Jace and his crew, after many hours of sailing, finally made it back to Port Savvy.
They sailed together through the two tall cliffs of the cove surrounding Port Savvy. They
almost acted like a gate, one way in and one way out. As Jace and his crew drew closer
to Port Savvy, they heard cannon fire from multiple ships that were anchored close to
Port Savvy.
"Why are they firing their cannons?" Jace asked out loud, until he found out the
answer to his question.
"BOOM!!!" The ship Jace and his crew had commandeered was being shot at by
the pirate ships guarding Port Savvy.
"Why in the hell are they shooting at us?!" Jace yelled out in frustration and
confusion.
"I think I know why!" Casie shouted out. "Look Jace! We didn't take down the evil
pirates colors! They think we are an evil pirate crew invading Port Savvy!" The colors of
the evil pirates flapped proudly and freely in the wind for all to see.
"That makes sense. I would shoot at a ship with an evil pirate flag as well. But
how are we gonna stop them from killing us?!" Jace asked in panic.
"BANG!!!" Another volley of cannon balls from one of the pirate ships hit the ship
Jace and his crew were on. It shook the ship and shattered its hull near where the
gunpowder storage for the cannons were.
"Oh no!" Flamett exclaimed in worry. "I infused my magic with all the gunpowder
on board! If they hit those barrels, this ship will be nothing but smoke!"
"What is wrong with you?! Why did you infuse ALL the gunpowder?!" Jace yelled
at Flamett in shock and confusion. More shots were fired from the same ship that had
shot before and were aimed right at the gunpowder storage. Jace noticed the smoke
and muzzle flash from their cannons and ran towards Casie and Flamett who were
together and yelled out.
"Everyone to me!" Thrasher swiftly jumped and climbed down towards Jace,
Casie, and Flamett and barely made it in time.
"Everyone put your hands on me!" Jace's crew all rested their hands on Jace in a
hurry and right when a cannonball met one of the many magic infused gunpowder
barrels, Jace used his cutlass and teleported everyone off of the ship and onto the dock
of Port Savvy. Jace, his crew, and many other civilians watched as all the gunpowder
barrels were ignited and destroyed the evil pirate ship with a massive and earth rattling
explosion that rippled the water in the entire cove of Port Savvy. The shockwave even
shattered the windows of multiple buildings that were closer to the water. Some
buildings that were overhanging close to the water were even rocked from their
foundations and sunk into the sea. The explosion left nothing of the evil pirate ship but a
plume of smoke that slowly floated up and into the clouds.
"That was… Something…" Jace said sarcastically.
"Hey our houses!" Some civilians that watched the explosion blurted out as they
watched their houses sink into the ocean. "We worked hard for those! Now they're
gone!" Jace and his crew hid their faces in embarrassment and panic. They all knew full
well they were responsible for the destruction of the civilians' houses. Jace, Thrasher,
and Flamett started to try and sneak away from the scene together, but to their horror,
they heard Casie's voice. Jace, Thrasher, and Flamett, full of shock, all stopped in their
tracks as they were just leaving the group of civilians and the dock. Casie was still
standing on the dock in front of the people.
"Sorry everyone, we were the ones who sailed in here on that evil pirate ship. If
anyone is to blame, it's us, we weren't thinking and forgot to take the evil pirate flag
down." Casie explained to all the civilians present with embarrassed and light laughter.
The civilians were doing everything but laughing with Casie. They all had anger in their
eyes and wanted to make Jace and his crew pay. One of the civilians stepped forward
and spoke for all the people there.
"You weren't thinking?!" How is that any kind of an excuse for your crew's
stupidity! We demand you pay for the damages you caused!"
"Yeah! He's right!" The civilians were all yelling together in frustration and
agreeing with the civilian that spoke up. "Pay up! You owe us!"
"We're sorry! Please understand!" Casie begged the civilians to calm down and
talk, but they were getting more angry now, both at her and her other crew members.
Jace and Casie made eye contact and Jace motioned for Casie to follow him and the
others with his hand. Casie ran through the angry mob of civilians and joined up with
Jace, Flamett, and Thrasher. They all booked it towards the Pirates Guild with all the
angry civilians chasing after them while they were throwing small rocks as they chased.
Jace and his crew bobbed and weaved in and out of alleys and streets to try and lose
the storm of people that was chasing them. Eventually, Jace, Thrasher, Flamett, and
Casie stumbled and bolted into a street with unoccupied food stalls. They each took a
stall and hid underneath. The crowd of angry civilians followed into the street Jace and
his crew were hiding in. They stalked and sneaked through the street trying to figure out
where Jace and his crew went.
