Verse 5:
Dawn came all too soon for the exhausted travelers. Or perhaps it wasn’t dawn, but Dia yelling her head off while ordering Nate and Mattie to... arm the cannons?
“What time is it?” Len slowly awoke, only to find himself by the door of the cabins, which was on the other side of the ship than he fell asleep on.
“Time to move~!” Mattie said overly-cheerfully, while nudging Len with his foot. “We have a job to do!” He and Nate were scrambling around on the deck, as if preparing for war.
“What...?”
“They mean we found our prey for the day.” Dia had a smirk painted on her lips and her black eyes shone with excitement and a fire of challenge. “NATE, PICK UP THE PACE! MATTIE, SECURE THE RIGGING!”
“Aye, Aye, Captain!”
She pulled out a collapsible telescope and pointed it far off. “Yep. That’s a big one. Must be worth a lot, based on those sails. High quality sails like that’re never used, ‘cept fer wealthy trading companies.” She whistled. “I might just keep one fer myself... OI! NATE, MATTIE! NO FLIRTIN’ ON THE JOB!”
“Sorry, Captain!”
Gakupo and a very sleepy Kaito emerged from the cabins. “How much louder can she be?” The aristocrat complained as Dia lectured Mattie and Nate.
“She can be as loud as she wants.” Kaito rubbed his tired eyes and yawned.
“GAKUPO! MEIKO! MAN THE STARBOARD CANNONS! KAITO! LEN! PREPARE TO BOARD! MATTIE, NATE, BETA POSITION!” The fierceness and sharpness of Dia’s orders jolted everyone awake and they began running around to where Dia commanded. Rin was the only one who was lucky enough to sleep very soundly and stay asleep.
The boarding party was ready as the Flame of Rebellion came broadside by a very fancy merchant ship that Dia described with the high-quality sails. It was a simple brown, but the trim was in gold, and the name was written on the side in gold also. Lady Luck was the victims’ name.
“Guess she’s not going to be so lucky today.” Meiko murmured as she prepared to fire the cannons.
“ON MY MARK!” Dia grabbed a rope with one hand and raised her other, ready to give the signal. “READY! AIM! STEADY!” Len and Kaito quickly grabbed the nearest ropes, understanding what Dia was about to do. “FIIIIIIIIREEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!”
The cue was given, and dozens of cannons were shot off, signaling that the boarding party was to launch and begin their attack. Blasts and booms filled the air, drowning out the screams and yells of the opposing crew. They scattered like seeds in the wind when they saw Dia’s red hair. Even if she’s known by reputation only, the mere sight of her red hair could send the strongest of men cowering for fear. The poor captain of the fearful men tried so hard to bring order back, but to no avail. Dia lightly touched down on the deck and practically sauntered up to the screaming captain.
“Excuse me, sir. But I do believe that this ship and all its cargo is now my property.” Dia lit a small piece of cloth she had in her pocket on fire with only a sparkling powder and waved it in front of his panicked face. “That is, unless you want all of it to go up in flames, of which I am most certainly not above doing.” He timidly backed away from the wicked Flame Witch of the Sea, exclaiming that the ship only had some valuables and had almost no precious cargo.
Kaito and Len appeared beside her, holding up several large bags filled with precious gems, jewels, gold, silver, and jewelry. “There’s a whole storage area more where that came from.” Len added, throwing the two bags over to the Flame of Rebellion where Mattie and Nate were waiting to take them down below deck.
With no warning whatsoever, Dia kicked the cowering man in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him, and pointed her sword at him, much like she did when she reunited with Kaito, only this time, without the playfulness.
“There’s only one thing on this earth that I hate more than Empress Bitch.” She dug her sword into his neck a little. “And that would be liars. I hate them. They are the scum of the earth.” Pressing harder, she glowered even more. “I want nothing more for them to die. So give me one reason to let you free.”
“I have a wife and two kids!” He stammered though a thick accent. “And my wife, she’s very, very ill! I need the money from this job for her medicine-”
Dia pulled back her sword and sheathed it. “Kaito, Len. Is there a spare lifeboat?”
Confused, they nodded.
“Good. Give it to him.” She turned away and began walking down the destroyed deck and into the cargo hold. “I’ll only be taking half of your merchandise, mister. I’ll also be giving back your ship.”
The shivering man praised his gods, her, and cheered, saying never had he seen so much mercy from a lowly pirate. Kaito and Len just stood there, confused. She could have taken his life, his ship, taken all the valuables, and run. Why did she spare him?
Right before she swung back over to her ship, she had one last thing to say. “Oh, right. One more thing.” A warm and uncharacteristic smile graced her lips as she wished the captain’s wife a safe recovery and jumped back over to the Flame of Rebellion.
