The Mariner and the Swordsman

[Kayne]

The woman's shoulders slumped, and she turned to walk away from the line of pirates standing before her as if she saw nothing. Every one of them was clad in blackened leather armor, hands slowly reaching for their weapons. One of them stepped after her from out of the shadows and reached for the back of her tunic. He spun her around, drawing her closer, and leaned forward. "I'm sorry, pretty little lady, but now that you've found us, we cannot allow you to live," he whispered into her ear. He brought his other hand up to her mane of hair and smirked, speaking down to her in a degrading tone. "But of course, not before we have our fun, first."

The young woman paled and took a step back, aghast at the man's words while the others were letting out a mocking laughter. She was a petite little thing of exotic origin, probably no more than 20 years of age. Her skin was tanned and her hair was silky black. Her eyes were cerulean, as deep and luminous as the tropical sea. She wore a pair of simple tanned leather leggings and a white linen blouse. One of the buccaneers among the line called out, "Just let her go, she won't tell no one." The young man hesitated and the woman kicked at his shin. "Never! I will never let you," she cried out. He released her hair and the woman started to make a run for it. The young privateer followed her and forcefully thrust his shoulder into her back, sending her forward, face first into the sand.

"Can't even stand on your feet. How can you expect to get away?” he taunted. The pirates on either side of him laughed loudly.

_________________________

A hulking warrior clad in dark steel, black and tanned leathers, and a flowing black cloak was hidden around the entrance of the cave, just along the shoreline, listening to the unfriendly exchange, picking his moment. He heard the laughter of the pirates. He heard the gasp of pain of the woman. However, he also heard the clicking sound an axe makes when it is being freed from a belt sheathe.

Kayne's companion, an experienced sailor and warrior named Vent, stepped aside from his hidden position opposite from Kayne and strode forward, raising his right arm and holding a battle axe level with the offending pirate's throat. Kayne heaved a sigh and shook his head, silently cursing his companion.

"Apologize to the lady!" Vent demanded, standing firm with a second battle axe in his left hand held high behind him, over his head. He looked fairly menacing in the shadows of the cave's entrance. He stood at a slightly above average height, he was fairly well muscled, had the tanned skin of a mariner, pale blue eyes, and his most striking feature - blue hair. The dark blue leathers and black metals of the young mariner's sea plate barely glinted in the sunset within the meager light of the cave's entrance. He was towering over the young privateer who seemed to be around the same age as him. The pirates surrounding the girl became very alert and drew their weapons, though they seemed unthreatened by one solitary warrior, even if he had the drop on one of them.

"Apologize? Because she's clumsy?" the pirate joked, though he seemed to be a bit tense with the sharp edge of a battle axe pressed against his throat. "Look, little boy blue. Run along and leave us to our business before we are forced to deal with you." The pirate put a finger up to the blade and pushed lightly away from him, then looked to his comrades, "You may take me out with those axes of yours, but not before my posse hacks you into a bloody pulp."

"Vent," Kayne's tone was gruff and insistent as he stepped out of the shadows and into plain view. The silhouette of the earth-blooded warrior blocked out most of the remaining light trying to make its way into the dark cavern. "There are a dozen of them and one of you. Bloody wretched odds, even if you are good with those things."

[Kayne]

The tanned mariner hesitated, and the young woman managed to scamper away while the two men held the attention of the pirates. Vent saw that she was safe, then he lowered his axes. He took a step back, and in that instant the young pirate took a step forward. Itching for a confrontation, he drew his longsword, spread his legs for balance, and eyed the mariner, "Afraid to defend a woman's honor? " He sneered. "Or maybe you don't like women?"

Vent raised his axe again, giving the pirate a menacing glare. "Don't do it," Kayne growled.

"I know you!" one of the pirates exclaimed, apparently the captain of the group judging by the fact that he was the only one wearing armor accompanied by a large plumed hat. He was pointing at Kayne and ignoring the upstart pirate in his group. "You are The Mountain!"

"You must be mistaken," Kayne said tersely.

"I don't think so. I've heard of you! You have the same armor and that huge sword on your back is unmistakable."

"I said, you must be mistaken," Kayne spat insistently.

"I don't think so, I..."

"The little lady is with me!" the young pirate barked, drowning out the captain's words. "Run back to whatever hole you crawled out of, you sorry excuse for a frightened hin!"