"Where did they go?" One of the civilians asked.
"They couldn't have gotten far! Let's keep looking!"
"What if they're just hiding under these food stalls?" Another civilian asked
everyone that was present. Jace, Casie, Flamett, and Thrasher were all filled with worry
and tension. They froze, held their breath, and waited to be found. And with wide eyes
watched the feet of the civilians looking for them.
"Nah, that's too obvious. They're probably smarter than that. Let's keep moving
and searching the other streets, they're clearly not here." A civilian said to everyone.
The angry mob left quickly and called out in taunts of anger.
"Where are you guys! You still need to pay us back! When we get our hands on
you we're gonna shake the money from your pockets!" Jace and his crew all let out a
sigh of relief and got up from the stalls they were hiding under.
"That was close." Flamett said as the stress fell off of her shoulders.
"You ain't just whistlin' Dixie, Flamett. That was too close." Jace said jokingly and
continued. "Alright guys, now that we are pretty much safe. Let's go to the Pirates Guild
and talk to Cindy."
"I'm with you there Jace. I could use some rest and a pint of ale." Thrasher
explained with tiredness in his voice.
"You couldn't have said it better Thrasher, a pint of ale and putting my feet up
sounds amazing." Casie said in agreement.
"I second that!" Flamett also agreed as joy filled her eyes.
"Alright, let's head to the Pirates Guild and get ourselves some ale and then talk
to Cindy." Jace said to his crew.
After Jace and his crew stealthily snuck through Port Savvy, peeking around
every corner of every street and alley, they finally arrived, once again to the Pirates
Guild. They all entered together and were greeted with a bustling and lively building.
There was chatter and laughter all around and pirates enjoying themselves and their
company with drinks and gambling games like dice.
"FIVE, FIVES!!!" A pirate yelled gleefully from an area in the room with a group of
fellow pirates who were pleasantly enjoying themselves.
"Alright guys." Jace turned to his crew. "First things first, we get ourselves some
ale and relax. Then we will talk to Cindy and report our first voyage!"
"I couldn't agree more, Jace." Thrasher said with a smile. Casie and Flamett also
agreed with nods and happy smiles. Jace and his crew waltzed their way over to the bar
and each got a pint of ale. They sat down at a free table, drank, talked, and laughed
together about the voyage they just had. After they had their drinks and rest. They all
got up and went over to the counter where Cindy was. She was standing behind the
counter, but she wasn't smiling cheerfully as she usually would be. She looked more
angry and disappointed than anything, and once Jace and his crew got close to the
counter, Cindy exploded.
"Are you guys mental?! What were you thinking?!"
"Whoa! What are you so mad about Cindy? Are you upset at us for accidentally
destroying all those houses that were close to the water?" Jace asked as he backed up
slightly in fear with the rest of his crew. Thrasher, who was the most fearless of a person
Jace had met, was even backing up from Cindy's rage.
"Yeah, they are just houses, they can be rebuilt!" Casie said, defending Jace and
the rest of her crew.
"Sigh…" Cindy slumped over and let out her anger in one big breath. "Yes, I'm
mad about the houses, but that's not the main reason I'm so frustrated. I mean, you
guys would have no way of knowing this, I'm just taking out my stress on you guys."
"Why are you stressed Cindy?" Thrasher asked with tender care as he regained
his composure.
"The reason I'm so stressed and frustrated is because you guys sailed that evil
pirate ship into the harbor of Port Savvy." Cindy continued to explain. "All the evil pirate
ships in this world can be tracked with magic by The Shadow and his evil captains, who
are his top fighters and leaders. And Port Savvy is being protected by a magic seal that
hides it from all maps and the eyes of the evil captains and The Shadow. So that's why
I'm so stressed and mad. Because, even though that ship was only in the harbor for a
couple minutes, It would have been more than enough time for The Shadow to see
where it ended up. He always keeps a watchful eye on everything."
"Oh crap!" Jace said with shock and worry. "But the island is still invisible right?!
Like you said?!"
"Yes." Cindy looked away with despair. "But the last location of the ship is still on
The Shadow's and his evil captain's maps. So once they come to that location, they will
destroy the magic seal and reveal Port Savvy to the whole world. We will surely get
attacked again and again."
"Well, it's a good thing you have us Cindy." Jace said with encouragement. Cindy
looked up and saw Jace and his crew, standing heroically together. Cindy let out a small
chuckle.
