MEANWHILST, in a part of town where writers come out from the lurking woodwork to retake his contributory position in a far less bleak manner than it was presented to him, we focus in an (admittedly bleak) prison cell, and prepare to rejoin...

Episode 3277: Outfoxed!

A grey fox hung from in the cell, shackled around the wrists to the ceiling. He swayed slightly from side to side, the sea breeze from the miniature window pushing him away. The last few years had not been kind to his complexion; his blue coat was tattered and messy, his boots in dire need of replacement, his trousers were riddled with holes and his shirt was devoid of a number of buttons, leaving his chest exposed. Scars riddled his face and body, obvious points where hair would no longer regrow, a large chunk had gone missing from the peak of his left ear, and the sunglasses that had once so often adorned his face had been replaced with an eyepatch, covering his right eye.

"I'm telling you, I'm not a pirate!" he shouted at the guards facing him from the other side of the bars.

"So you keep telling us. Got any proof of that?" one of the guards replied.

"Proof!? Like what? I told you, I'm out of work right now, I used to be a detective at Espoir Gauche!"

"Uh-huh. You got a P45 form for that?" said the other guard.

"A P-forty--? You think I'll have a form from a job I left four years ago, considering I've been at sea for most of the time since? Don't you think it might have gotten wet!?"

"About your sailing, sir...your ship--"

"A lifeboat is hardly a ship!"

"--was adorned with the jolly roger--"

"It was my bedsheets! I was hanging them out to dry! It's not my fault if the colours ran!"

"--and you're certainly dressed like a pirate."

The fox looked down at himself. "Oh, so it's now illegal to wear what I want, is it? What I feel comfortable in?"

"It doesn't help your case, no."

"Well look, it's halloween in a week," argued the fox. "Is it so much of a stretch to think this may just be a costume!?"

"Halloween is still months away," stated the first guard.

"What? No it isn't, it's October 24th tod-- oh, wait. Meta humour. I get it. Ha ha, very funny. Well, ok, maybe pirates are just in this year!"

The second guard laughed. "That's the second worst excuse I've ever heard!"

"I dunno," the first chimed in, "did you see that fashion show they had in town the other week? Very piratey fashions there. Of course, the governers weren't too pleased about it, but our missus wants one of them headrags, so maybe it's catching on."

"And besides that," interrupted the fox, before the guards managed to get sidetracked, "if I was a pirate, surely now would be a good times for some of my pirate friends to come and save me, yeah?"

The guards looked at each other, murmured and nodding in agreement. The fox began to smile, when suddenly a large bang shot out from the bay, startling all three of them. The guards rushed out of view to the window further along the corridor, while the fox looked out of his own.

And there, in the bay, was a pirate ship, bold and beautiful, with smoke rising from one of the deck-level cannons, where a cannonball had just shot off into the town.

"Well, balls."

Oh no, kids! How's our hapless hero going to get out of this one? Tune in next time for...

THE MISADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN THS, Episode 3278: The Joke Gets Old!

"You know, just one of these days...I would like to take a trip that didn't end in everything SETTING ON FIRE!"

A somewhat sharply dressed man surveyed his surroundings. There was lots of pillaging and burning going on. This would be rather frightening and upsetting to most people, but to a seasoned adventurer like this guy, it was nothing. He had come to this town hoping to gather some clues as to the whereabouts of some treasure left by a legendary pirate. He was supposed to meet a contact here, but it looked like that would have to wait now...

"You there!" He pointed at a rather grizzly looking pirate. "You are ruining my investigation! I demand an immediate halt to these activities!"

The pirate didn't really understand what this guy was saying, but it made him rather angry that anyone would distract him from his various pirate-related deeds, and so he rushed towards this guy ready to give him a beating...

"Not today I'm afraid!" The man gave the pirate a jolly good fist right in the face and knocked him out, probably shattering his nose in the process.

"You are the most undignified creature..." The man wiped some ash off his stripey waistcoat, readjusted his long, dark green coat, and walked on, paying no mind to the flaming chaos around him.

After a bit of walking (and a few more broken noses), the man found the place where he was supposed to meet his contact: a tavern in the middle of town (which was of course, burning to the ground). He groaned and looked around. In the corner of his eye lay a recently deceased individual. The man walked over and recognized the corpse as his contact. The man knelt down, muttered some last rights under his breath, and rummaged through the man's pockets.