"Run? Frightened?" Vent erupted. "Never!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Kayne saw Vent and the young pirate close. The big mariner parried the pirate's awkward swing with little effort. Four others drew their blades, yet held their positions. The young pirate raised his long sword high over his head and brought it down hard, trying to land a blow on Vent's shoulder. The mariner was fast and brought one of his battle axes up to parry the attack. The pirate's blade clanged harmlessly away, and Vent countered with a swing aimed at the young man's thigh. Kayne smirked to himself, seeing that he was only trying to wound and embarrass the privateer, not kill him.

The young pirate had some skill, and he stepped back and met the mariner's blow with his sword, catching it just below the hilt. The tactic kept him from getting hurt, but his long sword snapped from the angle of impact, and the blade spun to the sand. Cursing, the privateer threw the useless pommel to the ground and glared at Vent.

Again, Vent lowered his axe, if only for a second. Two more pirates strode forward. The first circled to the mariner's right. The other met him head-on and swung in a wide arc aimed at his chest. Vent dropped to a crouch as the blade passed above him, dropped his offhand axe and plucked two throwing axes from their ankle sheathes with his left hand. He stuck one of the small axes between his teeth, biting down on the axe-head, the other he gripped and waved at the advancing pirate.

"I am not mistaken!" The words exploded from the leading pirate's mouth, and Kayne swiveled his head in time to see him jabbing a finger at him. "He is The Mountain. Get him!" The captain of the pirates yanked his blades free and rushed forward. The pirate nearest him followed his lead. In one fluid motion, Kayne drew the hateful Troll-Forged blade and met the charge of the captain. Their swords clashed loudly. He whirled in the sand and met the second pirate's swing just in time to keep his sword arm from being severed. The captain darted in, slashing, and Kayne tensed his leg muscles and leaped straight up, tucking his legs in toward his chest. The blade sliced just below the toes of his boots. As he came down, Kayne shot his right leg forward, striking the captain hard in the chest and knocked him down. Graceful for someone so large, Kayne landed on his left foot and spun to meet the second pirate's rush. The man's charge was slowed over the sand, and Kayne was able to dodge the wide swing. The large swordsman slashed at the pirate, but the blow was too slow. He strained his arm muscles to reverse the force of his swing and upon a the rebound, his second effort fared better, his blade sank deep between the pirate's shoulder and chest. With a groan, the pirate fell forward lifeless. Kayne pulled hard to free his blade, sending a shower of blood to paint the sand crimson red. Behind him, the captain was rising and reaching for his fallen sword. Kayne dashed forward and kicked the blade away, then slammed his booted heel into the man's stomach to knock the wind out of him and keep him down. Two more pirates advanced on him. Kayne watched one of the pirates rush in. Drawing his blade back over his shoulder, he spun as he sliced ahead. The blade connected with the pirate's neck, instantly decapitating him.

Risking a glance toward Vent, Kayne saw that the mariner was barely working up a sweat. Two pirates were on the ground, a throwing axe embedded deep in each of their skulls. Two more pirates faced him. The mariner waved his axe about to meet the charge of his attackers. The fingers of his left hand flew to his waist and tugged free his, now empty sheathed, belt. He began making wide circles in the air, the belt whipping and whistling. It was weighted, and too late the pirate darting forward realized the mariner's intent. Vent tossed the belt forward. Spinning, it wrapped about the sword arm of the closest pirate. The man paused to jerk himself free of the belt, and in that moment, Vent darted forward and swung his axe square into the midsection of the pirate. The man pitched backward, the axe lodged deep in his stomach. Seemingly weaponless, Vent dropped to the sand, avoiding a mad slash by his second foe. At the same time, he reached over to one of the corpses and tugged free the throwing axe. He hurled it at the pirate now towering above him. The axe spun a bit too slow to injure the pirate, but it at least butted painfully into his hand, causing him to drop the long sword. As he jumped to his feet, he flung his left hand forward, releasing a shower of sand into the weaponless pirate's face. Blinded, the man cast his head about and stepped back, but Vent pressed the attack and picking up the axe he threw to the ground earlier, he jammed the twin axe-heads into the man's sides.