"I don't know how much help you guys will be, I mean you just started going
on…" Cindy trailed off mid sentence and her eyes fell onto the cutlass that Jace was
holding in his left hand.
"Wait, Jace… Is that?!" Cindy's face went pale as she pointed at Jace's cutlass
with a shaky finger.
"Huh? Oh, you mean my cutlass? Yeah! I wanted to tell you, we found it on our
voyage!" Jace's face also went pale as he remembered the Starter Ship. "But I hate to
say this, the Starter Ship was completely destroyed on our voyage..."
"Who cares about the Starter Ship!" Cindy yelled out in joy. "Do you know what
that cutlass is Jace?!"
"No, not exactly. But it's crazy strong!" Jace explained.
"That cutlass is the legendary Cutlass of Light! I've only heard stories about it.
How can you even hold that thing?" Cindy exclaimed, baffled.
"The Cutlass of Light you say? And what do you mean? This thing is pretty light
actually." Jace, with his right hand, swung the cutlass around effortlessly while it was in
its sheath.
"Give it to Thrasher Jace." Cindy commanded with a hidden smile. Jace looked at
Thrasher and held out the cutlass' handle for Thrasher to grab. Thrasher grabbed the
handle, and right when Jace let go of the cutlass, it fell like an anchor to the ground
along with Thrasher and cracked the floorboards. Everyone but Cindy were shocked at
what just happened.
"Ow, what the hell?" Thrasher said in confusion as he stumbled up from his fall.
"Ha, ha! That was awesome!" Cindy exclaimed as she laughed.
"Man, you're mean." Thrasher said as he rubbed his head.
"Sorry Thrasher, I just wanted to show all of you that no one, but a single person
can wield that cutlass. So I'm not sure why Jace can." Cindy explained.
"Wait, why are you surprised I can wield this cutlass Cindy?" Jace asked as he
bent over and picked up the cutlass which seemed like it was as light as a feather now.
Thrasher looked at Jace in awe as he picked up the impossibly heavy cutlass.
"The stories I've heard about that cutlass are interesting ones. You could even
call some of them prophecies. One of the stories or prophecies, if you will, that I heard
about the cutlass was when I was a kid. My dad told me this about the cutlass." As
Cindy started to tell Jace and his crew about what her dad told her. Cindy replayed the
memory in her head like a flashback. A young Cindy was sitting on her dad's lap while
they sat in a homey house beside a crackling and inviting fire.
"Now Cindy, I've told you lots about the legendary Cutlass of Light. Haven't I?"
Cindy's dad said with a warm smile as he looked at his daughter.
"Yeah dad! I love how you told me how powerful it is and what some of its
abilities are! It sounds like a mega OP weapon!" Cindy said with a happy smile.
("OP" Stands for "Overpowered.")
Cindy's dad was a gentle and strong looking man, a man with deep and loving
black eyes and wavy, long, coal colored hair. He was dressed in a sailor's cloud-white
shirt and worn in leathery brown pants and boots. He was a spitting image of Cindy, if
you saw him you could clearly tell that he was Cindy's dad.
"I want to tell you something more about the cutlass now. Something more
important than how powerful it is or what it can do." Cindy's dad started to say.
"What's that dad?" Cindy asked in curiosity.
"It's a prophecy." Cindy's dad started to explain with his deep and somber voice.
"The prophecy states. "Only one person can wield the Cutlass of Light. A hero. Destined
to defeat The Shadow. A person of great standards and strength that no one can rival
when he embraces his past and forgives. Once the cutlass is removed from its hiding
place by the hero of this world. Events will unfold that will bring about the end of The
Shadow or the destruction of this world." Cindy's dad finished and had a more serious
but calm look on his face. Cindy looked up at him and smiled.
"I hope the hero comes soon dad! So The Shadow won't hurt us anymore!"
"I hope so too Cindy. I hope so too." Cindy's dad said warmly as he stroked
Cindy's head lovingly. After Cindy's dad said those words and patted her head, the
memory faded. As Cindy was remembering what her dad told her, she was telling the
whole memory to Jace and his crew while tears of happiness and sadness peeked out
of her eyes.
"So you're saying that I don't seem like the person in the prophecy." Jace said as
he stared blankly at Cindy.
"Exactly." Cindy blurted out bluntly but quickly choked it back. "I mean, uh, you
do. Heh, heh." Cindy embarrassingly chuckled as she rubbed the back of her head and
wiped the tears away from her face..
"You sure are brutally honest Cindy, I gotta give you that." Jace admitted with a
hint of pain.
