by Ryan Gilbert
Before long, the footprints arrived at a crossroad, on the other side of which sat the front gates of a large mansion. The footprints led straight to it. Even from far away, Riggs could see the soldiers standing beside the large, metal structures. To his surprise, the gate was wide open, almost like it was encouraging the pirates to come inside. Pulling out his pistol, Riggs hid in the shadows, the rest of the crew following their captain’s lead.
Sneaking forward, Riggs cocked his pistol, ready to shoot if the guards noticed any of the pirates. Each step had to be as silent as possible. He could not even break a…
*snap*
From behind him, a fallen tree branch broke under Valera’s foot. The whole group dropped to the ground, trying not to be seen by the guards. The sound was louder than they could have expected, sure to alert someone to their presence.
The guards did not react at all. Riggs did not even see a flinch.
Something was not right.
Fumbling around on the ground for something, Riggs’ fingers ran across a rock. He snatched it in his fist and tossed it in front of the soldiers, hoping to draw some sort of reaction. It hit the ground directly in front of the two redcoats.
There was still no response.
“No… no, this can’t be happenin’,” Riggs muttered to himself as he hurried toward the gate.
Still nothing.
“Not twice in one night.”
As he reached one of the soldiers, the Captain shoved the man back. Once the guard hit the wall, his head rolled off his shoulders, exposing the Arch Pirate’s handiwork. Both guards were nothing but bloody, decapitated corpses. Riggs’ head jerked toward the mansion, now noticing the front doors hanging open.
Without hesitation, he ripped his sword from his scabbard and shouted, “Every!”
Riggs tried to run into the mansion, but Coral Jack caught up to him, just barely keeping up. He grabbed his friend’s arm, trying to stop him.
“Captain, wait! We’ve got to…”
CRASH
All of the windows on the second floor of the mansion exploded outwards. The pirates could hear a gruesome sound coming from inside. It sounded like a mighty wind whirling throughout the halls. Within seconds, a large gust of wind tore apart a section of the building, a flurry tearing through the roof.
The crew rushed toward the open doors of the mansion as bits of the building rained down on the grass. A large pane of glass nearly sliced through Eli’s arm, but he ducked away just in time. Bits of wood cracked across Riggs’ back, but he fought through the pain to reach the door.
Once inside, the crew could see a trail of blood and mud leading up the stairs of the mansion. Several bodies lay on the stairwell, still clothed in their servant garb.
Henry Every was there.
“Let’s send the King o’ Pirates back to the Locker, mates,” Riggs yelled over the wind.
His adrenaline pumping, the Captain ran up the stairs, the harsh wind still plowing against his face. With each step, it became harder and harder to press forward. It even reached a point where Riggs could not hear his own crewmates yelling from behind him. Keeping his hand firmly planted on the wall, the pirate captain slowly made his way down the hall, straight toward the source of the wind.
All of a sudden, Riggs felt the wind change direction, knocking him off his feet. He slid down the hallway, pushed by the wind. Before he even knew where he was going, his feet smacked against the bottom of two doors, spilling him into a room.
And then the wind stopped.
“Claudatis!”
The doors swung shut behind Riggs. A golden glow covered the locks as the Captain fumbled for his sword. In moments, he could hear the frantic pounding of his friends’ fists on the doors.
“Welcome, Captain Riggs. What a pleasant surprise.”
Riggs turned around, instantly grabbed by two of Every’s skeletal crew. Their bony hands dug into his arms, hauling him to his feet. In front of him stood Every, but he looked different. He was no longer just a skeleton, but a skeleton with organs resting inside the meager protection of his ribcage. At the dead pirate’s side sat an unconscious man slouched in an armchair. Blood dripped down his arm and into a wine glass from a nasty gash in his forearm.
“Bring him here,” Every ordered.
The two skeletons dragged Riggs closer to Every. The Captain tried to fight the dead crewmembers, but he could not escape. Their grip was too strong.
“It is a pleasure to see you again, Captain. I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced,” said Every.