Two pirates pressed their attack against Kayne, drawing his attention away from the mariner. One of them, a stout, muscular man, lunged to the left, but it was a false attack. He quickly stepped right and thrust forward at Kayne's chest. Kayne pivoted just in time to avoid being run through. The earth-blooded warrior stepped back to avoid another swing and found himself in the path of the second pirate's blade. Though not as skilled as his fellow, the pirate's aim was lucky, and his sword sliced into Kayne's arm, just above the elbow. Kayne gritted his teeth. The cut was deep, and he felt the warmth of his blood. He fought to ignore the pain and tightened his grip on the pommel of his sword. The stout man thrust again. Kayne dropped to his knees and felt the air ripple above his head from the strength of the man's swing. Without hesitation, he drove his blade upward, impaling the muscular pirate. In the same instant, he slammed his heavily armored elbow into the second pirate to force him back. The second pirate moaned and retreated a step, and watched his comrade fall forward, Driving Kayne's blade even farther into his gut as his body struck the sand.

[Kayne]

"Let's call an end to this!" Kayne hollered loudly, feeling his will falter and fighting the blade's need for bloodshed. "Now!" He spied the captain struggling to his feet, aided by the man who'd just fought and retreated from him. Kayne rolled the body of the stout pirate over, planted a foot on his stomach, and tugged his blade free. He waved the massive weapon menacingly in an arc over the fallen man.

The two men fighting Vent stepped back, watching Kayne. However, they kept their swords up, ready to resume the battle. Four men lay dead at the large mariner's feet, all with axes sticking out of their still forms. Kayne's sword had claimed three. Of the five remaining pirates, one looked seriously injured and probably wouldn't live with one of Kayne's throwing knives embedded near his neck. The privateer who had started the fray was still weaponless and unharmed.

"Vent!" Kayne called in a commanding tone.

"You're hurt!" the mariner returned. He knew his companion's wounds would heal on their own as Kayne's cursed blade drank the lifeblood of its victims and returned vigor to its wielder. "But we can still take 'em! Easy!"

"No! It's over," the swordsman growled. He was beginning to succumb to the blade's wicked desires.

Vent cursed and held his position. Then he grudgingly nodded and lowered the axes he held in each hand. The pirates relaxed, but only a little. At their captain's orders, they guardedly sheathed their weapons. The mariner started retrieving his weapons, tugging them free from the fallen men. He wrapped his belt around his waist and re-sheathed his axes, thrusting the hilts of the throwing axes back in their ankle sheathes. Kayne dropped to his knees on the sand. He laid his sword in front of him and closed his eyes, as drops of his own blood spattered on the ground. He had several deep cuts on his arm and his taped up sword-hand was stained red with blood now. With the blade out of his grasp, Kayne was finally able to regain control of his own will and rid himself momentarily of the blade's influence.

“Hey,” Vent hissed in Kayne's direction. “What in the hells are you doing? Let’s get out of here.” The mariner had spied more pirates filing out from the depths of the cave. The numbers were considerable.

Kayne stood. “We’re sailing out soon,” he told the captain. “I expect no trouble doing so.”

“You’ll get none.” The captain nodded and instructed his men to collect the dead. He fixed Kayne with a steady stare. “But, I was not mistaken about you.”

Kayne looked at his blade, covered with blood. He didn't sheathe it, but he carried it low and to his side so it couldn't be misconstrued as a threat. He turned toward Vent's ship, and the mariner followed.

"You're good in a fight," the woman said. She'd come up behind the pair, and now touched Vent's shoulder to get his attention. "It was amazing."

"I've never lost a fight," the mariner boasted.

"I... I am not from around here and have nowhere to go. May I come with you?"

"We're going north," Vent said.

"We are heading towards Baldur's Gate," Kayne added. "As for your presence, we aren't responsible for your useless hide, you got that?"

"Perhaps you will be able to help me then?" she asked, her eyes wide with hope.

Kayne didn't respond. He'd reached the dock and knelt next to it at the water's edge to clean his sword. He wanted nothing more than to sheathe the wicked weapon and release its grip on him. He continually questioned himself why he kept wielding the blade when he knew it was evil. Was it worth the advantage?

"I would like to leave this place," she admitted. She barely looked over her shoulder, toward where the battle had taken place. One of the pirates stood there, watching the trio.

"Another mouth to feed and water," Vent muttered. "At least it's a very pretty one."

"Safaya," she smiled sweetly at him.

"Vent Fennall," the mariner stated. He bowed deeply and swept his hand in a gracious arc, then captured hers and brought it to his lips. He gently released it and motioned to Kayne. "This is Kayne, also known as 'The Mountain.' And there is my ship... The Wench."

