Pirates For The Mainland

"Well, well, well," Redstone said. "What do we have here? The rebellious lady of the sea has returned. How goes the pirating?"

"It goes very well, Redstone," Nog replied, doing her best to control her irritation. "How's the mountains of tax money and child labor going?"

"It gets better by the month," Redstone replied with a disgusting smile. "One of these days you should really take my offer seriously and settle down as one of my many wives. You'll be comfortable in the High Town islands."

The thought of being Redstone's wife almost forced vomit into Nog's mouth.

"But I'm sure you're not ready just yet," Redstone said. "You're here because you need a bit of help with something don't you? Ask away. There's nothing I wouldn't help you with. You're my prettiest client and you always pay off what you owe as soon as possible."

"I need two things," Nog said. "Any maps you have of the mainland, no matter how old, and for the navy to leave me alone from now on."

Redstone's pleasant demeanor faded.

"What have you gotten your hands on?" he asked. "This is the tallest order you've placed. I thought you were just going to ask for some upgrades to that old boat of yours."

Nog didn't reply. She simply stood still and stared the fat man down.

"I can inform my puppets to have the navy boys leave you be," Redstone said. "But you've never asked for anything about the mainland before. I know you've been interested in that forsaken land of horrors, but now you're acting with purpose."

Nog still didn't reply.

"If you want me to lend you what I have, you're going to have to answer my question," Redstone said, intently leaning forward on his desk.

"I have something that belong to the Cray," Nog reluctantly answered.

Redstone's eyes widened. He knew that getting through the Cray was the first step to controlling the islands that separated the Red Ocean and the Dead Sea. The nameless islands that formed a protective ring around the mainland was peppered with Cray tribes. The beasts would never let any human venture close to their land but never reach out too far into the Red Ocean themselves. Redstone very much wanted those islands for himself.

"You convince me what you have is important and you'll have whatever you need," Redstone said. "I want those islands missy. There's resources on those little spits of land that would give me a monopoly to last several lifetimes. Can you really hurt the Cray?"

"I can dismantle the Cray," Nog said. "I've been waiting for fortune to smile upon my persistence and it's paid off handsomely."

Nog slowly put her hand into her coat to reach for the Cray key and in response a tall man in a navy uniform appeared from thin air to her right with his sword drawn. His black hair was slicked back, neat and trimmed and his mustache reached out far on either side of his face. He was a silly looking man of no humor and used to be a thorn in Nog's side, now only a dog of he who had the most money.

"Andrews, please," Redstone told the man. "This is a business discussion."

"You can never tell with old slaves of the heretic emperor," the navy man replied. "Their people's lies run deep."

"Put your sword away this instant," Redstone ordered.

Andrews complied and stood where he was without moving, his face as serious and grim as it had always been to Nog. With the dog off her back, the captain revealed the Cray key and placed it on the desk. The ridiculous size of the furniture made it impossible for Redstone to touch it.

"You little devil," Redstone said, rubbing his face in disbelief. "How in the world did you ever get your hands on a Cray key?"

"With two boats worth of crew," Nog answered. "I'll make their sacrifice worth the trouble now that I have it."

"Sacrificing men in order to obtain one's own agenda," Andrews said. "How expected."

Nog gave Andrews an angry glare.

"My crews knew where we were going," she said. "They could have stayed behind if they wanted, but they didn't."

"I hope their foolishness is forgiven by the goddess," Andrews replied.

Redstone stared hard at the key. The gears in his mind were having trouble realizing what great fortune he had.

"Tell me, how does one acquire this treasure?" Redstone questioned.

"It's simple enough to get a hold of a Cray key," Nog explained. "Fight the Cray. Kill a captain. But it requires multiple tries. I'm glad it only took two."

"Explain better than that, heathen," Andrews said.

"Andrews, please!" Redstone yelled. "Leave us, now!"

The navy man continued to stare at Nog as he complied, stepping backward and fading into nothingness like a clearing fog.