“I already know who you are. You’re Henry Every, the so-called King of Pirates.”
“I AM the King of Pirates, among other things,” said Every, a tone of disappointment in his voice as he picked up the glass of blood from the ground.
Leaning over the unconscious man, he said, “Governor Markham, I thank you for your assistance… however unwilling it may have been.”
Before the dead pirate could lift the glass to his mouth, Riggs growled, “If yer goin’ to kill me, then give me a fightin’ chance, ye bastard.”
The glass stopped midway to Every’s mouth. Even with a lack of skin, Riggs could tell that the skeleton was surprised. He let out a laugh, his bony arms clutching at his ribs.
“Captain, I would enjoy beating you within an inch of your life…”
Gesturing down at his abdomen, Every chuckled, “… but as you can see, I’m not quite myself yet.”
Riggs started to speak, but one of the skeleton crewmates cracked his knuckles across the pirate’s face, silencing him for the time being. He could only watch as Every raised the glass of blood to him, cheering him like some sort of macabre toast.
Gazing to the heavens, Every raised the cup and shouted, “Sanguine hoc deinceps induxero regenerationis meae. Da mihi potestatem!”
Without waiting a moment more, Every tipped the cup of blood into his mouth, letting the blood of his fellow conspirator fall down his throat. With each gulp, a glowing light in between his bones and organs grew brighter. Riggs could see new tissue forming over Every’s skeletal remains. The Arch Pirate dropped the glass from his hand, shattering it into tiny pieces on the floor. Every shook as the muscle tissue whipped across his bones, cartilage reconnecting after years of decay. As Riggs and the skeleton crew watched, Henry Every finally began to take a somewhat human form. The glowing light grew brighter than ever before, nearly blinding everyone in the room.
fwwwWWWWWKKSSssssssshh
Abruptly, the light disappeared, enveloped by Every. Now standing in front of Riggs was a new, skinless creature. Every’s body was solely covered with muscle tissue, finally hiding the bones of his skeleton. He knelt on the ground, trying to regain his breath.
Sensing that the skeleton crew was distracted, Riggs tried to pull away, but he grossly underestimated their strength. They both grabbed him by the throat, plowing him into the ground.
“Cap’n, what do ye want us to do wit’ ‘im?” one asked.
In between labored breaths, Every said, “Captain Riggs is coming with us. I have some plans for him.”
CRACK *thud*
Everyone’s attention turned toward the doors as they burst open. Riggs’ crew, with Jones leading the way, rushed into the room. Somehow, they had managed to break through Every’s magical seal.
Coral Jack lunged at the two skeletons, swinging his sword like a crazy man. The blade cut through one of the arms holding Riggs, freeing the Captain. With his arm freed, he launched a punch right into the jaw of his other captor. Behind him, Valera leapt over Jack’s shoulder, tackling the skeleton to the ground. Ripping his severed arm off of Riggs’ coat, she bashed it into the skeleton’s face, breaking through his eye socket. Eli traded blows with another skeleton, presumably that of Every’s first mate.
As Riggs tangled with his other captor, he saw Jones and Every circling each other. The intensity between them was palpable.
“So… we meet again, Jones. How does it feel to
be seeing me once again… and so soon for that matter?”
BANG BANG
Several flashes of light lit up the room as Thomas opened fire on Every. He dashed forward, slashing his sword through the air. With blinding speed, Every caught the blade in his hand. A purple glow surrounded his hand as he pulled magic from his crown to defend himself. The sharp blade did nothing to him.
He felt nothing.
Jones yanked the sword out of Every’s grip and tried to swing again, but the King of Pirates lurched forward and caught him by the neck. Before Thomas could fight back, Every tossed him through a desk, splintering the wood underneath him.
Kicking Thomas in the gut, Every mocked him, saying, “You are nothing without your hunters. I am the one in control now.”
“We’ll have to see about that,” coughed Jones, pushing back against Every’s foot.
Once the malformed pirate leaned over Thomas to gloat, Riggs seized his chance. Leaping onto Every’s back, the Captain dragged him to the ground with his arms locked around his enemy’s neck. Every clawed at Riggs, but the pirate just tightened his hold.
