Concerning Smugglers: Part Three

There was a banging at the door. Kip opened his eyes groggily. Through the dimness of the small bedroom he saw light streaming in through a small gap between the door and the floor. In the light beyond he saw the shadow of a pair of shoes. They were shabby and creased, yet somehow looked rugged and hard wearing. Perhaps they, like their owner, had been toughened by long days and even longer nights on the seas.

     "Wakey, wakey!" called the voice of the Cook beyond.

     Kip threw back the blanket and rubbed his eyes awake. The ship wasn't rocking as much as it was when he went to sleep. Either the sea was especially calm or they had anchored. Kip got up and carefully opened the door. Crag was standing beyond facing the counter, blocking most of the light with his large bulk.

     "Argh! You be awake," he muttered as Kip pushed his way around him. "You didn't do too bad a job on these potatoes. Pirates love a good jacket potato in the morn', help push out the cobwebs you see. Sometime literally. Put all of them in the oven, good lad."

     "Excuse me, Crag is it?" said Kip as he placed the potatoes in a large steel barrel that served as an oven.

     "Aye, that be my name," replied the Kacheek.

     "What is the captain's name?" asked Kip. The question seemed to shock Crag; he dropped all the peelings he had been so carefully removing from the bucket and looked at Kip strangely.

     "Ye mean ye don't know?" he exclaimed. "I thought ever'body from 'ere to Kreludor had heard of Cap'n Ratner?"

     "Captain Ratner?" Kip laughed it off. "Son of a Prince, fastest sword arm in the seas and confidant to all pirate captains, yet loyal only to himself? Come on, he only exists in bedtime stories."

     "Aye, that he may do, but all the same. That be the Gelert's name." The Cook winked. "Don't you find it strange that we smugglers always seem to find expensive goods, how do ya think we do it? Magic? Nay... Don't say I be the one telling you this, but Cap'n Ratner has access to all the charts."

     He dropped his voice lower and leant in conspiratorially.

     "And I mean all the charts."

     He winked again.

     "I guess p'raps you've seen a few of them. I've heard what you were up to last night..."

     Kip blushed and busied himself with the sorting of breakfast. Just as he was buttering the eighth potato there was a sharp knock at the kitchen door. Crag muttered under his breath as he waddled to the door, opening it to a smiling Vinny leaning against the door frame.

     "Breakfast isn' ready yet, Vinny," said the Cook, fingering his cook's knife carefully. "And you know I don' appreciate people hurryin' me up."

     "I ain' come here for breakfast," snarled Viiny, losing any sense of cool he had. "I've come for the lad."

     Kip froze what he was doing and looked at Vinny, suspicious as to what the green Techo wanted. Vinny carefully took a small step down the stairs into the kitchen, his wooden heel thudding into the boards, and grinned broadly.

     "Don't ye worry young Kip," he smiled wantonly, "I don't be meaning ye no harm. The Captain requests his breakfast, and he. Specifically. Asked for the newest crewmember to bring it up to him. That be you."

     He pointed at Kip and left the kitchen, ducking underneath the door frame. Kip felt a firm hand on his shoulder.

     "Ye best be on ye way then, lad," said the cook, propelling him towards the open door placing a steaming tray in his hands. "I don' mind telling these other lazy layabouts to wait, but we don' wan' to be keepin' the Cap'n waiting for his breakfast, now do we?"

     Kip shook his head dumbly and stepped out into the clamour of the deck. The sun was blinding overhead as his followed the figure of Vinny across the deck. Crewmembers of all shapes and sizes swarmed over the ship, pulling at ropes and carrying heavily wrapped bundles of Fyora-knows-what. The Techo stopped outside a heavy-set door, knocked twice and growled to indicate Kip's entry. Kip pushed it open cautiously, stepped through and heard the door shutting behind ominously.

     The gloom of the cabin was profound, the door blocked all noise of the crewmembers outside, as Kips eyes adjusted to the darkness; he could see the Gelert Captain's form leaning over a chart, studying it intently. There was no-one else in the room save the two of them. Captain Ratner's brow was furrowed as he concentrated on the figures below him. Seeming to come to a conclusion, he carefully selected a pin from the box beside him, placing it decisively at a particular point in the chart.

     The Captain leant back in his chair, the map keeping its shape, held down as it were in four corners by black pins. His eyes looked up at Kip, meticulously studying him with the same intensity. His eyes roved over the minor detailing of his ragged clothing and inspected the Flotsam's form. Kip felt distinctly dishevelled as the Gelert inspected him, not meeting the Captain's eye he stared down at the floor, shuffling his feet.

     "Well, lad," began Captain Ratner, "care to deliver my breakfast?"

