The Legend of Captain Thorne

Some two centuries ago, in the reign of Emperor Hinotakon, there sailed the seas a pirate, who went by the name of Captain 'Relentless' Thorne. Few descriptions of him exist, because few who met him survived. Those that did were too loyal to betray him or too afraid to cross him. Tales say, though, that Thorne was a tall, lean man, his ruddy cheeks standing out from his pale face, burned red from the ocean sun. He sported draggle of ill-kempt, muddy-brown hair in which he suspended beads of precious stones. He wore a dark cocked hat and was never seen without his blood-red eye-mask. Thorne and his crew of ‘The Defiance’ sailed under a red flag emblazoned with a screaming dragon skull. ‘The Defiance’ was legendary for its speed and they were the scourge of the Badumin Sea, preying on merchant ships laden with spices from the south, silks heading east and, especially, gold and jewels heading to Mitzu from the North. His love of gemstones knew no bounds: it is said his captain’s quarters were encrusted with jewels and his windows glazed with fine shards of gems. His quarters, however, paled into comparison with his fabled treasure hoard. Early in his career, while still an obscure hand for another captain, it is said he discovered a legendary wandering island, which could be summoned through secret means. Seeing an opportunity, he single-handedly wiped-out the crew upon his ship to ensure none but he knew how to call the island. Upon this island, he discovered a cave. Within this, through his career, he placed the many riches he and his new, hand-chosen crew had plundered. Whilst the island was present, his crew were welcome to take what they needed and deposit what they could. Wealth was not hard to come-by and, with life aboard ship, there was never any scarcity to worry his trusted men. Relentless, however, did keep a special secretum for his most prized items. There lay a select few things he deemed to be too exceptional to share with the world. But for all the wonders within his secretum, he lusted after one item in particular: the Eye of Mercannan. This legendary jewel, supposed to be a rare relic from the antediluvian Mitzu, was a shimmering sapphire the size of a grapefruit. When the light passed through, it cast reflections that glittered and danced as the surface of the seas. It was said that it was created by the Sea God Mercannan himself. This stone, though, lay beyond the reach of a pirate. It sat, where it had for centuries, mounted in the upright of the Imperial Throne of Mitzu. Here, placed by a window in the Azure Palace, its dappled light danced across the Throne Room, celebrating the Empire’s relation with the seas. Though beyond his immediate reach, Relentless could not resist the allure of the stone. He sent thieves and assassins to try to reclaim it, but all failed. The Dragonborn Emperor of Mitzu, Hinotakon , became greatly afeared for the fate of the precious jewel and sent word across the land that he would reward any who could bring him sound information leading to the apprehension of Captain Relentless. Many came, purporting to have news of Relentless. Most were fantasists, others creating stories for attention or gain. Some had nuggets of information, but either Relentless and the Defiance remained one step ahead of their information or they mysteriously disappeared before too many secrets were revealed. Then one day there came a new visitor. His was hair black as coal, straight and partially wrapped by an Alagrian headscarf. His skin was the colour of weathered oak and stood out among the crowd of paler humans, half elves and colourful dragonborn. As he raised his head to the Emperor, Hinotakon noticed his eyes were the colour of sea-kelp, shining as it is just washed upon the shore. He spoke with the soft accent of the desert, introducing himself as Celedrior, a merchant from Barada. He begged the Emperor’s leave to tell a story in the hope that it might be of value to him. The Emperor consented. Celedrior told the story how he had been shipwrecked upon the Badumin Seas. Floating hopelessly upon a broken board, he was barely conscious when he felt himself dragged from the water and into a small rowing boat. He was taken aboard a ship where, in the darkness below deck, he was slowly nursed back to health. The day he was first able to stand strongly upon his own feet again, the captain of the ship came down to him. From the shadows, the Captain proclaimed Celedrior would be spared and allowed to leave at the next port in which the ship berthed. In return, he was told, he must work to pay for his passage and to never venture above deck. If he did, he would be run through on the spot. Grateful for his life, Celedrior agreed. The Captain made a noise of approval and left for the deck. As he departed, a shaft of light from between some planks lit but a chink of muddy-brown hair and a red eye-mask. Celedrior worked hard and abided by the rules of his saviour, never once venturing above deck. At times this was hard. The ship passed through storm and battle, but Celedrior stayed below: scrubbing, fetching, carrying. Finally, what Celedrior later calculated to be about 6 months after he was rescued, the Captain came down to him again. The ship, he said, was now near port in Alagria and that it was Celedrior’s time to depart. Grateful, Celedrior nodded and gathered the meagre possessions he had accumulated aboard the ship. He made for the hatch up to the deck. “Halt!” called the Captain. Celedrior felt a cloth over his eyes and tied behind his head. It had been a long time, the Captain said, since Celedrior had been outside. His eyes would be sensitive. He must keep the cloth upon his eyes, he was told, until at least he was upon the shore and allow himself to slowly remove it and acclimatise to the light away from the sea. Celedrior protested, saying that he would surely be safe acclimatising to the light at his own pace. The Captain, however, was insistent and for the good of Celedrior’s eyesight would send along one of his crew in the boat who would run him