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Description

Chapter 2: Escape

(Y/n) groaned as she was awoken from her mugging-induced slumber by the sound of heavy footsteps. As her hazy mind once again began to function, she took inventory of herself. She was sore from head to toe, and her stomach felt as if it had been hit by a cannon ball and her head felt like something had crushed it, reassembled it, and then crushed it again, and her cheek still stung from being slapped earlier. The next this she noticed was that she was no longer being held up by chains. Instead, her face was pressed against the rough dark floor. Groggily, (Y/n) attempted to sit up, but when she did a sharp pain lanced through her belly, causing her to gasp. Gritting her teeth, she struggled to her knees just as the footsteps stopped at her cell door. The jingle of metal against metal prompted her to look up, and through the shadow of darkness she could just barely make out a tall figure with fiery red hair. Recalling the flash of red hair she had seen just before being knocked out, (Y/n) assumed that the previous figure and the shadowed one now standing before her were one in the same. Feeling her anger rise, (Y/n) glowered at the silhouetted pirate.
"Glarin' at me won't do ya any good, lad," the figure scoffed, his accent heavily Scottish. "Look, I brought ye a gift." Grunting, the man crouched down and opened a latch at the bottom of the door and slid a tray into her cell. It clattered gently against the ground, though nothing fell from it. "I promise ye it ain't poisoned," the man grumbled, closing the latch. There was a small grating sound - presumably, he was locking the latch so (Y/n) couldn't use it as a means of escape - before he stood and left without another word. (Y/n) watched him soundlessly as he disappeared into the dark, and only when she heard the a door close did she dare move to investigate the mysterious try. Was it food, or was it something else entirely? A heavy scent was beginning to waft from the tray and was starting to permeate the room. As it reached her, (Y/n) realized it smelled surprisingly good, so much so that it was making her mouth water.

   Slowly, (Y/n) crawled her way to the tray on her hands and knees. The movement hurt a little, although it hurt less than it probably would if you had tried to stand up. As you got closer the the tray, the enticing smell grew stronger, making your stomach growl in anticipation. Once she had gotten close enough, (Y/n) sat down and carefully drew the tray closer. As it scraped against the ground, she thought she heard something slosh and hoped she hadn't accidentally spilled something. Now that she was closer to both the tray and a light source, the contents of the tray could just be made out. Illuminated by the dull lighting, she could make out the silhouetted shapes of a small cup and a bowl, as well as a small dark lump just off to the side. She picked it up carefully and sniffed it. It smelled like wheat. Tentatively, she took a small bite and confirmed that it was bread. While it was cold and a little dry, she found that it had not yet gone stale. It had most likely had been made a little earlier that day. When she swallowed, the bread slid harshly down her dry throat and landed in her stomach with a gurgle. Grimacing, she set the bread aside and picked up the cup and sniffed it. It smelled of nothing, so she took a sip and sighed with relief as the liquid soothed her dry mouth. It was just plain old water, but to her parched mouth it was like a blessing of rain to a desert land. She took one more small sip before setting the cup aside to investigate the last item.
   It was from the bowl that the delectable smell had originated, and she noted with some surprise that it was slightly warm as she picked it up. It must have been made not too long ago. From what she could see, (Y/n) guessed that it was some kind of soup and silently hoped that the brew was as good as it smelled as she raised the dish to her lips. To her pleasant surprise, the soup tasted even better than she could have imagined. Although simple, the soup's broth was chocked full of flavor, and the vegetables and fish meat were a crunchy but welcome addition to the meal. (Y/n) silently thanked whomever had prepared the soup and she continued to eat. She ate in a pattern, taking turns between the soup and bread and occasionally taking a sip of water. When she had finished with the soup and bread, she downed the rest of the water and sat back, her hunger satisfied. After a moment, (Y/n) realized with slight chagrin that she had downed the meal without using any utensils, but a quick inspection revealed that she hadn't been provided any. They had eliminated anything that could be used as a tool for escape. While she could commend them for being smart, it frustrated her slightly. She needed to get out of here.

Pushing the tray away, (Y/n) began to inspect her cell, looking for anything that could be used to aid in her escape. She scoured her cell for what seemed like hours, investigating anywhere that could be reached, but found hide nor hair of anything useful. Nothing that could be reached outside her cell helped either. Frustrated, (Y/n) sat down and leaned back against one of the cell walls, suddenly finding that she was really tired. She listened to the creaking of the ship as she tried to think of all the possible ways she could escape, but with nothing to pick the cell's lock with, she was coming up empty. Eventually, she allowed the slight rocking of the ship to lull her to sleep.

