her eyes glow like hot fire, sweat pours down her forehead, she be dirty from the brawl and the dust, and her body be so full of life that it was like disease had not once stained her body. I think I had seen just a glimpse of the pirate my mother used to be.

We all entered the main hall and my mother jumped on top of a gambling table.

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

"Clear your asses outta here before I put more holes in your bums than a cannon fodder battleship! Get moving!" She yelled as she then pointed both her pistols to the ground and emptied her rounds into the luxurious carpets of the gaming house.

Needless to say, but people began charging out of the building like raging bulls. We hid within the chaos amongst them and entered the streets.

"Back to the ship!" I told them. The three agreed and we ran as fast as we could. In order to make sure that we weren't seen by anyone that might be able to give me a headache with the C'ula authorities, we took some of the complex routes that I still knew off the top of my head.

Fortune must have been with me again because the docks be empty. In no time we were back on my ship with some of my crew quickly welcoming me and the others back.

I grumbled before I dropped Boreli down with a large thud that made him groan in pain. He opened his eyes and began to survey his surroundings. His scraggly hair shook with each turn of his head.

"Ugh my head. I don't remember getting rocked that hard in a long while. Why'd ya save me? Did I charm the fair ladies?" he asked. I did not respond.

Boreli chuckled nervously before he slowly started to stand on his feet. "Look here, mate. If you wish to rob me or kidnap me for ransom then there be no bother. Truth be told, I might have been on me way to the Great Gates of Vanol had you not interfered. I'm sure I've never done business with you before nor have I bedded anyone here, though I'd definitely like to," he said, his eyes glanced at my mother.

I was still strangely silent. Yet, I could not mistake the growing flames of anger within me. I could not mistake the feeling of my hands clenching and my gaze hardening. Just...just...looking upon his face once again made me tremble with anger.

Astell clapped his hands.

"Aye, a man of few words, and a crew of few brains. I got ya. Well, thanks for the save, I'll be sure to give ya a discount should there be business between us down the...,"

I cocked my fist back and, as hard as I could, I strike Boreli across the side of his face which sent him crashing down to the floor. My crew stopped working to observe as he spat out a glob of blood onto the main deck.

"Heh...heh...haha...I take this to be meaning that there be no discounts?" he asked.

I spoke.

"Aye, we shall be doing business...," I reared back my boot and kicked him with all my strength. His head whipped back and he fell on my deck unconscious.

"...whether ye like it or not. Send him to the brig with the Xhaluter. Tell me when he wakes up," I said.

I spoke further to no one else. Instead, I walked towards my cabin and closed my door. From the outside, I could hear my mother barking orders to the rest of the crew while Boreli was no doubt being dragged away down to the holding room.

I then walked to my desk and pulled out my journal. Amongst the long list of names I had added to it, I finally crossed one of them off my list. An angry sigh escaped my lips as I took a pitcher of water into my hand and drank its contents before I tossed it to the floor with a resounding thud.

Once that was done, I took off my clothes. They stunk of smoke, alcohol, and whatever drugs were filling the rooms at the time. Of course, it didn't bother me, but...I would assume it would bother anyone else to enter my chamber.

That being the case, I opened my windows and started a tedious trek of taking my clothes to be washed. Once again, I find my thanks to Liara for providing the crew with the materials to afford cleaner attire.

As soon as I dropped those off, I wasted no time in making my way to Liara's quarters. I knocked on the door and she granted me entrance. I stepped inside and our eyes met. In that usual mystifying way that she seems to know what I'm thinking, she began to prepare me a bath while I dropped a coin into her little tray.

Neither of us spoke words to each other as I undressed myself and slid into the hot, soothing waters of the round wooden tub. I thoroughly washed my body and, not that I should have been surprised, Liara took a seat next to me with another tome of magic from her collection.

I busied myself with some practice of my bathwater by swirling it around in the air in the hopes of distracting myself. I suppose my spirit be a bit melancholy if I would define it such. No, I hold no regret for my actions. I be no fool. I know full well the path I walk and I have walked it before.

"Tell me Liara, have you ever entertained the notions of revenge?" I asked. I splashed some water on my face while I heard her turn the pages of her book.

"Where does revenge lead the soul when all its grievances have passed? Should there be mortal being upon this earth that is worth my focus for vengeance?" she returned to me.

I smiled to myself. Of course, who but the gods and demons could be an enemy of the witch?

"Not even I?"

I noticed that she did not respond immediately.

"...Almost any mortal," she corrected, a touch of a smile across her face as she kept her focus on her book.

I don't know what about her had calmed whatever troubled my mind, but I know that I felt a lot more at ease with myself. I shifted my body until my back was rested right next to where she sat. I lifted my finger and slowly trained her open skin. Seas, just a touch of her body made my hands burn like white fires that fueled my lust.