A Pirate's Love

The Chase

Elenor's POV:

As I slowly met the gaze of Sam who entered the safety of the cave earlier than expected, I wiped my eyes and sighed in relief. Another figure came crashing through the waterfall, however, making me jump. Muttering under his breath, I studied his disheveled appearance. His hair greasy and unkempt, face trodden with light stubble. Sword, pistol, and gunpowder hooked to his belt, along with an array of knives carefully hidden on his body. His coat looked like that of an old naval officer's, yet poorly taken care of and extremely tattered at the ends; the color which was once navy blue, now bleached by the sun to a patchy dark grey. Bracelets on his wrists and many necklaces around his neck, this man was no gentleman, yet his eyes were somehow familiar.

"Elenor, this is Cap– Captain Blacksmoke. He's come to help bring you to your father." Sam's careful tone was comforting and gentle. Captain Blacksmoke held my gaze for a second too long, with eyes dark and unreadable, then took a sudden bow.

"Miss," he said in a low, guttural tone, like he had been smoking too much tobacco.

I turned back towards Sam, "We're going to England?" I asked and Sam nodded, "With a pirate?" disappointment and worry in my voice. Sam frowned.

"Look, princess," the Captain spoke up, "We don't have a lot of time here. Dan Deranged is on your doorstep and I'm your only ticket out of here, so do you want to see daddy, or not?"
Offended by his tone of voice and utter rudeness, I stood up and stomped towards him in anger.

"Look, Black-heart, or whatever your name is," I poked a finger in his chest, "Firstly, I do not know this deranged man you speak of. Secondly, you will not speak to me in that manner. Thirdly, I am not a princess, I am the daughter of the Governor, and I will not be ordered around by some pirate! I appreciate your trip out here, but I will not be needing your service, thank you," I answered with gritted teeth, and stared deeply into his eyes, switching my focus between the both of his, looking for any sign of reaction or emotion. Sam let out a sigh. He glanced over at Sam and then squinted his eyes at me.

"Yet, a princess all the same. Are you done?" He spat back, "We don't have time for this." he groaned and grabbed a hold of my wrist with a firm grip, dragging me towards the waterfall.

"Let go of me!" I screamed and tried to writhe from his constraint, with no luck. He pulled me through the waterfall before I had a chance to breathe, and now soaking wet again, I could hear Sam exit the waterfall from behind me as well.
"Sam, do something!!" I hissed at him, only to be hissed back at by Captain Blacksmoke.

"SHH!!" He pulled me flush against his body and covered my mouth with his hand, holding me in place as I tried to break free.
"See that, princess?" He spoke in a grumble against my ear, "Those are the men after you."
I looked back at him and followed his gaze to the shore. Flickering lights moving in the near distance, and a large ship anchored just off of the coast. My heart began to race faster.

"We have to leave, NOW!" Sam urged in a whisper and ran past us, only giving us a few seconds to catch up to him.

We ran through trees and brush for what felt like many kilometers, never looking back, only forward. With Sam and Blacksmoke in front of me, I panicked at the fact I could not keep up with them. Unfocused on my footing, my foot suddenly caught under a tree root, twisting my ankle. I screamed in pain.

"THERE THEE ARE!" I heard a pirate exclaim, not far from me at all. I saw Blacksmoke stop in his tracks and turn back to me.

"Come on love, quickly!" He called out, eyes wide.

"I can't!" I cried, "my ankle!"
I heard him let out a big sigh as he ran towards me in the darkness. Swiftly, within the blink of an eye, he hoisted me up on his shoulder, and started running in the direction Sam headed.

I bobbed up and down on his shoulder, butt up in the air, before bracing myself by putting my hands on his back. Just behind us a few meters, I could see a torch emerging from the trees. I tried to stay quiet and keep from screaming as Captain Blacksmoke carried me swiftly through the brush. I could hear the huffing of his lungs underneath my body, and I almost fell off of his shoulder as he jumped over a fallen tree. "Bloody hell," he cursed as he hoisted me up again and I braced myself once more against his back, my hair now loose and flowing in the wind.

With the pirates trailing close behind us, we finally reached the northern shoreline. Captain Blacksmoke huffed once more as we reached the soft sand underfoot, making it harder for him to run. I looked forwards to see Sam and another man getting into a longboat, with two more men inside. In the distance, a grand ship facing the open sea.

"What are they doing!? They're sailing away without us!" I yelled in confusion.

"They're not, I always tell my men to anchor The Mountain of the Sun towards open water so we can make a hasty escape. We'll catch up and climb the stern."

Suddenly, gunshots rang through the blackened sky as we quickly approached the longboat. Captain Blacksmoke carefully placed me in the longboat as I cringed in pain.
"Lay down as flat as you can," the Captain commanded, and I gladly obeyed.

With the help of another man, Blacksmoke pushed the bow of the longboat through the wet sand and into the water. The other men in the boat immediately started rowing as Blacksmoke jumped in. I stared at him above me, watching his eyes as they watched the shore. He suddenly stood up, cocked his gun, aimed, and fired a shot toward the shore. My ears started ringing from the close range, and I quickly covered them as he fired again before we were out of range of the other pirates.

With the help of four men at the oars, we were at the stern of the ship in no time. I looked up at the huge ship and saw Sam and the other men quickly climbing a rope ladder.

"You can get up now, princess," Captain Blacksmoke said in a hushed, hurried voice, "can you climb the ladder?"

"I think so," I replied, though unsure. I sat up and wobbled towards the ladder, positioning myself on the first ring.

"Come now," the Captain urged, "your life depends on it."

With anxiety on the rise, and adrenaline pumping through my veins, I climbed the unsteady ladder as fast as I could.

"Tell the men to set sail!" The Captain yelled from below me.

"Cap'in's orders to set sail!" A man at the top of the ladder yelled, only for it to be passed around and repeated twice more before the crew let the sails loose. When I reached the top of the ladder, I was quickly pulled on board, with the Captain joining me seconds after.

"Cap'in, what about the longboat?" The man at the top of the ladder asked.

"Ah, leave 'er," the Captain replied in a husky voice, "she belongs to the sea now. Maybe some lost, shipwrecked soul will find 'er." His tone became more casual as he spoke with his crew.

With the sun starting to come up on the brink of dawn, I turned to Captain Blacksmoke before he could walk away.
"Thank you, Captain," I said shyly, "and I apologize for earlier–"

"We're not out of the clear yet, love," he huffed, "We may have a head start, but Dan Deranged and his crew will be on our stern most of the way." He turned away from me and started barking incomprehensible orders at the crew, yet all understood and followed his command.

"Smith!" The Captain summoned, and a tall, older man with a grey beard and one eye stepped forward.

"Sir?" Smith asked, awaiting command.

"Bring the lady and the boy to proper chambers and see to it that they get dry clothes and settle in quickly. We've got a long journey ahead of us."

"Aye, Cap'in," Smith answered firmly, "Come with me, miss, let's get you settle'in."

Before turning and following Smith, I watched Captain Blacksmoke's back as he quickly and confidently walked out of view.