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 Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 1:37 pm
 "Blackbeard," called Izzy, stepping into the dim captain's quarters. "Blackbeard? Edward?" He sighed before reluctantly adding, "Ed?"
"He's not here," Almina finally stated.
Izzy jumped turning towards where she was sitting in the alcove, his hand reaching for the hilt of his sword. He instantly relaxed when he saw her.
"You," he breathed.
"Izzy, sir, sorry," said Frenchie, rushing into the doorway. "Um... we have a situation, sir. There's a ship approaching on the horizon. Thought you should know." He turned and hightailed out before either of them could say anything.
"F*ck," Izzy muttered under his breath.
Almina slid off of the bench and stood up. "Go on up deck, Z, and tell the crew to prepare to greet our guests."
"And just what exactly do you expect us to do? Ed's not even here!" exclaimed Izzy.
"If they wish to approach Blackbeard's ship, then they'll get to meet Blackbeard," she said, stepping closer to Izzy before smiling at him mischievously. "I'll work out the specifics. Don't you worry, Z."
"You better not be the death of me," muttered Izzy, turning and storming out.
"Ah, would you look at this men! The Revenge, at last. Who would have thought we would ever be able to catch up with the likes of this ship?" said the soldier as he stepped aboard the ship. "With an impressive ship, I can only imagine what the captain must be like."
"Speaking of captain," whispered Frenchie over his shoulder. "Where is Blackbeard?"
Jim only shrugged their shoulders in response.
"You wish to meet Blackbeard?" said a voice from the captain's quarters.
Everyone became quiet as they turned their attention towards the source. Izzy's eyes momentarily flashed in surprise as he gazed upon the figure stepping up beside him. Although the build and clothing attire matched the usual look of his boss, there was differences only those quite familiar with Edward Teach would acknowledge. The eyes were a bit too green and the hair while silver grey resembled more like ash than salt and pepper.
"Then consider yourself lucky," continued the figure. "Or unlucky, depending on how this visit goes."
"You're Blackbeard?" asked the soldier, voicing the awe of the group of soldiers who had climbed aboard.
"The one and only." The figure turned to look at Izzy and whispered, "Not a word." They then walked over to the lead soldier but still kept their distance, allowing the firelight from the nearby lanterns fall behind them, throwing their face into shadow. "So, what brings the likes of you aboard my ship?"
"We... we received word that there might be some questionable cargo aboard your ship."
"And what exactly is this supposed cargo?" They glanced around at the crew staring wide eyed. "Seems like an awful lot of trouble to hunt us down for it."
"Oh, we're not hunting you down," said the soldier quickly. "This isn't an accusation of thievery. No, not at all. Rather we believe a person of interest may have snuck aboard your ship. They had been in our sister ship's custody but the person managed to escape and has been giving us a goose chase ever since."
"A person?" asked Izzy, stepping forward.
"Her name is Almina Fernside. She has recently become involved with the piracy crowd... and based on the recent rumored encounters, she may have made her way onto your ship."
"Afraid we don't have anyone by the name here," replied the Blackbeard-figure, waving hands around at the crew around them. "As you can see all of my men are here. I wanted to make sure they gave you a proper hello. And if we did have a stowaway..." They paused for a dramatic moment and their voice took a darker tone when they spoke again. "We would've given them a different type of greeting."
The soldier did not hide his deep swallow as the fear of what the figure implied became apparent. "Yes... right... of course. Well then... I don't think we need to take up any more of each other's time then."
"No, I don't think so."
"Back to the ship, men!" called the soldier turning to his crew. The soldiers quickly scrambled to climb over the railing to return to their own ship.
The Blackbeard-figure turned to Izzy and quietly said, "As soon as they disembark and unhook from our ship, I want you to get us moving. I don't want them to suddenly change their mind and decide they have reasons to imprison us."
"What about Edward?!" exclaimed Izzy.
"Once we've put our distance from our so-called friends that will be your task. You know Ed better than anyone. Aside from me, of course."
"As you wish," said Izzy, nodding his head.
The Blackbeard-figure turned to return to the captain's quarters before pausing a moment at the stairs. "Oh, and Z?"
Izzy turned to look back at them.
"If he gives you any trouble, just tell him the Sea Queen requests his audience."
The crash of metal tools on the wooden deck drew both of their attention. Frenchie stood there in shock, staring at both of them. "The Sea Queen?!"
Jim looked back and forth between Frenchie and them, a gaze of disbelief and awe in their eyes.
The Blackbeard-figure smiled before stating, "To your stations, men! We don't want to dawdle too much longer in these waters with our so-called friends so close by." They then turned to return to the Captain's Quarters leaving the crew to blink their way out of their shock back to reality.
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 2:29 pm
"So, who do you think that was?" asked Frenchie, as he finished securing the sail rope to the railing. "That most definitely was not Blackbeard."
"They said something about The Sea Queen," stated Jim. "That can't be. The Sea Queen is a myth."