**********

An unknown amount of time later, (Y/n) was roused by someone shaking her shoulder. Still groggy, she cracked her eyes open and peered at whomever was trying to wake her. Instead of the red-haired Scott she had expected to see, she came face to face with bright blue eyes and blonde hair. When the person saw that she was awake, they backed up out of her reach and she observed with mild surprise that they were at least half her height.
"O-Oh, good. Your awake! Uh, the Captain thought ya might need ta relieve yourself so..." The figure stuttered, nervously. Their voice was higher pitched and sounded a lot softer and younger than the others. A child? The boy cleared his throat. "It may seem strange, but we are at least a lil' civilized. It would be cruel ta have ya make a mess here in your cell, so I'm here to escort ya to a place where you can. I tied up your hands, so don't cha try anything fishy!" The boy said, his face serious. It almost made her smile, but she refrained. (Y/n) quickly scanned the boy. He was wearing a while shirt and some trousers and held a small lantern in one hand. In the other he held tightly on to the end of a rope, which connected to her tied hands. At his waist dangled some keys, and while she was tempted to take them, she quickly discarded the idea. It would be too obvious if the keys went missing. There was one other option though: the boy had a tooth pick in his mouth. That would work.
  Pretending to be half asleep, (Y/n) stood shakily, and as she took a step forward, she swayed and pretended to stumble into the boy. "Whoa!" The boy exclaimed in surprise as he stumbled, trying to support her weight. She had intended to knock him over, but the boy turned out to be stronger than she expected. No matter, she still managed to cause the tooth pick to fall from his mouth. Watching through half-lidded eyes as it fell to the ground, and shifted her weight so she fell away from the boy towards it. She hit her target as she fell on top of it, and quickly scooped it up and hid it in her hands. Getting back on her feet, (Y/n) mumbled an apology and an excuse about being half asleep before allowing the boy to guide her to the relief room. He untied her hands so that she could go, and once in the dark room she hid the pick in the fold of her chest wrap before relieving herself. Once she was back in her sell, (Y/n) waited for the perfect chance to make her move, praying that it wouldn't take long.

  Her prayers were answered the next morning after she was served breakfast. She was just finishing up her meal when she heard chaos erupt above deck. Whatever was going on, she was determined to use the confusion to her advantage. Heart pounding, (Y/n) stood and pulled the pick from where she had hidden it and began to pick the lock on her cell...

[<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>]

Arthur paced his cabin, trying to think of a way to get the information he needed from his captive. It was evident that torture and threats weren't going to work, based on what he had seen the day before. He knew he intimidated the young man. Despite acting brave, he had seen the fear that had flashed through Kai's eyes briefly. It had been so quick that at first he had thought he imagined it, but he was sure now that what he had seen was true. However, intimidation would work by itself. As long as Kai stayed strong-willed, nothing he did would help.
  Frustrated, Arthur's thoughts turned to the young man he held captive. Something about the boy puzzled him. He couldn't figure out why Kane - one of the most feared pirates to ever sail the seven seas - would appoint someone so young and inexperienced to be his quartermaster, and why would he trust only him with the secret of his treasure's location? Kai's fierce loyalty was evident, but loyalty wasn't everything. Kane trusted the boy, and why was something that Arthur couldn't figure out.
  Arthur's thoughts were interrupted when he heard someone shout outside. Curious, he went out on deck to investigate and saw that everyone was running around in a panic. "What's going on out here?" Arthur, called over the chaos.

"Captain!" One of his crew members cried out, running up to him. "A pirate ship was spotted off the port side, and it's coming right for us!" The man explained, handing him a spyglass. Taking the spyglass, Arthur peered through it in the direction the man had indicated. Sure enough, a large ship was headed their way, and to make matters worse, Arthur recognized the ship. It was the Sea Maiden, whom was manned by a captain after the same prize Arthur was after. Snarling, Arthur handed the Spyglass back before directing his crew.

"All hands on deck, prepare for combat! The Sea Maiden approaches fast! They must have caught wind of our prisoner. We aren't going to give up our prize easily!" Arthur ordered.

"Aye Aye, Captain!" The crew responded as they rushed around the ship.

"A few of you go below and ready the cannons. Do not fire unless we are fired upon!" Arthur ordered. A few men responded and hurried below. Arthur grabbed a crew member as he was running past and ordered him to secure their captive. "We must not lose him, no matter what the cost!"

"Aye, sir!" The man said, and hurried down below. A few minutes later, he returned above deck, looking panicked. "Captain, we have a problem! The prisoner is nowhere to be found! He has escaped!"

"He what!?"