*click*
The second that he heard the click of a hammer being pulled back, Riggs ripped his arms apart, snapping Every’s neck. He could hear the tendons snap from the tension as the body fell to the ground.
For a couple moments, everything in the room stopped. The individual fights ceased as the two crews laid eyes on Henry Every, lying on the floor in a heap of muscle tissue and ragged clothes. Everyone was speechless.
Except for Jones.
“Riggs, get away from him,” he said, tugging at his captain’s coat.
Riggs simply shrugged him off, planting his boot on Every’s motionless shoulder.
“There ain’t nothin’ to worry about anymore, Jones. We’ve done it. We killed Henry Every.”
Directing his attention to the skeleton crew, Riggs ordered, “Alright now, ye dirty rats. Surrender or prepare to follow yer captain to the…”
BANG
A lead ball whizzed past Riggs’ ear, shocking him. Underneath him, Every shifted, knocking his supposed conqueror off balance. The legendary pirate flailed his legs around, punting Riggs in the head. As he forced the Captain to scoot away, Every stood up, his head still cranked halfway around his neck. With his hands latched on to where his ears would have been, Every forced his head back to normal, cracking his neck in the process.
“You’re going to need to do more than that to end my reign, Captain. I doubt that either of you could kill me,” he said, jeering at both Riggs and Jones.
He calmly pulled a pistol out of the folds of his coat and leveled it at Riggs’ head.
His hand resting on the hilt of his sword, Riggs prepared to attack, saying, “I’m certainly willin’ to try.”
As Riggs leapt to his feet to try to attack Every, a thick fog clouded his vision. It whirled around him, blocking out the light, even the piercing gaze of Every’s glowing eyes. Even though he could not see his enemy, Riggs knew he had to make the most of this chance.
He slashed his sword through the fog, sinking the blade into something strong.
The fog began to clear, a familiar sound gradually filling the air. Hoping to celebrate his triumph, Riggs looked down to see what he had stabbed.
It was a longboat.
A longboat covered in bits of trees and a bunch of flotsam.
Riggs… Jones… the rest of the crew… they were all back at the beach.
Mouth agape, Riggs surveyed the area around him. He was confused. He was angry. What had happened?
No one had any idea. Looking around at his friends, Riggs could tell that they were all just as confused as he was. Their pistols and swords were still in their hands as they were unsure of what to do. His frustration with Every had reached its boiling point. No matter how close he seemed to be, he could never kill the pirate.
“Damn it to Hell,” Riggs shouted, kicking the sand.
Laying a hand on his captain’s shoulder, Jones tried to calm him, saying, “Take it easy, Riggs. Ye had no control over what happened.”
“You’re bloody right, I didn’t. I was ready to take off his head, and then he whisks us all back ‘ere like the coward that he is.”
“Captain, if there’s anything I know, it’s that Henry Every is not a coward.”
“Then how do ye explain what just happened?” spat Riggs.
Thomas opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. He had a concerned look in his eyes, like he wanted to say something, but could not.
“I don’t know, Captain.”
With an aggravated huff, Riggs looked out over the sea. The sun was just starting to rise above the horizon, bringing an end to a disgraceful night for the pirates. Riggs had failed to get any information out of Dawson, the one person that they had come to Delaware to find, and it had resulted in his gruesome death. To add even more despair to the situation, Every just seemed to be growing stronger, enacting some sort of ritual to restore himself.
They could not defeat him.
Riggs had tried everything that he could up to this point, and it had done nothing.
As Thomas left Riggs to go check on the rest of the crew, the Captain sat down in front of the longboat, resting his back against the wood. He could feel a familiar presence next to him as he hung his head in shame.
“I do enjoy watching ye weep, Riggs.”
Garrett sat next to his former captain with a smile on his face. His shiny hook rested casually on his knee as he chuckled at Riggs’ misfortune.
“Every single time ye lose just brings ye one step closer to being like me,” said the dead crewmate.