"Hmm, let's see...pocket watch, gold coins, keys, lemon sherbet...AH! Here we go!" The man unfolded the piece of paper and inspected it: They were docking records, and they showed that the pirates he was looking for had docked here before they mysteriously disappeared. "Ooooooooooh! Creepy!" The man said to himself. He looked up and saw that while he had been busy, a bunch of pirates had surrounded him.

"You guys didn't hear that did you?" He said aloud. "I don't usually talk to myself like that. Well, actually I do but..."

"SHUT IT!" The leading pirate bellowed. "You've been makin' a mess of our boys, and now we're gonna make a mess of you! What's your name whelp?!"

"I'm glad you asked..." The man smirked, and drew a cutlass adorned with nicks all down the blade into his right hand.

"I'm the man who's going to find Captain Libra's treasure and become the greatest adventurer of all time! I AM COLIN WELLS! AND YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"

In another part of the town, a woman sat reading a book as the building she was in burned down around her ears. She was a short woman at just under 5ft tall but by no means small, with a rather generous bottom. Her eyebrows were contorted into a scowl.

Finally she closed the book with a snap and looked up as a beam from the ceiling fell towards her.

She punched clean through it.

"GOD DAMN WHAT THE HELL!" she yelled, her voice oddly deep for her appearance. She gave the beam a glare which probably would have set it alight if it weren't already.

She got up from her seat and looked around the resteraunt. All of the other patrons seem to have fled. She wondered indignantly why no-one thought to warn her, before she remembered she probably would have bit their heads off if they tried.

She picked her way out of the building, spotting several ships at the docks as she left. Pirates.

The lady sighed and walked calmly down the streets, ducking and dodging projectiles and fists alike. She could never get any peace! Even when she goes on holiday the town she goes to has the gall to be invaded by pirates! Her juicy romantic fiction obsession was going to have to wait.

She entered a shop that was exploding somewhat towards the rear. The shopkeeper was laid on the floor with his hands over his head.

"Sir! Get up at once! I require your assistance"

"Miss we're closed! Please leave!"

"Does it say closed on the door?"

"Damnit we're exploding for god's sake!"

"Do I look like I care?" the woman drew herself to her full dimunitive height and fixed him in one of her glares.

The shopkeeper scrambled to his feet. "Fine! What the hell do you want?"

"I want every gun you've got."

Her name was Moira Dennis and she was all outta gum.

Aaron groggily climbed to his feet. His senses were dazed and his body felt numb. He couldn't tell what the extent of his injuries were, but I mean c'mon, he was involved in an exploding tavern. Naturally he'd hurt.

As he looked around, the remainder of his senses began to return. He coul spy out of the corner of his eye some strange and sharply dressed gentleman squaring off against some of the pirates whom were beseiging this town. Aaron could easily work out that the man was not a local, being a) he couldn't recognise him, and b) no one in this town was THAT sharply dressed. He could the man call out something about someone's treasure and adventure, as well as his name and a declaration of attack to the pirates, but to Aaron he couldn't care less. No, his primary concern right now was to find hs family, and rescue them out of this hellhole.

Using the stranger's arrival as a distraction, Aaron slinked off into the burning town ahead. He tried to keep hidden as best as he could, keeping out of the way of the rampaging pirates as cannonballs rained from the sky and destroyed even more of the town around him. If he wasn't panicking he might wonder why the pirates would fire cannonballs down upon an area where their own men were, for surely they'd likely hit them. But either way, he pressed on, remembering the quickest route to his home.

As he journey'd across the town, he'd had a couple of run-ins with the pirates, but managed to escape by darting around the alleyways. He was fortunate one time however, for one of the pirate's own cannonballs had destroyed the house inbetween him and the pirates, blocking the pursuers away from him. He scrambled on past Hunting Earl's shack, where he could swear he heard a short, disgruntled woman demand every weapon in the building. Or maybe his was imagination.

15 minutes later, Aaron reached the clearing that led to his home. His face widened in horror as he could already see it engulfed in flames. As he ran towards it, he could see a crumbled body lying near the entrance.