Description

Chapter 2: Escape

(Y/n) groaned as she was awoken from her mugging-induced slumber by the sound of heavy footsteps. As her hazy mind once again began to function, she took inventory of herself. She was sore from head to toe, and her stomach felt as if it had been hit by a cannon ball and her head felt like something had crushed it, reassembled it, and then crushed it again, and her cheek still stung from being slapped earlier. The next this she noticed was that she was no longer being held up by chains. Instead, her face was pressed against the rough dark floor. Groggily, (Y/n) attempted to sit up, but when she did a sharp pain lanced through her belly, causing her to gasp. Gritting her teeth, she struggled to her knees just as the footsteps stopped at her cell door. The jingle of metal against metal prompted her to look up, and through the shadow of darkness she could just barely make out a tall figure with fiery red hair. Recalling the flash of red hair she had seen just before being knocked out, (Y/n) assumed that the previous figure and the shadowed one now standing before her were one in the same. Feeling her anger rise, (Y/n) glowered at the silhouetted pirate.
"Glarin' at me won't do ya any good, lad," the figure scoffed, his accent heavily Scottish. "Look, I brought ye a gift." Grunting, the man crouched down and opened a latch at the bottom of the door and slid a tray into her cell. It clattered gently against the ground, though nothing fell from it. "I promise ye it ain't poisoned," the man grumbled, closing the latch. There was a small grating sound - presumably, he was locking the latch so (Y/n) couldn't use it as a means of escape - before he stood and left without another word. (Y/n) watched him soundlessly as he disappeared into the dark, and only when she heard the a door close did she dare move to investigate the mysterious try. Was it food, or was it something else entirely? A heavy scent was beginning to waft from the tray and was starting to permeate the room. As it reached her, (Y/n) realized it smelled surprisingly good, so much so that it was making her mouth water.

   Slowly, (Y/n) crawled her way to the tray on her hands and knees. The movement hurt a little, although it hurt less than it probably would if you had tried to stand up. As you got closer the the tray, the enticing smell grew stronger, making your stomach growl in anticipation. Once she had gotten close enough, (Y/n) sat down and carefully drew the tray closer. As it scraped against the ground, she thought she heard something slosh and hoped she hadn't accidentally spilled something. Now that she was closer to both the tray and a light source, the contents of the tray could just be made out. Illuminated by the dull lighting, she could make out the silhouetted shapes of a small cup and a bowl, as well as a small dark lump just off to the side. She picked it up carefully and sniffed it. It smelled like wheat. Tentatively, she took a small bite and confirmed that it was bread. While it was cold and a little dry, she found that it had not yet gone stale. It had most likely had been made a little earlier that day. When she swallowed, the bread slid harshly down her dry throat and landed in her stomach with a gurgle. Grimacing, she set the bread aside and picked up the cup and sniffed it. It smelled of nothing, so she took a sip and sighed with relief as the liquid soothed her dry mouth. It was just plain old water, but to her parched mouth it was like a blessing of rain to a desert land. She took one more small sip before setting the cup aside to investigate the last item.
   It was from the bowl that the delectable smell had originated, and she noted with some surprise that it was slightly warm as she picked it up. It must have been made not too long ago. From what she could see, (Y/n) guessed that it was some kind of soup and silently hoped that the brew was as good as it smelled as she raised the dish to her lips. To her pleasant surprise, the soup tasted even better than she could have imagined. Although simple, the soup's broth was chocked full of flavor, and the vegetables and fish meat were a crunchy but welcome addition to the meal. (Y/n) silently thanked whomever had prepared the soup and she continued to eat. She ate in a pattern, taking turns between the soup and bread and occasionally taking a sip of water. When she had finished with the soup and bread, she downed the rest of the water and sat back, her hunger satisfied. After a moment, (Y/n) realized with slight chagrin that she had downed the meal without using any utensils, but a quick inspection revealed that she hadn't been provided any. They had eliminated anything that could be used as a tool for escape. While she could commend them for being smart, it frustrated her slightly. She needed to get out of here.

Pushing the tray away, (Y/n) began to inspect her cell, looking for anything that could be used to aid in her escape. She scoured her cell for what seemed like hours, investigating anywhere that could be reached, but found hide nor hair of anything useful. Nothing that could be reached outside her cell helped either. Frustrated, (Y/n) sat down and leaned back against one of the cell walls, suddenly finding that she was really tired. She listened to the creaking of the ship as she tried to think of all the possible ways she could escape, but with nothing to pick the cell's lock with, she was coming up empty. Eventually, she allowed the slight rocking of the ship to lull her to sleep.

