“Make sure you have the barrels secure! Cris, let’s go!” Ziggly rushed off and on the ship, making sure that all the arrangements were set before the crew set out on their midnight excursion off Jaguero Isle. Cris walked out of the hut with a bag over his shoulder and holding Tia’Zula’s hand. Two torches burned brightly outside the hut and two more near the shore as the flames cast their shadows on the ground.
“Joo be sure joo dun get kill’d again, ja?”
“Yes ma’am.” Cris smiled and hugged her tightly. “I will keep in touch with you.”
“Joo bettah.”
“You should have sent that little goblin girl to help us!” Ziggly chuckled as he walked off the ship and grabbed his bag. Tia simply smiled and pushed Cris in the direction of the ship. “Not that I would do anything to her, Tia. She’s just too sweet, ya know?”
The troll nodded, still smiling. “Ja, I know. But she not ‘ere anymore, Ziggly. She ‘ad to go.” Ziggly shook his head and boarded the ship. “They all ‘ave ta go.” Cris couldn’t help but turn back only to see Tia’s gray eyes fixated on him. For a moment, he simply looked at her curiously, but as the flames danced wickedly upon her gaze, he realized where the female goblin had gone. His eyes widened and he touched the fetish on the center of his neck. He quickly looked at Tia and she lifted one blue finger, carefully mouthing the word “week.” A crooked smile slowly spread across her face, a cold and wicked mask accentuated by her tusks.
Dazed, Cris continued on to the ship and everyone soon began to prepare, lifting the anchor and setting sail. He waved at Tia and ran toward the bow of the ship, jumping onto the edge and grabbing hold of the sail’s rope. He waved at Tia and soon the ship began to move. He chuckled as his wolf Misae gave a long howling goodbye to Tia.
Once they had set sail, Cris jumped onto the deck and the men and women gathered around him, their faces showing respect and anticipation. It had been two weeks since they last heard their captain speak. “Men,” he smirked at the women, but they simply stared at him, “today we return victorious.” They all cheered and Misae barked. “I’m sure there are plenty of sea jackals out there who have sought the Sly Whore and wished to make her their own, but when we get to Booty Bay, it will be very clear that the Sly Whore…” He chuckled and narrowed his eyes slightly, his voice in a menacing growl, “…is mine.” Once more the crew cheered and laughed at the obvious pun the captain had made. “Make this a smooth ride. I’m still not one hundred percent well and the last thing I want is to feel sick because some asshole decided it would be fun to start tilting the ship!” He glared at one of his men, who immediately looked down. “Well? Get to work!”
“A chorus of “Ay, captain” simultaneously rang out and the crew scattered back to their posts.
“Changed the name, eh?” Ziggly grinned. Cris nodded and smiled. “Good. The Dark Rose was sounding pathetic. I like The Whore.”
Cris chuckled and patted Ziggly’s head as he headed toward his cabin. “We need to talk Zig.” Ziggly looked up at Cris and followed him, closing and locking the door behind him. Cris glanced at his cabin and immediately began looking vigorously through his drawers and in wooden boxes.
“What’s up, Wolf?”
“There’s…something I need to tell you.” Cris’ attention wasn’t fully on Ziggly as he spoke. “Where the fel is it?”
“Where is what?”
“My flute.”
Ziggly reached into his deep pocket and pulled out the wooden flute. Cris smiled and walked over to Ziggly. “I knew you’d be asking for that thing.”
“I appreciate it, man.” Cris held the wooden flute in his hand, looking at it, almost as if he were inspecting it to make sure it was still in good condition. “So, did Tia tell you anything about me?”
Ziggly cradled himself in the seat, lifting his feet on the armrests. “No. Should she have?”
“Well…” Cris walked behind his desk and sat on his red velvet chair, propping his boots onto the wooden surface. “You know that in this life we can’t take without giving back.”
“Ay.”
Cris nodded, his fingers moving the still delicate shark tooth piercing in the middle of his neck. “I paid a heavy price.” Ziggly stared at him, his razor sharp smile slightly fading. “I’m telling you this because I trust you. You’re a brother to me, Zig, but this does not leave the cabin. If anyone else were to know about this, it could mean death for me.” His sea-green eyes glared up at him, “Not even The Captain.”
Ziggly quickly sat up and leaned forward. “Well, speak up, man!”