"What I find strange is that Izzy followed along with the lie of not having someone aboard who shouldn't be," he continued.
"What do you mean?" asked Jim, turning to look at Frenchie in confusion.
"Well, when I went in to let Izzy know that the ship was coming, he had been speaking with a woman sitting in the Captain's Quarters. I didn't get a good look at her... but she certainly seemed to have made herself at home in there."
"You think that was her dressed as Blackbeard then?"
"No!" he exclaimed. "It couldn't have been. You don't think, do you?"
"Why not?" asked Jim. "I managed to convince the lot of you that I was a man for a few months before I got tired of the disguise."
"Still begs the question on why Izzy kept mum about her."
"'Cause Z and I are good friends," replied a feminine voice from behind them, a hint of Blackbeard's accent still lingering.
They turned to find a woman not much younger than Blackbeard himself leaning across the railing to look down at them. A mischievous grin was on her face causing her dark green eyes to shine. Her black and red leather ensemble fitted in nicely with the clothing style of Blackbeard's original crew members but seemed more relaxed.
"You dressed up at Blackbeard!" exclaimed Jim.
"Aye, that I did," she replied. "Mind you it's not something I typically do. But desperate times call for desperate measures."
"What are you doing here?" asked Jim. "And are you the one those soldiers are looking for?"
"Getting in touch with my dear Ed," she replied. "I have something aboard my ship that I think he will be quite interested in. Well... as soon as I can get back to it, that is. Afraid I rubbed a few folks wrong the last time I was on shore and they decided to send their little toy soldiers out to play the role of hero. It'll all pass over soon enough, just like the ever-changing tides."
"You're a captain too?" asked Frenchie.
"Aye, that I am. And of a lovely ship too," she replied and then she smiled wider. "I have a feeling the two of you will enjoy seeing what I have aboard my ship as well."
"Why?" asked Jim.
"All in good time, my dear," she replied.
Izzy came to a halt as he looked further down the beach at the lone figure sitting on a log in the shade of a palm tree. He shook his head seeing the figure's low spirited stance before continuing forward.
"Edward," called out Izzy. "If you're done moping around like some kicked puppy, we could really use your presence back on the ship."
"What does it even matter?" Edward responded. "It seems to be doing just fine with you taking charge."
"Yeah, well, the Revenge isn't the Revenge without Blackbeard. So, let's get Blackbeard back to the ship."
"At this point, Blackbeard is just a role. Anyone could take on the mantle. You don't need me."
Izzy sighed before he defeatedly stated, "She said you might put up a fight."
Edward glanced over his shoulder at him. "She?"
Izzy shifted his weight, his face clearly disliking the position he was being put into. "The Sea Queen requests your audience."
"What?" exclaimed Edward, quickly shifted his position on the log to look at Izzy. "The Sea Queen?"
"That's what I said."
Edward jumped to his feet and gathered his belongings. "Why didn't you say that in the first place?!"
Izzy stared at his boss in disbelief as he watched him run past towards the rowboat that waited down the beach.
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 3:33 pm
 Edward watched as Almina walked along the beach, intently watching and following the movement of the arrow of the compass she held in her hand. He knew she had carried the small compass on a chain around her neck since the moment he first met her. The compass of dreams she said it was called; supposedly it pointed in the direction of one's dream... or at least towards something that would help make a dream come true as she sometimes found out. He wondered where it would point him... and whether it would point in the direction he hoped for deep inside his heart.
"The compass seems to be confused today," Almina stated as she stepped over towards him before sighing and closing the lid on the compass. "It keeps changing directions."
"Maybe it's pointing to multiple dreams rather than just the usual one," theorized Edward.
She looked up at him, finding her gaze instantly captured by his brown eyes. The warmth she usually saw in them seemed to have dimmed.
"And what about you?" Almina asked. "Are you still holding on to your dream?"
"I don't know what my dream is," he replied, before looking down at his boots as he shifted his feet in the sand.
"I know that's not true and you know it too."
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 3:55 pm
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 3:56 pm
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 3:58 pm
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 4:00 pm
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 4:10 pm
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 4:13 pm
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 4:14 pm
 i shouldn’t of made a home in you, sea, you’ll drown me with any given chance. i love you with my fear either way.
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Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 4:17 pm
“Do you remember who you were, before the world told you who you should be?”
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Posted: Fri Jun 17, 2022 10:15 am
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Posted: Fri Jun 17, 2022 10:24 am
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Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 11:09 am
Been reading a book I own about Female Pirates and last night I got through the Golden Age of Piracy era of badass ladies. One of the women featured was Blackbeard's legal wife... and now the small part of my brain that is fascinated with my family genealogy is going "Wait, I have an ancestor who married into my paternal bloodline with that last name who lived around that same time frame. Could it be she's related to Blackbeard's wife?"
It wouldn't be the first time that an interest of mine that I've done research for (either for pleasure or for school project) ended up having some connection to my paternal family line.
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Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 11:12 am
Me reading about Blackbeard's wife and wondering if I have a family connection to her:
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