"Clear the deck!" Shouting awoke me and I jumped up to my feet, unaware of where I was as I was still half asleep. That's when I noticed a ship approaching us. It looked more refined, meaning it was most likely the English Navy. Scanning the surroundings, I noticed that the halyard of my ship and theirs was in the perfect position. I could use ours to shoot myself forward, grab the enemy's, and infiltrate the ship. So I climbed the ratlines, and waited for the ship to get closer, before grabbing the rope and slinging forward. All my instincts told me to hold on, but I pushed through the fear and let go, before grabbing the enemy's halyard and climbing to the crow's nest. The enemy captain was standing on the quarterdeck with one soldier by his side, both armed with shotguns. Scanning my surroundings again, I saw that I could use the rope to reach the soldier and kick him off the ship, or at least cause fatal damage, and take the captain out myself. Adjusting my grip, I kicked off the crow's nest so that I would sling in a half-circle, and used the momentum along with the strength of my legs to kick the soldier in the head which shot him backwards, his head splitting open on a sharp piece of wood.
"Who in God's name–" The captain couldn't finish his sentence before I grabbed the dagger still on me and slit his throat. The blood bubbled out of his neck as he grabbed my arm before falling to the ground and stiffening. I picked up his shotgun and aimed it at the soldiers who kept shooting at my ship, and shot three of them in one go. They got startled and distracted, which let my crew take most of them out from our ship. While the last man stumbled back with his arms up, surrendering, I slid down the rail to the captain's cabin and stuffed as much gold into my satchel as I could. Climbing up the ratlines, I grabbed the rope once more and got ready to sling myself back on our ship, shooting at the remaining soldier before taking hold of our ship's halyard. The ship was now bloody and littered with the corpses of the fallen soldiers, the last remaining soldier badly wounded and leaning against the walls of the quarterdeck.
"Don't think we'll let ya live!" The pirate that stood next to the captain when they first discovered me yelled before shooting a barrel with the shotgun I brought with me, blowing it up as it was full of gunpowder. Only a few moments later the ship was engulfed in flames, the screams of the lone soldier fading as he burned alive. I felt a hand on my shoulder and saw the captain looking proudly at me, his smile defining his dimples.
"Ya did well lad, they caught us off-guard but thanks to you we are victorious!" The crew cheered, and fell silent in excitement and anticipation as I took the satchel out from the side of my belt.
"Couldn't fit more, hopefully this is enough though." With a dramatic bow I handed the satchel to the captain, and heard him roar with satisfaction.
"Lad, you really are something. What's your name, matey?"
"Vincent."
"Well then, listen up mateys! This lad shall be known as Vincent Shipslipper, for slipping away and winning us some doubloons from the English!" And so the crew cheered my new name, their faces less wary of me now. The captain gave me my satchel back with just one singular doubloon inside.
"You deserve it. Keep it as a trophy for your first plunder, Shipslipper." And so I did, putting it in a pocket to turn into a necklace when I had the tools to.
The rest of the day was spent sailing wherever the winds took her, and the nights were spent singing shanties and eating fish. Many days looked like this, until one night when I was leaning against a barrel about to fall asleep. Some of the crew was sitting round the stone pit, sharing stories and fairytales, some of which were clearly made up on the spot to impress the others. One story, however, stood out to me.
"Have any of ya heard of the tale of the sea serpent? They say that deep in the dark waters lay a large serpent, powerful enough to snap entire fleets in half and devour them in a single bite. Legends say that there is a lost artefact that controls this serpent, allowing the one that wields it control over all seven seas. But no one knows where the artefact is." A sea serpent? The thought of controlling such a creature sparked an ember of excitement strong enough to engulf the entire planet in flames. A hidden artefact… This will be no easy task, but I will not give up! It will be ours, and we'll rule the seas together until the end of time!