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The fishing sailboat emerges from the daunting encounter unscathed, it heads back home early, but no later that afternoon, a rumor spreads in the small village that the guests’ horses came right back…

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Up on the Drunken Sundowner’s deck, three small figures stand waiting, guarded by six pirates from behind. They whisper and cackle as they stare their ‘guests’ up and down.

Yohei shoots a quick smile at an anxious Clematia and strangely calm Konran as he was the last to join them on the big deck. They still have their packs on their backs, but they lost the horses… that’s the last of his worries though, where is Cyrus? And what is he up to? He better not get himself killed, he's shown himself to be rather prideful… but also smart.

The three of them are left standing like that for a few minutes, the pirates that weren’t guarding them size them up for some time before eventually moving on with their business, each of them going back to their duties or interrupted squabbles.

Until heavy footsteps are heard, and everyone gets rowdy again as a big man makes his way towards the group…

Half of his face is burnt, especially around his mouth, the skin there is completely torn off, allowing view of teeth and tongue. Behind the man is the familiar figure of Cyrus.

“So these are yer lil friends ay pretty boy? Can’t promise I’ll treat ‘em real good but nobody’s laying their hands on ‘em either.”

“Thank you, sir. I’ll remember your generosity.”

“Kekekek I said I wouldn’t be exactly nice to ye either, but guess that just letting you live is a great favor ‘round ‘ere!” The man turns to the other pirates. “LEAD ‘EM TO THE PRISON! They’ll do well there kekek.”

His underlings immediately drag the group along, pulling them by the arms towards the downstairs prison…

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The prison is moist and saturated with the disgusting stench of rot… the cells look old, mold growing in every corner and bars covered in rust…

The lot of them are thrown inside one of the cells, They hear the slam of the metallic door behind them, then the clinking of keys as it is sealed shut, trapping them inside.

“You’ll stay here unless you’re called.” One of the pirates instructs.

“Waaa but what if I need to poop?! I ate a lot yesterday!!” Out of the whole ordeal, it’s only now that concern finally graces Konran’s features…

“Then you’ll just have to put the corners to good use.” Some of the pirates cackle as they all head back up…

After waiting for the thuds of the pirates’ boots to completely disappear into the deck above, Cyrus finally slides down the wall of the prison cell until he’s sitting on the moldy floor, and lets out a loud and tired sigh, all that pressure finally leaving….. gosh that was the most panicked he has felt in a while…

Clematia stays standing at first, but after eyeing the floor for a while, she eventually picks a slightly less nasty but still nasty spot to sit on, and she rests her head on her knees. That was scary… they got caught by pirates on the very start of their journey... are they cursed?... After her heart calms a bit, she looks up at Cyrus, who showed the first sign of weakness since they met him.

"Are you alright?"

“Yes I am.” Cyrus’ palms were still sweating as he glared at the ground….. it should only be a two hour ride from here to whichever dock the pirates chose for them… it’ll be alright… they’ll be fine…

Yohei couldn't sit down, adrenaline still rushing through his veins. He paces their cell slowly, peeks between the bars, stands in one place while bouncing his leg… he was dying to ask Cyrus what happened between him and what looked like the pirate captain, but the man was visibly calming down, so he had the decency to wait a bit. Well, only a bit.

"Don't be so worried you two! This is a pretty great situation for people who were caught by pirates! And if the captain gave you his word to keep us alive, he's very unlikely to break it…” Yohei's positivity helps Clematia relax a little. “So! What happened back there? You did amazingly Cyrus!”

He straightens his back and rests his elbow on his knee as he recalls the conversation he had with the captain… “Same story I gave you, he seems to know the Enthralla’s duke so he’ll keep us alive at the very least. Don’t let your guard down though, not all his little demons intend to be obedient.”

“Eeeee I’m sure it’ll be fine tho since you’re here!!”

That… makes Cyrus cringe a little…

“Let’s hope that’s the case…”

“Waaa I’ve never been to a sea trip!! This is so exciting!!”

She bounces in her place and giggles by herself.

“They didn't tie us down, nor did they take away our weapons, it’s on them if they try anything funny.” Yohei says with a satisfied smile. His expression turns thoughtful, and he quiets for a bit... after a quick revision, he makes the same decision he had made back on the fishing boat. “By the way Cyrus, I think you misunderstood the last thing I told you.”

Cyrus just raises an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to continue. It seems he’s drained his social energy for the day.

“Well I phrased it terribly, I meant that I literally cannot lie.” Not since he was cursed by Vargas after he was caught lying… and now whenever he tries to, a fit of coughing overtakes him. “I meant that you can't rely on me if something involves verbal deception, I thought it is best to tell you than to end up in an awful situation."

“…Okay.” It feels as if he has more to say, but not enough energy to do so.

⋅⋅⊱༻ • Everyone roll in turns ༺⊰⋅⋅

Roll Request: [d20]

Dice results:

• Clematia: “ 11 ”

• Cyrus: “ 1 ”

• Konran: “ 8 ”

• Yohei: “ 2 ”

An awkward silence overtakes the cell, the slow and repetitive sway of the ship manages to somewhat alleviate everyone’s anxiety the way a cradle would a baby. But their respite is shortlived, and they hear the thuds of a dozen footsteps making their way down the stairs…

“The no leg one and the big woman should be sent to clean around keke.”

“Oh definitely.”

“Hm he said pretty boy’s his, that’s so boring! He’s always taking the most fun!”

“You think a man’s the most fun?”

“Ooooo~?”

“YOU KNOW WHAT I MEANT!”

Their voices echo through the prison as their footsteps get closer… finally seven pirates come into view, they line up against the prison bars and eye everyone inside.

Cyrus quietly stands up and makes his way towards them as they open the door.

“Am I needed?”

“Pretty much~”

Two pirates were waiting for him, they don’t drag him nor lay hands on him as they escort him outside, yet their predatory gait and stares do not hide their hostility, as if they’re just bidding their time…

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Up in the open air, the deck of the Drunken Sundowner is getting rowdy, beer is distributed and men are gathering around as Cyrus is led to the center, where the big pirate from earlier waits for him at the table…

“Come, come, take a seat!”

“…”

The vibe is excited and jolly, almost as if it were a festival, and yet, Cyrus feels like the circus animal…

“Alright.”

He sits down on the other side of the table, and looks down at what seems to be a board game…

“This is our ship’s favorite game, the rules are pretty simple too so anyone can play it, even newbies! Ah and it’s got a lot of gambling involved…”

This bastard… he knows Cyrus doesn’t have anything to gamble with, and he's not sure but these homeless brawns and no brains idiots don’t look like the type to “follow rules”…

“But I’ve nothing to gamble.”

“Ah that’s true that’s true! I suppose we’ll have to go with punishments huh?”

Some pirates in the background laugh and whisper to each other…

“…As you wish.” ‘tsk, so this is where they were getting at…’

The tension grows, the laughter gets louder, some start cheering and clapping, others are already drinking, and so the game starts…

Ah.

“You lost.”

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⋅⋅⊱༻To be continued༺⊰⋅⋅