A Pirate's Song.

Chapter Eight.

We neared a small port town a few hours later with Caleb manning the ship, completely ignoring me and the fact that I existed. Rebecca was stationed on the bow alongside him, wearing a skimpy coat that barely covered her chest and thighs.

They argued over the map as the Irishman napped on deck, Snaggletooth snapping his teeth at the rest of the crew as an attempt to say something.

I watched him, wondering if he used a specific sequence of snaps to talk like mores code.

“Dock the ship!" Caleb snapped, startling the crew into action. Someone shoved the former second in command who groaned but got up to scale the side of the ship sails, lowering them.

Ben was among them, his arms bare from where he had rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, exposing what looked like a scar on one of his forearms. I watched him move, tightening ropes and shouting to the others until Caleb caught my eyes.

He was staring down at me as Rebecca tried to convince him of something, speaking to a wall. He glanced from me to Ben then turned to address the fiery haired woman, snarling a response as if to get her off his back.

One of the crewman moved to lower the anchor near where I was perched, legs dangling off the side of the ship.

“Where are we?" I asked him, my head turning to take in the view before me of mostly men scurrying about the peer, carrying large crates while a few pirate hats stood out against the crowd. There were other ships in the dock, most looked similar to the one I found myself on, flags of crossbones dancing in the sea breeze.

The man lowered the anchor, causing the ship to jerk. I grabbed hold of the figurehead with one hand to steady myself.

“Welcome to Pirate's Nest, love" he answered, chuckling before he disappeared, leaving me with furrowed brows as I watched the peer. The heavy clanking of feet down steps met my ears and I looked back to see Caleb addressing his crew.

“We sail at dawn!" the men cheered and flung themselves from the side of the ship, some using roped to descend while others preferred to use the water as a net. These men were mad and probably the most maddening of them all was their Captain.

Rebecca appeared at his side, her own boots thudding almost in sync to his.

“You know she wouldn't want this-." she rushed out, moving around him to block his path to the docks. He glared down at her, eyes contemplating whether he wanted to shove her overboard or stuff a piece of rope down her throat so she'd stop talking.

“Think about how she would feel!" she tried again but he remained silent, face set in stone before he moved past her, his shoulder bumping into hers. She stumbled slightly but recovered quickly and hurried after him. His hand gripped the railing of the ship, about to flung himself over when she frantically spoke "Think about Mary!”

His muscles stiffened, body tensing as he froze in place, his eyes staring down at the men moving along the peer. There were a few women but they seemed to be in the market for something other than piracy, their bodies almost completely bare as they brushed up against the men, asking them for money in exchange for a 'good time’

“Get off me ship" Caleb growled in a low tone like a warning to the red head before he leaped from the ship and was gone. I watched him wave through the crowd until I couldn’t see him anymore.

“Damn that stubborn bastard of a Campbell!" Rebecca cursed, stomping her foot against the floorboards. I tore my eyes from the peer to look at her as she stalked her way over to the trap door that lead below deck. She paused for a brief moment, her eyes locking onto mine before she huffed and was gone, the trap door slamming shut behind her.

Ben took a seat beside me, his back towards the peer as he gripped the railing, looking to where Rebecca had disappeared off to.

“You're awfully quiet" he stated, turning to look at me. I looked towards the docks, crates filled with animals, parrots, monkeys, weapons and jewels were being tossed around.

“What is this place?" I found myself asking, hoping that he could give me a better question than the man I had asked before him. He frowned at the peer, his eyes growing hard at the sights around us.

“The Pirate's Nest-." he began, his eyes moving from the people and buildings, bars and brothels to look at me, his brown eyes boring into mine as he slowly continued, taking care not to cause me any panic "It's a place where Pirates come to trade on the black market or to seek information”

The words 'black market' reached me, sticking to me like a threat. My eyes darted down to my bare legs that were currently dry, hiding my scales within the flesh of my human form.

Ben knew what I was thinking and reached for my hand, cupping it with his.

“We'll stay on board the ship, away from the water until Caleb returns" all my doubts about him wanting to turn me in for a profit went flowing away, replaced by a sense of security as I searched his eyes. He knew my secret and despite the gold it may fetch him, he remained silent to protect me.