**********

An unknown amount of time later, (Y/n) was roused by someone shaking her shoulder. Still groggy, she cracked her eyes open and peered at whomever was trying to wake her. Instead of the red-haired Scott she had expected to see, she came face to face with bright blue eyes and blonde hair. When the person saw that she was awake, they backed up out of her reach and she observed with mild surprise that they were at least half her height.
"O-Oh, good. Your awake! Uh, the Captain thought ya might need ta relieve yourself so..." The figure stuttered, nervously. Their voice was higher pitched and sounded a lot softer and younger than the others. A child? The boy cleared his throat. "It may seem strange, but we are at least a lil' civilized. It would be cruel ta have ya make a mess here in your cell, so I'm here to escort ya to a place where you can. I tied up your hands, so don't cha try anything fishy!" The boy said, his face serious. It almost made her smile, but she refrained. (Y/n) quickly scanned the boy. He was wearing a while shirt and some trousers and held a small lantern in one hand. In the other he held tightly on to the end of a rope, which connected to her tied hands. At his waist dangled some keys, and while she was tempted to take them, she quickly discarded the idea. It would be too obvious if the keys went missing. There was one other option though: the boy had a tooth pick in his mouth. That would work.
  Pretending to be half asleep, (Y/n) stood shakily, and as she took a step forward, she swayed and pretended to stumble into the boy. "Whoa!" The boy exclaimed in surprise as he stumbled, trying to support her weight. She had intended to knock him over, but the boy turned out to be stronger than she expected. No matter, she still managed to cause the tooth pick to fall from his mouth. Watching through half-lidded eyes as it fell to the ground, and shifted her weight so she fell away from the boy towards it. She hit her target as she fell on top of it, and quickly scooped it up and hid it in her hands. Getting back on her feet, (Y/n) mumbled an apology and an excuse about being half asleep before allowing the boy to guide her to the relief room. He untied her hands so that she could go, and once in the dark room she hid the pick in the fold of her chest wrap before relieving herself. Once she was back in her sell, (Y/n) waited for the perfect chance to make her move, praying that it wouldn't take long.

  Her prayers were answered the next morning after she was served breakfast. She was just finishing up her meal when she heard chaos erupt above deck. Whatever was going on, she was determined to use the confusion to her advantage. Heart pounding, (Y/n) stood and pulled the pick from where she had hidden it and began to pick the lock on her cell...

[<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>]

Arthur paced his cabin, trying to think of a way to get the information he needed from his captive. It was evident that torture and threats weren't going to work, based on what he had seen the day before. He knew he intimidated the young man. Despite acting brave, he had seen the fear that had flashed through Kai's eyes briefly. It had been so quick that at first he had thought he imagined it, but he was sure now that what he had seen was true. However, intimidation would work by itself. As long as Kai stayed strong-willed, nothing he did would help.
  Frustrated, Arthur's thoughts turned to the young man he held captive. Something about the boy puzzled him. He couldn't figure out why Kane - one of the most feared pirates to ever sail the seven seas - would appoint someone so young and inexperienced to be his quartermaster, and why would he trust only him with the secret of his treasure's location? Kai's fierce loyalty was evident, but loyalty wasn't everything. Kane trusted the boy, and why was something that Arthur couldn't figure out.
  Arthur's thoughts were interrupted when he heard someone shout outside. Curious, he went out on deck to investigate and saw that everyone was running around in a panic. "What's going on out here?" Arthur, called over the chaos.

"Captain!" One of his crew members cried out, running up to him. "A pirate ship was spotted off the port side, and it's coming right for us!" The man explained, handing him a spyglass. Taking the spyglass, Arthur peered through it in the direction the man had indicated. Sure enough, a large ship was headed their way, and to make matters worse, Arthur recognized the ship. It was the Sea Maiden, whom was manned by a captain after the same prize Arthur was after. Snarling, Arthur handed the Spyglass back before directing his crew.

"All hands on deck, prepare for combat! The Sea Maiden approaches fast! They must have caught wind of our prisoner. We aren't going to give up our prize easily!" Arthur ordered.

"Aye Aye, Captain!" The crew responded as they rushed around the ship.

"A few of you go below and ready the cannons. Do not fire unless we are fired upon!" Arthur ordered. A few men responded and hurried below. Arthur grabbed a crew member as he was running past and ordered him to secure their captive. "We must not lose him, no matter what the cost!"

"Aye, sir!" The man said, and hurried down below. A few minutes later, he returned above deck, looking panicked. "Captain, we have a problem! The prisoner is nowhere to be found! He has escaped!"

"He what!?"