Basil Galeshore - Chief Cook

Basil Galeshore, the ship's cook, is an eccentric yet seasoned human with a gruff demeanor and a love for culinary experimentation. Standing tall and broad-shouldered, Basil moves through the ship’s galley with surprising agility, despite the peg leg that replaced his right limb long ago. His most distinctive feature, though, is the staff he always carries — a gnarled piece of driftwood topped with a translucent, glowing jellyfish encased in thin glass. This staff, a relic from his pirate days, seems to hum with an eerie energy, and he claims it’s not just for show — he’s used it to fend off more than one hungry mutineer in his time.
Basil’s white chef’s hat is far from pristine. It’s a reminder of his dark past, emblazoned with a faded red skull and crossbones — the symbol of a pirate crew long eradicated. Once a feared chef aboard the infamous Bloody Marlin, a pirate ship notorious for its cruelty and raids, Basil narrowly escaped its destruction in a dramatic naval battle. He ended up adrift at sea, where he was found half-starved and delirious by the crew. Captain Thandor, recognizing both his survival instincts and his culinary skills, offered him a position.
His apron, frayed at the edges and smeared with food stains, is a testament to countless meals prepared in chaotic kitchens — from pirate galleys to the ship's own cramped quarters. Despite its tattered appearance, Basil refuses to part with it, calling it his "battle-worn badge of honor."
Basil is a mix of gruffness and hidden warmth, a pirate at heart who has softened with age and experience. He often barks out orders and grumbles about the quality of ingredients he has to work with, but beneath the gruff exterior lies a man who genuinely cares about feeding the crew well. He prides himself on turning whatever the ship can scavenge into edible — and sometimes surprisingly delicious — meals. He has a dry sense of humor, often making cynical quips about life on the sea, but those who spend enough time with him know he’s fiercely loyal.
Though he pretends not to care, Basil looks out for the younger crew members, often slipping extra portions of food to those who seem like they need it. He has a love-hate relationship with the ship's more chaotic members, frequently bickering with Sparky about cigar ash contaminating his galley and loudly complaining when Drift gets underfoot.
After the destruction of the Bloody Marlin, he never quite left behind the survival instincts and toughness that come from living on the edge of death. Cooking is his art, but also his way of staying grounded.
He speaks little of his time aboard the Bloody Marlin, but every so often, late at night, when the galley is quiet and only the creaking of the ship and the sound of waves fills the air, Basil will share a story or two — tales of pirate battles, narrow escapes, and the ghostly legend of the jellyfish staff.
Despite his checkered past, Basil has found a sense of belonging with the crew, and while he might growl about the crew’s insatiable appetites or the chaos in his kitchen, he wouldn’t trade it for any other life. He’s a cook, a survivor, and a man with secrets, but above all, he’s loyal to the crew that saved him from the sea.