Art:Space Pirates/Esme's Story
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Esme's Story
by Valandir
“It’s not fair!” I shrieked as I stormed up the grand staircase into my bedroom. “I’m the mayor’s daughter! I’m the one who’s supposed to get abducted by pirates!”
As I threw myself down onto my bed, tears welled up in my eyes. I thought of what had taken place over the past few months. Six months of preparation…gone. A rare opportunity…gone. Half of all the money I had saved up…gone. And myself? Not gone, and miserable about it.
Everything had been ruined because that dimwitted pirate had kidnapped the wrong person. When I first spoke to him, he had claimed to be one of the best in his business. Even so, I always had a slight suspicion that there was something wrong. He called himself Two-Eyed Jax, but I found out later from father’s documents that he wore an eye patch. One eye or two, he was obviously not very adept at creating aliases for himself.
Two-Eyed Jax and I had planned for quite some time through painstakingly careful and slow correspondence. Obviously, all holograms and uplinks were monitored in the mansion, so we turned to electronic messaging. The technologies were outdated and the lines were not very commonplace, but they were reliable enough.
Everything had gone so smoothly. He wanted money, and I wanted to be out of this insufferable environment. I had arranged for the security droids to be elsewhere when he passed by, and the servants were all out completing the mindless errands I had sent them on. Nevertheless, he had never come by, and now I was 140,000 credits poorer and without anything to show for all the work I had put in. It would take me at least another four months to accumulate enough money to even attempt to contact another pirate.
I would be old enough by then to attend Madame Darcy’s Academy for Proper Women, and there was absolutely no doubt in my mind that father would insist that I be sent there for the next six years of my life. There was no way out. I had already been subjected to 17 years of rigorous education in lady-like skills and mannerisms, from cooking to speaking. It appeared that I was bound to have more. Fate had apparently decided that I would become a stuffy old woman, destined to a life of dessert utensils, committee meetings, and knitting circles. The fact was, mother and father didn’t actually care what happened to me, as long as I was obedient and represented our family in the proper for the next election.
As I rolled over, Mimsy bounded up into the bed, curling up next to me. The torrent of tears had stopped, replaced by a dark, dreary feeling in my heart.
“Ah…Mimsy. You’re the only one here who really understands,” I whispered as I picked her up.
“Why don’t we get something to eat?”
Mimsy purred almost as if to say, “Yes.” As I headed downstairs to have the cook prepare us a snack, however, I couldn’t help but wish that I had someone else that I could really talk to.
The next week did nothing to improve my mood, as the pirate attacks were mentioned in every newscast. The citizens couldn’t seem to find anything better to do with their time but cover the stories of the poor woman that had been taken by the invaders. The worst part of it was that mother and father refused to let me view the local newscasts to learn more about how the abduction had taken place. All of my attempts to convince them to let me find out more were rebuffed by sobs from mother and exclamations of, “But Esmerelda, it could have been you!”
As such, all I knew was that a lady who had no considerable status had been taken by pirates somewhere in the inner-city district. Had it been any other occasion, nobody would have noticed her disappearance. Pirates, however, seemed to bring widespread concern. By now, the real news had already passed, and all of the reports centered on motives for the kidnapping and other speculation on when they would be back to claim their next victim.
Obviously, the only way I could find out more details about the kidnapping would be to go into the city myself and ask around. Under the guise of shopping for a new summer dress, I headed, with Mimsy in my handbag and a servant assigned to accompany me, into the city to try and piece together exactly what went wrong. First, however, I had to rid myself of my escort for the trip. Doing so ended up being far easier than I had first anticipated; after ordering my companion to search for some outfits in my size at a local tailor in the bustling shopping district, I simply turned in the opposite direction and briskly flounced away.
Finding the local inns, however, was much harder than I had expected. The city had taken huge strides, both positive and negative, since I had last visited. As I turned onto a street with a dead end, I had a sinking feeling that I was lost.
As I turned around and continued walking, it didn’t take long for me to notice that I stood out in this part of the city; the houses looked more like the ones that were shown in my old history textbooks, and I suspected that my new clothes were worth more than the life savings of some of the inhabitants here. People came out of their homes as I walked by, as if my mere presence screamed at them to take notice. Breaking into a run, I spotted a run-down establishment ahead. Sixteen Handles, I read as I approached the inn. The name was not familiar, but I didn’t have much choice. I needed to find information on the abduction and figure out a way out of this area, and the inn was the only friendly place in sight.
Once I entered the inn, however, I realized that it was far from friendly. The darkly-lit bar reeked of alcohol, as if the spirits had soaked into the tables and seats, becoming as much a part of their structure as the wood itself. Sixteen pairs of eyes turned to watch me as I approached the bartender, and everything turned deathly silent.
“Ex…excuse me, sir? Do…do you know about the girl that was kidnapped last week? Can you tell me anything about her?” I whispered, barely hearing the sound of my own voice.
The bartender leaned forward with a strange expression on his face…it betrayed surprise, anger, and relief, all behind a toothy grin.
“Mate…it was you. Everyone knows that.”
A cold shock ran through my body as thousands of thoughts raged through my mind. How did he know what I had planned? Was he Two-Eyed Jax? Does everyone really know? Do my parents know?
My thoughts failed to make the connection between my mind and my mouth. Sputtering, I spun around and stumbled out of the inn, knocking over chairs. The people in the inn began to laugh at my state of disarray, yelling words that my brain refused to make any sense of. Panting, I burst out of the inn and ran, the jeering laughter still echoing in my head. As I rounded the corner of the street, a cloaked man strode out of the nearby alley. He quickly grabbed me and covered my face with a foul smelling cloth.