“I’m not becomin’ like you,” Riggs muttered, not meeting the horrific gaze of his hallucination.
“Keep telling yerself that. Both you and I know that your continued failure will break you.”
Looking over at Jones, the hook-handed pirate continued, “I know that ye see ‘im as me, and don’t try to pretend that ye don’t. He’s a sly fella… and he’s got secrets.”
“Don’t remind me,” said Riggs, “I already know.”
“Oh, ye do? Is that why you didn’t kill ‘im when ye had the chance?”
“I didn’t kill Thomas because he’s actually helpin’ us… unlike you when you were keepin’ secrets,” Riggs hissed under his breath.
“Yes, but when the time comes, will you be ready?”
“Ready for what?”
“Ready to blow his brains out.”
Trying to shut Garrett out of his head, Riggs stood up, ready to leave Delaware.
“I think it’s about time we leave, mates,” he said, calling the rest of the crew over to his side.
“But Captain, what about Every?” asked Coral Jack.
“We need to find where he’s goin’ to strike next. We’ll regroup on the Sky.”
As his still-confused crewmembers prepared the longboat for the trip back to the ship, the Captain heard Garrett whisper one more thing before fading back into his mind.
“Keep telling yerself that ye’ll be ready. You won’t be…”
Climbing back aboard the Red Sky, Riggs and his search party were welcomed by Clint and Sapphire. The rest of the crew was busy preparing for the ship to sail.
“Where’s Ripper?” asked Riggs, curious as to why his master gunner was not there to greet his friends.
“He figured that with Every on the loose, he’d better have the cannons fully stocked,” said Clint.
“Aye, that be a good idea,” said Riggs, nodding his head.
Sensing a lack of enthusiasm in his captain’s voice, Clint asked, “There something wrong, Riggs?”
The scowl on Riggs’ face said it all.
“Wrong, Clint? Wrong? What’s gone right on this voyage? I got no information out of Joseph Dawson before Every killed ‘im. That monster could’ve killed us all, and he made me look like a fool. Care to tell me what’s right about that?”
Grabbing his cap
tain by the arms, Clint forced Riggs to face him.
“Captain, just be glad that ye got out o’ there alive. We’ve still got time to destroy Every.”
“And with each second, he just grows more powerful,” said Riggs.
Resting his arms on the rail of the ship, he sighed. The Arch Pirate was immensely more powerful than he was. Every had years to learn how to control his magic, making him a nearly unstoppable force.
“I don’t think I can kill him, Clint,” said Riggs, “I really don’t.”
Before the navigator could say anything, Sapphire leaned up against Riggs. To his surprise, she still had a cheerful smile on her face.
“Don’t worry, Captain. We all believe in you,” she said.
She quickly wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him, trying to reassure him. Unfortunately, it was not working. Gently taking hold of the fairy’s shoulders, Riggs eased her away from him.
“I’m sorry, Saph. It’s not that easy.”
“How come? Is it because we need to ask for… AAAAAUUUUGH!”
Sapphire threw her head back, screaming like something was piercing her skull. Clint and Riggs immediately tried to help, but the tiny fairy snatched them by the wrists and flipped them onto the ground. A green light shot out of her eyes as Riggs once again tried to help her. Before he could reach her side, a shockwave of green energy blasted out of her body, knocking the Captain to the deck. As his eyes refocused, he could see Sapphire standing there calmly, her eyes glowing green.
Crawling to his feet, Riggs asked, “Sapphire, are ye alright?”
The fairy’s head jerked toward him, her eyes focusing on him.
In a raspy, echoing voice, she said, “I am not Sapphire.”
Riggs could feel his hand itching to grab his sword, but he kept himself under control.
“If you’re not Sapphire, then who are you?” he asked as the confused and shocked crew watched.
“My name is Wynona Alystor, Captain Riggs. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”
“What have ye done to my crewmate?” asked Riggs, his hand inches from his pistol.
The fairy laughed, saying, “I merely possessed her… temporarily.”
