It was a sunny day,the wind gusting in the favor of a grey and gold gallion with dark sails,flying no flag at it's crow's nest.
In the Nest,peering out onto the horizon attentively was a silver haired,pale skinned,golden eyed pirate. With no foe on the ocean horizon yet,the young pirate went down to the main deck,which was bustling about as normal as the other crewmates attended to the ship and captain's needs.
The captain himself,on the wheel,was a tall man,his beard long and grey,and his captain's clothes having long since lost it's youthful bright maroon color. "Grayson! Any other ships on the horizon?" The captain asked.
"None,sir! It's smooth sailing to the Fortress of Gold." Grayson reports.
"Good. You've been up in the nest all week. Get some decent rest." The Captain ordered. "But sir-"
"That's an order,Grayson." The Captain quickly interjects.
"Yes sir." Grayson responds,respecting his captain's wishes and heading below deck.
Before too long,an alarm was being rung,as Grayson was looking for his sleeping bag. Right as he was about to attend,a cannonball crashed through the hull,itself and the splinters that followed hitting Grayson,killing him almost instantly.
"HARD TO PORT!!' The captain demanded,as he was turning the wheel as far as it could manage,to avoid a Reaper Ship intercepting their course,crewmates scrambling to adjust the sails. Two more were chasing behind,with Sloops keeping pace and closing escapable gaps
The rest of the Crewmates were scrambling about the deck,reloading and firing cannons at sloops picking away at the hull.
"Someone get below deck! The ship's taking on water!" One of the crewmates requested.
One went below deck,to find a bloody scene,and a large hole in the side of the ship that allowed him to peer out onto open water.
"Grayson's gone! The ship's too damaged,we need to flee!" The crewmate said as he came topside,to spot that they were being loosely circled,and the mast downed toward the front, preventing their escape.
"I am NOT a coward! All hands prepare to be boarded!" The captain demanded as he pulls a ruby red sword from it's holster,the crewmates following suit with a mighty cheer as zombified pirates boarded,either by cannon,or by the ladder.
One by one,the Captain's crew began to fall,until it was just him. The Captain valiantly fought,until his pegleg was broken,and he was thrown against the back rail of the helm and held in place by his captors.
The sound of boots took over the quiet ship. High quality leather with a deep,audible thump. A bony hand reached under the injured captain's chin,pulling him to be gaze locked with a bony face that seemed pleased.
"Ahh...Captain Silvereye...I thought I'd never live to see the day..." He said,his voice having a strange,ghosty tone that possessed a skeletal,gentle purr.
"Very funny,Blackheath."
THWAP!!
"That's CAPTAIN Blackheath to you,thief." The undead captain growls. He looks around,before humming. "You and you. Go below deck. Loot them of everything they have." Blackheath demands of his crew,to which they salute and attend to the orders.
"You're the real thief here." Silvereye said,as his head was released..
"Ohh no. IM not a thief,my crew is,however. I have to pay them somehow in their forever damned state.." Blackheath chuckles.
Before too long a light flow of treasure came in ghost chests, captain's chests and other small riches found in Silvereye's travels.
"Quite a haul you have there. My crew thanks your hopsitality."
"More like hostility." Silvereye spat,only to receive a punch to the gut. Then the barrel of a shorthand pistol presses against his head.
"I'm about done with your smart talk,fucker. The next thing you say will put an iron ball bearing between those ugly ass coins you call eyes."
After sharing a less than pleasant silence,the ship was deemed empty,as the last below deck floor had taken on water..
"Well,I'd say I'd see you in hell,but you are only so lucky." The captain said as he left. "Tie Silvereye to the helm. Let him die with what little honor he has left."
Silvereye was tied to the now useless wheel,and as the remainder of the crew left,the ship was burned,but beforehand it split in two from its wounds of battle now being burnt,sinking.....
The last thing Silvereye saw below the water was a plank heaving his former Spotter to the surface ...
'Good luck...if you're still in there..' The Captain hoped,as the last of his breath left him...
A necklace of the Ferryman detached itself from the captain,floating up to Grayson and slowly attaching itself to his wrist,turning a soul green,and emitting a soul beacon,as Grayson gasped for breath,coughing up opaque seawater,but remaining unconscious as soon as he surfaced.
Leagues away,on a Skeleton Gallion,a darkskinned Captain was sailing like normal,when he started to feel an energy call to him...
He looks north,to spot a green beacon that seemed to go unnoticed by his crew. The male turns the ship in the direction of the beacon,as the wind suddenly whipped in favor of the ship,carrying it toward the destination with unmatched swiftness.
Upon arriving,he beheld the wreckage of Silvereye...
"Jeez...Nobody could have survived that attack..." One of the crew said,to be proven incorrect as Grayson floats past.
The beacon was emitting from him.
The dark captain brings Grayson aboard,settling him on deck until he came to.
"Kieth,get this ship moving. Whoever did this can't be far." The captain demands,to which Kieth quickly began getting the ship in motion again.
The splashing of waves,and bustle of people working on deck took hold of Grayson's senses...
He grunts,as the Crew Medic gently held him down,"Easy now..."
Grayson rolls onto his side,getting a sickly green color as he slowly woke....
His eyes were now a ghostly green,his irises now a catlike slit against a vibrantly golden pupil.
"Ohh...Everything...hurts..." The Spotter complains.
"Welcome to the immortal side. You just died my friend." The Captain said from the helm..
"Wha..? How am i..?" Grayson began,looking at his wrist...It was Silvereye's Ferryman token,something he held dear for mysterious reasons unknown.
"It was that token,on your wrist. Whoever had it must have given it to you to make sure you survived." The Medic said.
"D-did you see my captain..? At least a body..?" Grayson asked as he leans up.
"Unfortunately no...Your captain may have been captured,or worse,killed." The Dark Captain reports.
After a few more nauseating moments,the feeling settled,and Grayson was able to get up and actually look around.
Looking around the ship,he noticed about 3 other people,the captain aside.
"Why such a small crew..?" Grayson asked.
"I have been sailing these seas for almost a millenia ...my crew is long gone.."
"Damn..."
"I'll...Just get back to what I'm good at then.." Grayson said as he ascended the much taller Crow's nest. As he settles at the top,he pulls out a skillfully handmade spyglass,casting one last,longing gaze at the remains of his ship,before looking out onto a new feeling horizon.