"I didn't mean to come off as bluntly like that! I was meaning to say that you just
don't seem like the person in the prophecy. I was expecting a "knight in shining armor"
kind of person. And I mean no disrespect at all, trust me when I say that. I like you. I
think you're a pretty stand up guy. But I just wasn't expecting a random dude who
showed up out of nowhere to come back in a day with the legendary Cutlass of Light in
his bloody hands!" Cindy said as she defended her bluntness.
"Okay." Jace started to say with a smirk. "I'll forgive you, but only if you buy me
and my crew a round of drinks for tonight."
"Ha, ha!" Cindy let out a happy laugh. "You've got yourself a deal Jace, drinks are
on me tonight."
"Woohoo!!!" Jace and his crew cheered together as they high fived in triumph.
"Oh yeah! I almost forgot!" Casie said in remembrance. Everyone went silent to
hear what she remembered. "Jace!" Casie turned to Jace and started to explain.
"Remember that talent I had that let me get back a quarter of our ship when it was
plundered or sunk?!"
"Yeah, what about it, Casie?" Jace asked in confusion.
"Here's what I saved, it was sitting in my inventory just taking up space." Casie
pulled out a small brown bag that was strapped to her belt, it was tied closed with
delicate twine. She pulled the twine and opened the seemingly weightless bag and
turned it upside down. What happened knocked Jace off of his feet. Everyone just took
this occurrence like it was just another daily circumstance. From the small opening of
Casie's bag, a literal quarter of the Starter Ship popped out and slammed onto the
Pirate Guild's floor, still perfectly intact, just a quarter of what it once was. The quarter
that Casie was able to save was the middle of the Starter Ship, which held the most
important piece. Jace's crew's colors. The flag they made together.
"What in the absolute, nonsensical bullshit is that?!" Jace blurted out in shock as
he sat on the ground in awe.
"What's the big deal Jace?" Casie asked.
"Yeah, don't you know how inventory works?" Thrasher also questioned.
"Uh… Inventory?!" Jace wondered, flabbergasted.
"You do know what inventory is, right Jace?" Flamett pegged.
"Oh yeah! I remember now, inventory is just a storage space on your person, I
remember reading that in the introduction booklet. I just didn't know it worked exactly
like I just witnessed." Jace explained as he brushed the dust off of his pants while he
got up. He then thought to himself. "That does remind me actually. The way Casie could
carry that much weight and mass so effortlessly. It reminds me of RPGs I would play
back at home. You had an inventory that you could put hundreds of items into, and most
of the time, it wouldn't cost you anything in terms of movement speed or having to carry
a massive backpack. I guess this world has a big, weightless, and almost invisible
inventory system that I never noticed. I even had an inventory bag on my belt as well
this whole time for crying out loud. Man, I can be a real idiot sometimes."
"Well, thanks Casie for bringing this back, I'll take it off of your guy's debt!" Cindy
said as she approached the quarter of the Starter Ship.
"Wait!" Flamett interrupted. "We need our flag back!" Flamett jumped onto the
piece of the Starter Ship and retrieved the flag by lowering it. "There we go, now you
can take her away Cindy!"
"Sounds good!" Cindy stated as she retrieved her inventory bag from her waist.
She opened her inventory bag as far as it could go, and the part of the Starter Ship that
survived, bent all physics and morphed into the bag. It went into the bag like it was just
turned into fluid and sucked into a drain. Jace, who was still trying to get used to the
inventory system, was just staring and watching. Speechless.
"Alright! Now that that's out of the way. How about we get you guys those drinks!"
Cindy said cheerfully to Jace and his crew.
"Let's do it!" Jace and his crew exclaimed.
"What can I get ye Cindy?" The bartender asked with his rough and calming
voice. "The usual?" Cindy, Jace, and his crew all arrived at the bar of the Pirates Guild.
Cindy was at the bar table ordering drinks while Jace and his crew sat at a table and
talked.
"Yeah, I'll take my usual. But I'll also get four ales, Cinder." Cindy asked politely
as she looked at Jace and his crew.
"Coming right up lass." Cinder replied with his serious and bass clef voice, he
then went to work and started filling up four mugs with ale and a fifth one with rum for
Cindy. Cinder was a handsome middle aged man with rugged features. His head was
dawned with black tea-colored hair that was trimmed and uniform, his face was also
embraced by a slim and prim black beard. He had brown and orange eyes, colors that
were taken and mixed right from a crisp and pleasant fall evening. His clothes were
everything but ordinary, he wore rich black pants and boots that had gold encrusted
black laces, topped off with a white and gold lined sailor's shirt that almost sparkled.