My eyes landed on his lips that were tugged up into a small, reassuring smile before I quickly looked away and changed the subject "Information?”

His hand slipped away from mine as he leaned further back on the railing, his eyes staring up at the sky where seagulls circled overhead, smoke rising into the blue, grey canvas.

“Of treasures, mythical creatures, old legends" he trailed off, knowing exactly what I had meant. I nodded my head slowly, understanding why we had stopped at the 'Pirate's Nest' in the first place.

Caleb most likely wanted confirmation that I was leading him in the right direction or wanted to find something out regarding the seven treasures.

They were all he cared about, that and the ghost of Mary.

“Well as long as we’re here, we might as well go over what I taught you" he didn't have to elaborate, he didn't need to add the word 'navigation' for me to groan loudly, not wanting to feel such a headache or think as hard ever again.

He pushed off the railing and chuckled, reaching for my arm to lightly tug me onto the deck of the ship. I stumbled down the steps and to the center of the ship where he let go of me to disappear into the Captain's quarters. He came back with my first mate's hat, popping it onto my head before turning to motion towards the bow.

“What course will we sail for next, Captain?" he mockingly said, pretending that I was his Captain. I couldn't help but giggle at the sight of his dramatic movements.

I rolled my shoulders back and raised my head up high as if I were imitating Caleb. I hurried up the steps and over to the map, glancing at the compass that was set there.

“We head South West" I pointed in the direction of the docks which had Ben faking confusion as if he was looking for water.

“Will we be sailing through land then, Captain?" he placed a hand over his eyes to shield them from the sun, narrowing his gaze at the shore as if planning our rout. I shook my head, acting as if I knew exactly what I was talking about.

I turned in that direction when I spoke "First we head South till we round the island" he nodded, moving over to the map to take in the sight of the continents and islands that were scribbled onto it.

When he met my eyes, I could tell that there was a sinister glint hidden behind their depths.

“How far will we be travelin until we reach them treasures, Capin?" he spoke, over exaggerating the pirate accent as if mocking the rest of the crew.

I couldn't help but laugh at how he sounded so ridiculous. The only people on board the ship who could speak proper English were, Ben, Rebecca and myself but I had never heard one of the men speak as poorly as he had in that moment.

I caught myself and headed over to the map, once again playing the part of Captain. I grabbed the metal device that had pointed tips on each end and walked it along the map.

“We be traveling sixty miles South, first mate Ben" my accent made me snicker but he kept a straight face, moving towards the steps of the bow as if he was about to set sail.

“Arg, ai, ai Capin" his added response while he nodded his head was too much for me. I placed a hand over my mouth to stifle my laughter that instantly died down when he paused to look back at me in all seriousness, saying in his usual accent.

“Watching you try to navigate is like watching a fish attempt to fly" I lowered my hand, my mouth hung slightly open at being compared to a fish out of water, spluttering around but not going anywhere.

I moved to shove his shoulder with my hand, barely getting him to stumble as he chuckled at the sight of my pouting bottom lip.

“But the accent wasn't too bad" he continued to which we both shared a laugh. I knew it was terrible, I knew he only wanted to be nice but even I could admit that my impression of a pirate was terrible.

“What kind of pirate say's, Arg?" I teased, never having heard any of the crew use the word prior. Ben grinned at my attempt to taunt him and shot back before I had a chance to speak again.

“What kind of Captain sets course against the current?" I hadn't even considered the current before he had brought it up and I realized my mistake. I placed my palm flat against my face and sighed heavily.

“I'm never going to get the hang of it" Ben laughed at my defeated self, shoulders hung and face hidden in embarrassment. He placed his palm at the base of my back and pressed lightly, steering me in the direction of the steps.

“Looks like we're back to square one" I tried to protest but before I knew it, I was seated in front of a table with maps splayed out across it, books pilling up on one side, a compass in front of me and my hat dangling from a hook on the wall as I listened to Ben go on and on about the currents and how they would change at specific times during the day and year.

I was bored out of my mind but tried my best to listen and understand since I didn't want to steer Caleb in the wrong direction for fear of him making me walk the plank.