She arched an eyebrow at the carrack's name, but smiled. "It's a fine ship."

Vent cast his head skyward, then scowled. The clouds had grown darker. "I think we'd better set sail as soon as possible."

[Kayne]

Kayne was asleep in his bunk below the deck, swaying gently in his hammock as the waves rocked the ship almost rhythmically. The sun was setting and the swordsman was able to enjoy a nice nap before they arrived at Baldur's Gate. He woke with a start and felt damp with a cold sweat, though he had no recollection of any nightmares and he felt rather healthy. He sat upright, remaining still for several moments. Something was terribly wrong, he could feel it in his gut.

Suddenly the sound of screams and splintering wood echoed throughout the ship, muffled and obscured by the vessel's deck. Something large crashed into the ship and it lurched violently, causing many barrels, supplies, and crew members to topple over. The noises echoed more vehemently as screams, shouts, and the sounds of battle rang out. Kayne jumped to his feet and snatched up his baldric with the troll-forged sword sheathed inside, hastily strapping it to his neck and belt while kicking open the door to his bunk. "Gods-rotted Pirates!" Kayne spat with hatred.

What he saw was difficult to take in. Of the many objects that fell over from the impact, lanterns and torches were among them, which caused 'The Wench' to catch on fire in numerous places. The ship was ablaze and smoke began to fill the lower chambers. Pulling his cloak to his mouth, Kayne's eyes narrowed as he spied several pirates piling down the stairs from topside. One of them grappled a crew member and started slashing at the unarmed man wildly, before several others joined in on the slaughter. Several other unarmed crew members backpedaled into the far wall, practically defenseless against the assault. Kayne unsheathed the savage weapon in a monkey-grip and charged the attackers, shouting in deep and commanding tone, "Put out those fires! I will take care of these wretched sods!"

Charging forward fervently, the earth-blooded warrior lowered his shoulder and barreled into one of the pirates with his pauldroned shoulder, slamming it heavily into a wall. The man's wind was knocked from his body and he crumpled to the floor, gasping for air. Kayne raised his chained boot and brought it down heavily into the pirate's face, the head of the man collapsing beneath the weight with a sickening crack. He twitched a few times and went still.

One of the ship's crew attempting to put out a fire screamed in horror as another buccaneer ran past Kayne toward him. The hulking swordsman raised his greatsword high in the air and swept it around, liberating the assailant's head in a single swing. In a flurry of swings, the experienced warrior dispatched the small horde of attackers without much effort and rushed topside to survey the severity of the situation.

When Kayne peeked out over the bulkhead, the entire ship was ablaze with fires raging uncontrollably. The entire left side of The Wench was crushed as another ship had collided with their vessel. Crew members were fighting for their lives, scrambling for weapons and grappling with the pirates. The ship was leaning to its side and slowly sinking. The genasi scrambled to his feet and shouted to the sailors, "How in the bloody nine hells did nobody see them coming? Where is Vent? Where is the bitch?"

Neither could be found and nobody cared to answer him as they were either fending off the attackers or jumping into the sea, abandoning the wrecked ship. Kayne shouted loudly, his deep voice echoing over the battlefield, "Into the sea. They cannot pick us off if we group up!" He ran to the nearest crew member, who had on of the attackers grab his arm, his scimitar raised and ready to bring it down upon him. Kayne lifted the hateful blade upward into the pirates's arm, using his heavily gauntleted left arm to add leverage to the blow and guide the weapon upwards through the limb. Kayne immediately grabbed ahold of the sailor's collar who was now screaming in terror and flailed frantically at the severed appendage still gripping him. Grunting with the effort, the hulking warrior tossed him backward into the ocean and upon loosening his grip, brought the heavily armored left fist forward as hard as he could into the man's face, shattering his nose and fracturing the pirate's skull with tremendous force.

Seeing that the ship was damned and the crew was either already in the ocean or dead, the giant warrior sheathed the troll-forged blade and turned to jump into the ocean. An explosion rocked the ship, a projectile plank of wood striking Kayne full in the temple before he could even react. The dazed swordsman faltered and his head began to throb painfully, his vision blurred, before he lost his balance and stumbled over side of The Wench. The last thing he remembered was the sound of water splashing before he lost consciousness...