Attempting to scream, I found that I had no voice. Air refused to pass through my lungs. The last thing my brain registered was the cackling of the stranger as everything slowly faded to black.
“Gotcha...you’re a sneaky one, aren’t you? Thought you could get away by pretending to be kidnapped, hmm? Hah, you wish you were so lucky…”
So cold…
…cold?
Cold!
I yelped as a cold deluge of water suddenly brought me to consciousness. Bright lights suddenly filled the room, and my head seemed to explode. As I held my aching head, I began to hear a familiar voice.
“You’ll have a headache. It’ll hurt. Deal with it.”
I opened my eyes cautiously. Squinting, I could barely make out a tall, stringy male with remarkably green eyes. Anger overrode my senses of fear and pain as I stood up and moved towards him.
“Who are you and what do you want with me? Where am I? Where’s Mimsy? What’s going on? My father will have you jailed once he finds out about this!” Words streamed out of my mouth as I tried to give meaning to all the emotions I felt.
“Hold up. You’re safe. Nothing’s going to happen to you…though…you mentioned your father…he must be worried, huh?”
Bewildered, I shouted the first thing that came to mind.
“Where’s Mimsy?”
The man laughed, and leaned down so he was face to face with me. Smirking, he quipped, “If I knew what a mimsy was, then I’d tell you.”
“My cat!” I yelled, suddenly worried about what the man might have done to her. “If you hurt poor Mimsy…”
“What?” The man smiled at me as he motioned around, “Your father will get me? He can’t find you because you’re on my ship. And your cat is fine. She’s out on the main deck.”
The words took time to sink in as I gradually realized where I was. I couldn’t help but smile as I exclaimed, “Main deck? You mean we’re on a spaceship? You kidnapped me?”
The man stepped back, visually bewildered by my change of tone. His demeanor seemed to soften a bit as he responded, “Yes…you’re on my spaceship right now, and yes, I kidnapped you. You just happened to be the wrong person.”
His new features suddenly disappeared as quickly as they had come. Frowning, he continued, “But, since your father seems to be an important man, I’m sure he’ll offer a hefty sum to get you back. Enjoy yourself on the ship. My business is not with you, so just stay out of my way.”
I was abruptly reminded of the last thing I had heard before I had lost consciousness earlier. Thought you could get away by pretending to be kidnapped, hmm?
“Wait,” I yelled as he turned to leave, “what do you mean by me being the wrong person? And when you said I was pretending to be kidnapped earlier? What did that mean? And who are you?”
The man shrugged, obviously unconcerned. “People call me Amar. I thought you were the young lady who got kidnapped by the pirates on Messiinga. Turns out you’re not. You look like her, to an extent. Same face. I figured the pink ruffles were a disguise…should have thought it through more, no pirate would be caught in that outfit, even as a costume.”
Over the course of the next few days, I managed to discover that we were headed towards the Calliope Space Station, the crown jewel of space vessels across the galaxy. I also struck a deal with Amar; in return for 100,000 credits when we reached the space station, he would release me after we docked. Everything in my life was finally falling into place. I spent most of my time happily moving about the deck of the ship, observing the other pirates at work.
Everything, however, was not all good. Space life was nothing like what life at home had been. Amar insisted that I help out in some manner on board the ship while I was there, and I soon found that normal ship duties were not things I could manage. Instead, I took up residence as the cook for the few other pirates on board. Even so, supplies and food were scarce, the days were often long, and my clothes were hardly efficient for moving about in. I traded away my clothes and my handbag for standard space garments, which suited the atmosphere much better.
Mimsy kept me company during the trip, as the other mates on board were far too busy to ever talk to. Space life was interesting, but observing the tasks that had to be done soon got tedious. Nothing new ever happened, and the only sounds that I ever heard on deck were the noises of the machinery as each pirate quietly performed their duties. I began counting down the days until we reached the station; perhaps there, I would find life to be more interesting.
After a few weeks, we finally approached the Calliope Space Station. I saw the lights from the station before I was able to see the station itself. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before. The docks were bustling with ships, and the whole structure seemed to resonate of greatness.
It wasn’t until I had finally paid Amar and was left on the station alone that I realized how little I knew of space life. All around me, people were moving about. Everyone had something to do. Caught up in the moment, I began looking for a job as well. I began to notice all of the different job positions that were needed by the vessel captains. They needed mechanics, cartographers, and all sorts of people to work on their ships. What they didn’t need, however, was a cook. After an hour of fruitless searching, I ended up in front of the Bacchus and Stars, a crowded bar filled with all sorts of people.
Sighing, I plopped myself down on a stool at the bar. As I did, the bartender turned around, giving me a strange look which slowly turned into a smile.
“Esmerelda, is it?”
I nodded, as my shocked mind did not know what to say. I began to try and figure out who she was, and how she knew my name.
As if the she had read my mind, she continued, “I hear a lot in this job, and word travels fast. You don’t look the part of the princess, though. Come to try your luck in space?”
She seemed to know everything. “Yes…but nobody seems to need me. Who are you and how do you know all of that?” I exclaimed, confused at the current state of affairs.
“Name’s Ratri,” she chuckled, “Ratri Iolana. I run this bar. You meet all sorts of people who come in, and you hear a lot about what’s going on in the galaxy. That’s how I know.”
Astounded, I forced myself to speak. “So…you get to meet lots of people, and talk with them? Do you have a position open for a cook? I mean, I can help in whatever way you need, I’ll do anything, whatever needs to be done, and I have plenty of training in these jobs.”
Ratri seemed taken aback for a moment. Slowly, she leaned over and said two words I had been waiting for my whole life.
“Welcome aboard.”