through with a cutlass should he remove the cloth too soon. Seeing he had little choice but to agree, Celedrior grasped for the ladder to the hatch and climbed up to the deck. He felt the sun on his face for the first time since his rescue. He was lead into a row-boat and lowered over the side. Sitting in the bow of the boat, he listened to the splash of the oars and the click of the rowlocks. The little boat bobbed vigorously on the waves. Then, Celedrior felt a shadow pass across him. The shadow of a passing ship, moving quiet fast. The crewman watching Celedrior shouted angrily at the larger ship. At that moment, the boat hit that ship’s wake. The judder caused the blindfold to slip from one of Celedrior’s eyes. Though it was a mere second until he replaced it, fearing the wrath of the crewman, in that time he finally got a brief look at the ship that had provided him his treacherous home. And, on the side, its nameplate. The Defiance. He made it safely to the coast and, eventually, home. Whilst his experience never fully left his mind, he went on with his life. He remained a trader and a couple of years after his experience he had once again set sail for Mitzu. Understandably, his experience played on his mind during the journey. Imagine his surprise, he recounted, when he arrived in Szhen-Dgou to see that very ship moored in the harbour. It now bore a different flag and nameplate, but it was definitely the same ship. The Emperor trusted this man and at once called for his guard and his carriage and then set off as fast as they could for the Docks. However, by the time they got there, the ship had sailed, just visible on the horizon with a spyglass. Other ships were dispatched in pursuit, but none succeeded. Bitterly disappointed, but grateful for the most real information brought to him, he invited Celedrior to dine with him as reward: a fine treat for a simple merchant. Over dinner, Celedrior charmed the Emperor with stories of his exploits across Ara and tales of daring-do of other adventurers he knew of. The Emperor loved the stories and invited Celedrior to stay with him a while in the Azure Palace. And so he did. The two bonded and became firm friends. Over the next few years, Celedrior came and went from the Palace frequently, bringing with him exciting tales and trinkets from across the lands he had seen. Especially of interest to the Emperor were stories of the Pirate Relentless, of which Celedrior had heard from other travellers. Celedrior was treated as a member of the Palace household and allowed free reign through the Palace and grounds. One morning, some 10 years after the two had met, Celedrior failed to appear at the Imperial breakfast. Not altogether unusual, Hinotakon sent a guard to fetch him from his, now regular, chamber. When the guard reached the chamber, he found the room is a state of disarray. On further inspection, it seemed only the most precious items were missing, whilst all of Celedrior’s clothes remained. The Emperor was worried for his friend. He interviewed his household and sent his Guards into the town to find out what had taken place. Within a few hours, it was discovered a man matching Celedrior’s description was seen being led by another man, resembling a sailor, away from the Palace and toward the Docks. They were later seen boarding a ship. Hurrying down to the Docks after his friend, the Emperor again discovered that his quarry had already set sail. The Emperor recognised the ship at once as The Defiance. This time though, they had less of a head start. Boarding the nearest ship himself, the Emperor commanded they set off in pursuit. They chased the ship for 5 hours, the distance between them ever increasing as the swift Defiance outstripped the cargo skiff carrying the Emperor. Snatching a spyglass from the captain, the Emperor scrutinised the deck of The Defiance for any sign of his friend. He could see none. Then, rising from a trapdoor in the deck, Hinotakon saw the man he had pursued for years. The muddy-brown, jewel-encrusted hair, cocked hat and red eye-mask of Captain Relentless. Never removing his gaze, the Emperor screamed to his ship to go faster. Then, Relentless turned, looking what seemed to be directly at the Emperor. The Emperor felt his stomach go cold. He stared back into a pair of eyes he knew well. Green eyes, shining like kelp just washed ashore. The hair was no longer black, the skin had lost its brown hue and was now pale, with reddened cheeks. The features were unmistakable, though. He was staring into the face of his friend Celedrior. The pursuit continued for 4 more hours, the Emperor fixed silently to the deck. An hour after The Defiance had disappeared over the horizon and the sky began to turn gold, he signalled for the captain of his ship to return to port. Hinotakon returned to the Palace a broken dragonborn. He had been betrayed by his greatest friend. He went to his Throne Room to sit and think. His eye immediately fell to the back of the Throne. At the top lay a gaping hole and some twisted metal. The Heart of the Ocean was gone. From that day, the Emperor swore that neither he nor his dynasty would speak with anyone, other than his trusted line of Viziers. He only entered rooms once they were emptied. His meals were laid for him before the room vacated. He decreed this would continue until the Heart of the Ocean was returned. To this day, none are allowed to meet with the Emperor except his family and the Vizier. As for Relentless, he continued to plunder the seas with his crew until his muddy hair grew grey and the green eyes dulled. Perhaps he had grown old, or tired of the life. Perhaps the fates wished to mete out their punishment. He and his ship were captured by a Patrol ship of Belegond. Taken back there, he was questioned and tortured into a confession of piracy. He was hanged and left in a gibbet. His body was stolen and never seen again. Throughout his torture, he never revealed the secret of how to summon his island. To this day, it is said his hoard has not been found and is awaiting discovery by some lucky sailor.