     Kip looked up. He had almost forgotten he was still holding the potato in his hands. He placed it on the table, beside the map, sneaking a careful look downward. The chart depicted an island in the shape of a clover, yet the pin was to the west of the island, in the deepest water. Kip stood back, clasping his eyes behind his back, pretending he had not been looking. Captain Ratner barked a laugh.

     "Aye, you are a very curious one, aren't you?" he said. "Having a wee cheeky look at my maps here. Well, since you're so interested, let me tell you about Three-Leaf Isle. It's said that Lady Fortune smiles upon those who visit these shores, but frowns upon those that leave before their time. The only difficulty being that no sailor, pirate or not, actually knows where the island is. It's said to be a mystery, only the lost can find it, and those who find it become lost themselves. That is without a map to guide them back. Which of course begs the question, how did I get my hands on this map?"

     At this point the Gelert winked and tapped his nose, before raising his hands behind his head in a nonchalant manner.

     "I'll say that not all my maps come from sailors and leave it be. So, Kip, you might be asking yourself why you're still on this fine vessel. I'm doing you a favour. You want to be a pirate, and here you are, standing in a Pirate Captain's cabin, listening to me tell you the deepest trade secrets of any pirate's dream. The thing about favours is that once given away, you be expecting one in return. So you must be wondering what favour you now owe.

     "Take a look-see at this map. As you are no doubt astutely aware, this pin is not upon Three-Leaf Isle. Nay, this pin denotes the place of but one of many ships that have sunk trying to make their way out of the undertow that the Isle creates. See, this ship that sank at this particular spot wasn't just any ship; 'twas the famous Meridellian flagship, The King's Sceptre, the vessel said to have disappeared carrying a kingdom of riches between Altador and Meridell.

     "See, the only problem that we upon The Lost Sail are experiencing is a profound lack of... volunteers to visit the wreck. The superstitious fools that call themselves my crew believe that it's unlucky to know how to swim when sailing. Compound this with the knowledge that none be able to breathe underwater. We're slowly realising where your, ahem, expertise, in this matter comes in.

     "In fact, Kip, you could well save us a lot of trouble, and this will be the favour that I ask in return for my continued hospitality upon this ship. Now, don't get me wrong, you are proving yourself to be a worthy member of my retinue. This potato, for example, is finely peeled, considering it must have been peeled with that blunt excuse of a knife you're trying to unsuccessfully conceal in your breast pocket. A word to the wise; never a good place for a blade, slow to access and easy to notice.

     "However, I'm sure I can trust you to behave as a fine pirate and help fetch that fine bounty for us. Of course, it goes without saying that you'll receive your fair share of the treasure that lies in the murky depths. I'll go through the finer points of the plan later on, but you get the general idea, do you not?"

     Kip breathed again; he had been worried that he was about to be ejected from the ship. He reached into his top pocket and transferred the knife to a pocket inside his jacket, to the approving nod of Captain Ratner. Thinking upon his options, he decided that the best course of action was to agree to do what the Captain asked. After all, he reasoned, it was only fair that he give something in return for the fulfilment of his wildest dreams. The Captain had been more than reasonable so far, given the circumstances.

     "Aye Cap'n," he said, "I understand, and I'll be willing to do as you ask."

     The Captain smiled broadly and leaned over the table, hand extended. Taking it, Kip shook it, trying to keep a firm grip upon the vice that was the Gelert's paw.

     "Then I welcome you to the crew full time, Kip," he said, spitting upon the handshake to seal it. "Of course, this operation is a secret, does no good for all the crew to know about our methods or our bearings; we are pirates after all. Only speak about this to me and my First Mate, Bert. Bellamy, my navigator, knows about this too. I think you may have met him; he likes to wear a hat."

     Captain Ratner broke the handshake and settled down again. Delicately taking the fork from the plate, he took a bite of the potato.

     "Not too bad," Captain Ratner admitted. "I expect to see you delivering my meals every day, Kip, just to check upon your well-being, of course. Feel free to have full run of the deck. Ask anyone about anything you care to have an interest in. I'll be sure to let the crew know to accommodate you. After all, you are now the most important Neopet here. Well, myself excluded, of course. You're free to leave."

     As the door closed behind Kip, Bellamy the Lenny stepped out from behind the curtained area behind the Captain's Chair.

     "So he's agreed to do it, then?" he said, a note of surprise in his voice. The Lenny's voice was more refined than the other pirates.

     "Aye, that he has," said Captain Ratner, smiling. "The young lad knows what he wants in life. I like that in a pirate, shows promise. Let's just hope he doesn't lose heart when he sees Three-Leaf Isle..."

     Kip smiled as he left the cabin and went back to the galley light-hearted, ignoring the stare of Vinny across the deck. This was the pirating life, sailing upon the high seas, crashing through the waves following the sun's path through the cloudless sky...

To be continued...