Cinder looked up at Cindy and noticed her staring.
"What're ye lookin' at Cindy?" Cinder continued to pour the drinks.
"Oh, not much. Just looking at that crew over there. Or actually. If I'm being
honest. I'm more so looking at Jace. He's the captain of that crew. He's the one holding
that cutlass. He might be the person who can maybe make a difference here. You know.
Maybe set things right." Cindy explained as she kept looking at Jace. Cinder looked at
Cindy's gaze and spoke as he put the drinks on a serving tray.
"Eh, he looks like a pretty average guy to me, ye sure he's the one for ye?"
"Huh?!" Cindy grew a shocked expression that was full of blushing. "That's not at
all what I meant, Cinder!" Cindy picked up the drink tray full of frothy and refreshing
looking drinks. "I meant he might be able to save this world. That cutlass he's holding is
the freaking Cutlass of Light!"
"Whatever ye say lassy. Have a good night eh?" Cinder said as he gave a
sneaky smile. Cindy rolled her eyes, slightly blushed, and headed over to the table
where Jace, Casie, Flamett, and Thrasher were sitting.
"Hey Cindy! Thanks for the drinks! This is awesome!" Jace exclaimed as Cindy
placed the full drink tray on the table, causing all the frothy and refreshing liquid to
splash and slosh around, slightly spilling and drizzling onto the drink tray.
"No problem! Enjoy guys!" Cindy said as she smiled and took her own drink.
Jace, Casie, Flamett, and Thrasher grabbed their drinks with enthusiasm and started
drinking them away. Jace, his crew, and Cindy all sat together for a good moment and
enjoyed each other's company. They talked, laughed, and joked together while they
enjoyed their drinks.
"Hey Jace, I need to talk to you about something." Cindy stated.
"What's up?" Jace replied right after he took the last swig of his ale.
"I'm gonna need you to pay off some debt, and by some, I mean a lot. You
know… For the houses that you guys accidentally destroyed and the windows that were
smashed from the explosion. And also the debt to repair the rest of the Starter Ship."
Cindy explained.
"Ahh, crap. I guess I've got no choice. Ha, ha." Jace said as he let out a sigh of
defeat. "Let me see if I have any money to pay off some debt." Jace grabbed his
inventory bag and opened it and dug his hand inside. Jace felt around for a while and
couldn't feel anything. He started to get a tad worried until he finally felt something like a
leather pouch. Jace pulled out of his inventory bag a leather pouch that jingled with
coins as it moved around. Jace gave it to Cindy and said.
"How much will this cover me for?" Cindy took the leather pouch and opened it,
she dumped it out onto the table and her eyes got big. The leather pouch was filled with
gold doubloons and silver Pieces of Eight.
"This is pretty much perfect Jace! I think this will pay off most of your debt!" Cindy
said happily as she put all the coins back into the leather pouch.
"Awesome! I'm glad that the debt is off of my shoulders now…" Jace trailed off.
"Wait… Did you say most?"
"I did…" Cindy started to confess. "The money you gave me is great, don't get
me wrong, but it's only enough to cover all the windows that were smashed and the
Starter Ship. You're gonna have to help rebuild and pay off the five houses that were
sunk."
"You've got to be kidding me!" Jace felt his stomach drop, but not just because of
the despair of debt, but also with fear as he felt piercing eyes stab him.
"GRRR!!!" Jace's crew were all getting ready to beat the crap out of Jace for
getting dragged into physical labor and debt.
"Hey! Hey! Don't you guys go blaming me for this!" Jace defended as he got up
from his seat and was getting ready to run. "Don't forget we're all part of the same crew
and we all forgot to lower the evil pirate colors when we arrived!" Jace's crew sheathed
their fists and slumped back into their seats with defeat and let out sighs of defeat. Jace
slowly sat back down once he thought the coast was clear.
"You're right Jace." Casie admitted.
"We'll do our part to pay off this debt." Thrasher stated.
"I'm with them, but it's gonna take a while for me to get over this." Flamett said
with distress as she buried her face into her arms.
"Hey guys, don't beat yourselves up, sometimes this is how things go. You just
made an honest mistake and have to make up for it, that's all. Don't let it ruin your
night." Cindy said with reassurance. "Let's just enjoy the night and have fun! Another
round of drinks Cinder!" Cindy exclaimed.
"Thanks Cindy." Jace and his crew said together flatly as they slowly shook off
their own self beatings and despair, and light slowly began to brighten in their faces and
eyes once more.