The Inexplicable Exploits of the Dork Corps

Part XVI - Blood on the Breeze

     (I finished this for Fire because she thoroughly whooped my ass at Harry Potter trivia... I was the one asking questions but damn, her knowledge is vast.)

     "Are you sure this is a good idea Fire?"

     "Of course not."

     "Then why are we doing this?"

     "Why not! Dropping the six of us into an alternate is a great idea, plus, we'll have Maddy retain her memories, so it can't hurt, and we can magic a way to return our memories! Plus, the Harry Potter adventure didn't turn out too badly!"

     "But we could still remember ourselves there!"

     "Well yes. That was clearly some sort of issue with the ritual star and not at all because the author was working out the kink of an AU style plot!"

     "That makes perfect sense."

     "Yes it does."

     "If you say so Fire..."

     "Oh relax Kat, I'm paying you off in vodka pop vouchers... Help me finish off this ritual star."

     "You got it boss... but whats the way to magic our memories back?"

     "What else? True loves kisses!"

     "Kiss...es?"

     "Of course! You and Shat, and Carter and Nemesis."

     "Uh... umm... pff!"

This song is stuck in my head:

     Carter stood at the bow of his ship, sea spray covering his skin like sweat on a hot day. His captains badges weighed down his officer's jacket, and he gripped one hand tight on his sword. They were close. He could see the Volpe on the horizon, signature blood red sails he knew were the same color of the captain's coat. He opened a spyglass and held it up, he was close enough to see hazy figures on the deck through the fog. A woman in a dress... odd for a pirate ship, but not unheard of, especially since he had three girls on his ship at the moment already. Two figures in trousers by the helm, and at the stern of the ship, coat snapping in the brisk breeze, the captain. The man had eluded them for nearly a year, and the admiral had personally assigned Carter as lead in the hunt for Captain Lüge. A pattering of feet sounded behind him and he turned to see Tessa salute him before saying,

     "Captain, the Volpe is twenty leagues away, Kat says that wind speeds should get us near enough for a broadside shot or two."

     "Remember Tess, we need to bring them back alive. The Admiral will see Lüge and his crew hanged on the mainland. But speaking of our stowaway, how is Katherine?"

     "Still complaining about life below decks, but she'll prove a good fighter in a tangle with the crew of Volpe, she's an heavy gunner, on our last water stop she plucked four blackbirds out of the sky at five hundred meters."

      "With a cannon? By God she's good."

     "Not as good as Lüge behind a pistol or blade."

     "Agreed, but if we can wound the Volpe, cause them to sink, I highly doubt a pirate captain is required to go down with their ship. We can grab him in the water. She'll be excellent for our next, and hopefully last, skirmish with them. Tell Zurablis to set a course for the Volpe post haste."

     "Aye. On it sir."

     "And tell maintenance that the secondary rudder is jammed, we'll need the mechanism oiled if we want to out maneuver their schooner." Carter smiled at the retreating girl's form. He had been allowed to choose his own crew, and while Zur, Kat and Tessa all dressed like men, the crew was well aware that they were female. The crew was relatively accepting, and the girls were useful, and while they can learn valuable information from the pirates on shore leave, they can also hold their own in a fight. He sighed and pulled the decorative hat from his head, letting ginger fringe fall over his face. He set his jaw. Lüge and his ilk wouldn't take anyone else away from him.