“I have to collect souls, to repay the spirits that brought me back and healed me.”
“You ain’t no warlock!”
“What’s what I said, but there are other ways, Zig.” Cris sighed. He knew that the task was going to be the most excruciating thing he would ever have to do, but he wanted to live. “I need to kill to gather souls, Zig.”
Ziggly smirked. “You? Kill? We’re going to need a new captain, soon, eh?”
Cris rolled his eyes and reached for the nearest object, a small black telescope, and threw it at Ziggly, who laughed and covered his face with his hands only to catch it. “I’m trying to be serious here, Zig. I need to kill to live.”
“Alright, alright. That’s not a big deal. We’ve all killed before.”
“You have.” Cris placed his hand over his eyes and sighed, “But how many times have I?”
“We could probably count them on my hand. And so, what happens once you kill them?”
His hand moved from his eyes down to the large shark’s tooth, “They get collected here.” Ziggly leaned forward and blinked. “It doesn’t look like it, huh? That’s the idea. If I lose this, I won’t refill it and I will start to die.” The idea made him shudder. “This is all fucked up.”
“I’ll say.” Ziggly scratched his tuft of hair and leaned back in the chair. “Well, I’m just going to have to follow you around and make sure you don’t do anything stupid.”
“Oh trust me, Zig, I won’t. I’ve been given a new shot at life and I’ll make sure that I don’t make any stupid choices. We start training tomorrow morning, Zig. I’m good at daggers but I need to improve on my other weapons kills.”
“We won’t worry about your shooting skills.”
Cris smiled. “That’s easy. Unfortunately, I need to be near the body as soon as it dies or I miss the soul.” He sighed again and slammed his hand against the desk. “Why does this have to be so damn difficult?”
“Well, who says you have to kill them?”
“Tia.”
Ziggly shook his head. “No, I mean, who says you have to kill them? What if anyone else kills them and you’re nearby. A soul is just a soul, right?” Cris stared at Ziggly, thinking over his what he had just said carefully. A smile crept across his face as his eyes danced.
“Damn it, Ziggly…you’re right.”
“Of course I am!”
“I wouldn’t want you to do it all the time…”
“Are you kidding me? You’re getting your own hands dirty, Woflboy, but once in a while, you have me.”
Cris nodded. “Alright.” He rose from his chair and walked around, extending his right arm out to Ziggly. The goblin grabbed his arm with his left arm and they both shook on the proposition. “I ain’t carrying you into Stormwind though. My back is still hurting a little.”
“Don’t worry about me, Wolf.” Ziggly stood on the chair and jumped back into a nearby shadow, his whole body disappearing from sight. Cris grinned looking around for him.
“Excellent.”
“You ain’t the only one who’s been training.” Both Cris and Ziggly chuckled before Ziggly appeared beside Cris, sitting on the desk. “This will work, Wolf.”
“Alright then. Let’s begin this adventure, shall we?”
“Yes.” Ziggly jumped off the desk and looked up at Cris, “Does that mean we need to kill one of our men tonight?”
Cris looked at Ziggly and shook his head. “It’s been taken care of before we left the isle.” Cris remembered the bright and bubbly demeanor of the female goblin, who played with Misae and whose contagious laughter made Cris chuckle on occasion. Cris shook his head slightly. “It’s been taken care of by Tia.”
Ziggly shrugged and vanished into the shadows again. He reappeared at the cabin’s door. “Well then, come on, Wolf!”
Cristianno smiled and nodded. He glanced at a mirror hanging from a post nearby and noticed his orange-red hair and the tattoo around his neck. A finger traced across the scar and his eyes narrowed, a sense of rage spreading throughout his body. He gave himself a sly smirk and walked toward the door.
The two emerged from the cabin, stepping carefully over Misae, who lay lazily near the cabin’s door. Cris shouted, “Tia was gracious to supply the crew with Junglevine wine and bourbon. The bourbon is mine. You all can drink that pussy wine.” The crew laughed and Ziggly walked along the deck, shouting orders as some of the men rolled out the barrels of wine.
Cris walked back out to the bow and placed one foot on the edge. He looked back and saw the barrels breaking. “Drink up, me ‘earties!” They cheered and Cris looked out at the black sea ahead of him. He grinned slyly as the winds blew in his hair and he spoke with a soft, yet growling tone.
“Yo ho.”
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