The Shankers

[RemingtonRyder]

Hi, my name's Rachel, and I'm a pirate.

Our crew is called The Shankers, an account of we come out of nowhere and start stabbing people. Heh heh.

Anyway, we had a bad day today.

It all started when one of our pris-er, I mean, honoured guests, decided to make a break for it. Her name is Zoey, but you shoulda seen her duck and weave past the guards. She's got some serious grace for an old woman.

So I grabbed a few people and we ran after her.

She led us on a merry chase, all the way south to what looked to be some kind of temple built half into a mountain. In hindsight, maybe we should have been a little bit more cautious.

Anyway, Zoey screams out for someone to open up and that's when we see these big stone doors groan apart, revealing an entrance. Now, Charissa breaks into a sprint, tries to get a hold of Zoey before she disappears inside, but the long pursuit has been hard on all of us, and she skids to a stop as the doors close again.

Now Agerra and Taten catch up and the three of them start trying to pull these stone doors open. I'm about to tell them to knock it off when I see something arc over my head and roll to a stop near the door.

I yell at them to get out of there, but by the time they've reacted to my voice, it's too late.

Charissa's left leg is torn apart by shrapnel. I can't forget that inhuman scream. Agerra takes the brunt of the explosion and turns into a meaty, bloody pulp. Taten is thrown clear and lands in crumpled heap.

I turn to Bertha, who's the bright spark who lobbed the grenade in there. I'm livid with rage. All I can think about is the lives that have been lost - two good men and one woman - because she didn't bother shouting a warning.

Aside, this is not an uncommon occurrence. People like Bertha become pirates because they aren't welcome elsewhere. They don't care if others live or die. You have to try and point them at the enemy and hope for the best. Hell, I didn't pick her for this mission, she just tagged along because she was bored, probably.

She smiles this sick smile, like somewhere in that head of hers she knows what she did and there's not a shred of remorse.

I grab her. And then, my memory goes a bit hazy. Probably blocking out the horrific details. I don't remember what I said to her, or what I did, but I faintly remember she wasn't smiling when I was finished with her, and my rage being satiated.

I get back and I'm drenched in blood. The boss is furious, wants to know what the hell happened. I tell him Bertha helped Zoey escape, and that Bertha's dead now.

He goes quiet. He doesn't question my story. Hell, it's the truth. If it wasn't for Bertha, I'd have been walking back here with Zoey and the rest of the guys in one piece.

The boss says to me, we're going to go back and get Zoey. She knows too much. But it's going to take time.

We've got raiding parties that haven't come back yet, so we're too short on manpower to pull off a snatch and grab operation. We don't know what we're up against. There could be a dozen people inside that place, armed to the teeth.

For the time being, we take it in turns to watch that place and wait to see if anyone goes in or comes out.



Hey! A story written from the pirates' point of view. Based on actual gameplay, with some embellishment.

[anthraxus]

I really dig this viewpoint and it is written in an engaging tone.