Rhaedyr got their homepage at Neopets.com

-"If it's not too troublesome for ye, perhaps ye could tell me what exactly yer doing wanderin' aimlessly, willy-nilly 'round me ship…eh?"-

The tall, roguish skeith implores, giving you a once over with his steely burgundy eyes. You look around once again, startled to find yourself on the deck of a large ship, anchored in a remote and hidden bay. You turn back, a pitifully confused look on your face…you really have no idea how you got here…last you remember, you clicked some link and then, poof! You were here.

-"Yes, yes, guest, we've been over that before…ye only just remember clickin' some daft 'link' and then poof! You were here. You'll pardon me for me skepticism. But seeing as yer a few sails short of ah' sloop, I'll have a bit ah' mercy on ye and not gully ye on the spot."-

The skeith stops a young ixi, a cabin boy, as he passes by with a mop and bucket. He pulls the ixi's ear close to him and you hear him whisper something about rope, a gag and the brig, whatever that means. The cabin boy glances uneasily at you but hurries away with a shove from the skeith. He turns back to you and straightens his naval jacket and adjusts his large brimmed hat.

-"Well, I've just asked me good mate Jimmy, there, to bring ye a welcome aboard present. We wouldn't want ye to think us bad hosts. But, then I 'aven't even introduced me'self. The name's Rhaedyr, Captain Rhaedyr and this is me ship, The Spectral Hippocampus. Anyways, seein' as you'll be stayin' for a bit, I'll give you the privilege bein' entertained by one of the most pleasurable tales you ever did hear. What's that? No! It's not Little Red Riding Hood! Where are ye gettin' rubbish like that anyhow? No, it's the story of me life…oh, now, no looks like that, mate, or you'll get that gullyin' regardless of yer mental state! Anyway, I think you'll find my story worth the hearin'…and if ye find it dull, feel free to click one of those fancy 'links' of yours and poof out o' here! Mwahahaha, hahaha!"-

*ahem* -"Well, it all started when I was just a young little lad, even a bit younger than that Jimmy, there. I had just ran away from home, as it was expected of boys me age, and had come aboard a ship as a cabin boy. Me parents, I suppose, fancied that I'd join up with the Navy, or a merchant vessel of some sort, as other upstanding young lads had done. But I had me eyes set on higher goals. It'd be no life o' upstandin' labor fer me, no, I had me heart set on being a pirate."-

-"What's that, eh? Oh, ye didn't realize I was a pirate, did ye? Well, my dear guest, if you'll take peak behind ye…there, up, way up top that sail there…that be me flag."-

With pride in his voice, the skeith motions to a menacing black flag, flapping in the wind high above the deck, depicting a skull crossed by two seaweed laden cutlasses…funny, you didn't notice that before…*gulp*

-"Ah, yes, as it goes, it was a pirate's life for me. And, it seemed, Fate agreed, for I had the great honor of being taken as cabin boy aboard the Iron Maiden, the bonny flag ship of a ten ship fleet, envy of every pirate on the sea, and the favorite ship o' the infamous Captain Bloodbeard.

Aye, 'twas any up and comin' pirate's dream to be taken aboard one o' Bloodbeard's ships… his flag ship, especially.

So honored was I, even to be scrubbin' the floors on which he walked, that I vowed right then and there that if it were the last thing I did, I would carry on Bloodbeard's legacy. I just knew, that if I played me cards right and trained me'self in the way o' the pirate, that Bloodbeard would be me ticket to becomin' one o' the greats, one of the most feared and hated pirates ever to live. Aye, that were me dream, and a dream near to reachin' if ever I saw one. That is, until he came along."-

You lean in close. This is getting interesting…what, with the cliffhanger and all. The skeith, with no small measure of contempt in his voice starts to say something about this mysterious he when suddenly something hits you square on the noggin. The skeith looks at you in surprise as you yelp and rub your poor head, and then narrows his eyes and looks unkindly above you and then down at the offending projectile rolling to a stop on the deck.

-"What'd I tell you about skulking around up in the mainsail, Bones! …always droppin' yer head on some unsuspecting shlum down below…now get yerself back together, we've got ourselves a captiv...err… visitor… that's right, hurry it up now."-

To your combined surprise and horror, the projectile that has just assaulted your head appears to be, well, another head…a cat's head, err, skull. As you stare at it, it begins to rattle itself around until it's facing the skeith, and lets out a pitiful little mew, which might have made you want to cuddle the poor little thing, if it had been a real cat and not a cat skull thing…o_0…

-"Quit yer caterwaulin', you won't win any sympathy from me."-

The skull seems to frown. Suddenly, something bounds onto your head and then goes clattering to the deck. Ah, it's the rest of the cat, at least the rest of its bones…the skeletal body slinks over to the skull and shoves its headless neck into it. Now a fully functional little feline, it deftly leaps onto the captain's shoulder, rubbing up against his cheek and giving off a rattle-like purr.

-"There, there now Bill, I ain't mad at ye…Here we are, guest, this be me best little mate, Billy Bones. Stole him off a mystic, I did, back when we sailed 'round Mystery Island. He's been a faithful friend ever since, ain't that right, Billy? Saved me from a cannibal once! …hid in the ol' headhunter's cooking pot until just the right moment and then leapt out ah howlin' like a vengeful soul. Ha! Scared the poor devil clear out of his senses! Last I hears he turned vegetarian…hoho! Oh, what? Get on with the story, you say?...Which one do you mean, now? Oh! Of 'course! I was tellin' ye me life's tale, wasn't I? Well, forgive me for the distraction, mate. I'll continue with it, then. Where was I now?"-

You. Cabin boy. Bloodbeard. Your dream. he

-"Ohhh…that's right… I recall it now, mate…I'd just gotten to tellin' ye about how that scabrous seadog ruined me life…

...to be continued…

Customs =3

Link back?

style>