[RPG] Fwd: [COL] Tales of Lek and Sennianus: Man Overboard

[Richard Devries]

Sennianus found himself in the cargo of the prison vessel, chained to a rail
along with two dozen other deportees. From the looks of it, he was the only
nobleman amongst a collection of thieves and cutthroats. The stench was
sickening. They had been sailing for two days straight, during which the
prisoners had relieved themselves where they sat. The floor was filled with
urine and excrement, as well as the stomach contents of several men who were
not used to sea travel. Apart from the groans of the sick, and the noise of
the water hitting the hull of the ship, not a sound was made. Sennianus
tried to get some sleep, but the smell kept him wide awake.


Suddenly, the silence was broken by the sound of the cargo hatch opening up.
Two men walked down the stairs. Sennianus was surprised to see their attire.
He recognized one of the men as the captain of the ship, who had received
the gold to transport the prisoners to the Colonies. Back in the ports of
Ikalak, he had worn the uniform of a captain. Now, he was wearing a ragged
shirt and dirty trousers, the dresscode of pirates… The 'captain' approached
the prisoners, eyeing them one by one and whispering something in the ear
ofhis companion. The latter yelled something in a strange language, and a
dozen more men entered the belly of the ship. They had all worn military
uniforms before, but like the 'captain', they now had ragged clothes. It
dawned on Sennianus… these men were not sailors, they were pirates!



The captain squatted before Sennianus. "G'day, laddie… ye look like one of
noble blood, am I right?"



"What's it to you, you filthy pirate?" Sennianus said in a condescending
voice.



The captain smiled, revealing a mouthful of rotten teeth. "A smart one, are
ya? I take it ye have realised the awkward position ye put yerself and yer…
companions in?"



"What do you mean, miscreant?" Sennianus sneered.



"Well… we pirates are not favored by men of yer type, are we? Can't have ye
or yer fellows here reveal our little secret, can we?" the captain said. "I
hope ya learned to swim as a nipper, laddie!" The pirates laughed loudly as
the captain gave them a signal. "Round up the pris'ners, boys. The sharks
around these here waters seem mighty hungry to me!"



The prisoners were taken from their chains, only to be shackled at the
wrists and ankles. The pirates prodded them with their swords to drive them
up the stairs and onto the deck. Sennanus noticed a man tied to the mast, he
had no doubt it was the real captain of the ship… The flag at the top of the
mast no longer had the Ikalakian crest on it, it was now simply a ragged
black cloth. When all were gathered, the captain raised his arms to silence
his crew. "There's been a wee change in plans, lads. Thanks to this here
nobleman, we are not safe no more. The genius knows we're not really
sailors… so we are not going ta dock in Outer Tilog."



Boos and jeers emerged from the crowd. One of the men hurled his tankard at
the prisoners, spattering cheap brandy wine all over Sennianus. Again, the
captain silenced the crew. "Don't worry, lads! Nobleman here saved you some
work, after all. We no longer need ta get them to land safely, and their
posessions don't need ta be delivered anymore. Some nice things too, well,
they're yer things now!"



The pirates cheered. "So, what ta do with our other cargo then ay?" the
captain asked.



"Sell them on the slave markets!" one man yelled. Another shouted "To Davey
Jones' locker with the lot of 'em!"



The captain smiled. "Ah, that's an idea I like! A'right, boys, let's strip
these here pris'ners and send them on their way, shall we?"



Laughing, the pirates advanced on the prisoners and stripped them to their
birthday suits. The first were already being thrown overboard, as the
captain took Sennianus apart. "That's some nice shiny armor you got there,
laddie. That'll fetch us a nice price on the black markets!"



Sennianus spat on the ground. "If you so much as lay another finger on me, I
swear to the gods it will be the last thing you ever do."



The captain grinned, as he extended one finger and touched Sennianus' nose.
"Aye, I suppose yer gods will strike me down with a lighting bolt any second
now, won't they? Hahaha! I like ya, laddie! Lots of spirit in ya! I think
I'll remove yer shackles before I have you take a dive in these here waters.
Maybe yer gods will give ya the strength needed to reach the shores… but
it's a long swim, laddie!"



A minute later, Sennianus was stripped of his armor and clothes. His
shackles were removed, and like the others before him, he was thrown off the
ship into the cold waters. As the ship sailed away towards the horizons,
Sennianus started swimming. All around him, prisoners were fighting to stay
above water, but the weight of their shackles pulled them under. Soon,
Sennianus was all by himself. He looked up and saw some gulls flying towards
the sun. He squinted his eyes, and thought he saw land in the distance. His
only chance. He started swimming towards it, but he was tired... so very
tired.
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