"Mother!!" Aaron called out, as he collapsed next to her and lifted the woman in his arms. "Mother, speak to me!!"

The dying woman flickered her eyes open slowly, and a small smile creeped up her lips as she could her son was alright. "Aaron... you have to flee..."

"Where's father? Where's sister?!" Aaron yelled out.

The woman whimpered, the effort to talk, let alone stay awake monumental.

"The pirates took Renee. Your father chased after them after I was stabbed... I don't know where they are now..."

A look of anger and determination furrowed on Aaron's brow. "Hold on, mother, I will find help! I will save you... mother?"

His body went completely numb and into shock. There was no response from the woman he was cradling in his arms. His mother had been killed, and it was at the hands of these monsters that were besieging and ransacking this town. As tears escaped the boy's eyes, a howl of anger and anquish erupted from his mouth. But he knew he didn't have time to mourn his mother, that would have to come later. His sister had been kidnapped and his father was still missing. And he'd be damned if he was going to let either of them die, too.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?" a sneering, evil voice beckoned from behind Aaron. It was two pirates, one a large, rotund pig of a man, the other a slanky weasal. Both of them were carrying valuables looted from the homes, and both were brandishing their swords. The look in their eyes made it all too clear that what they saw in Aaron was another upcoming kill.

The guards walked back into view, clearly displeased by the attack taking place on their hometown. The first stopped at the bars to the fox's cell again, while the second continued on down the corridor.

"Well, well, looks like you just gave yourself away," the remaining guard taunted.

"What, you think I would tell you exactly how I was going to get out of here the second before the attack started?" asked the fox, desperately aware that any credibility he had was slipping away. "This is just a coincidence!"

"A likely story. I know how boastful you pirates can be. You probably couldn't help spilling the beans."

The fox paused a moment. "Well, alright, piratey types can be suicidally egotistical," he conceded. He then opted to change tact; "Where did your friend go?"

"He's gone to get the keys to your cell."

"Wait, you're letting me go?"

"Oh, no. We're taking you up to the gallows."

This took a moment to sink in. "I-- the gallows!? I haven't even had a trial yet!"

"Attack on the city counts as an act of war, lad," said the guard. "Justice doesn't quite run as it normally does in those circumstances. If they're here to rescue you, my colleague and I will be in a much better negotiating position having you in a compromised state rather than just waiting here to be slaughtered."

"Ok, even I'm genre savvy enough to know that won't work. Just as a hunch, what's your friend's name?"

"His name? Well, for whatever it's worth, it's..."

The guard stopped and pulled a face you would expect from someone realising that everything he thought he knew about the world was a lie.

"Ha! I knew it!" celebrated the fox. "I bet you don't even know your own name, do you?" There was silence for a moment while the guard gave him a frightful look, and the fox grinned widely. "Knew it. It's got no chance of working. You two are just plot devices. Looks like I'll be getting out of here after all."

The guard's face turned from horror to unbridled MANGER, while his friend arrived wielding keys, a look of slight worry at the first guard's expression. "Uh...everything alright?" the newcomer asked.

"Fine," came a reply from between gritted teeth. "Just...get this thing open." He looked back at the fox. "Alright, then; you think you're so clever, what's your name?"

"Oh, that's an easy one," the fox answered. "It's--"

Another explosive shot rang out, and the roof crumbled and fell around them. The guards fell backwards, away from the cell, while the fox fell forward to his face, the chains holding him no longer supported. The chains slid across the floor with their remaining momentum, passing through the bottom of the bars. Sunlight shone in through the gaping hole in the building where the ceiling and wall at the back of the cell had just been.

The fox, seizing his opportunity, got to his feet before the guards could recover, and concluded, "Captain Alex Reeves, and don't you forget it!" He then ran to the hole in the wall, and lept through it, falling down past the cliff face below.

The wind rushed past him as he fell, fresh and reinvigorating, and he basked in the sunlight he had been depraved of, planning for the freedom that awaited him.

And then a sudden sharp jerk brought him to a stop, almost dislocating his arms in the process.

After catching his breath from the sudden pain, he looked up to see what had halted his escape; a chain link had caught on a protruding rock, but the iron was so rusted it had no chance of supporting his weight. He figured the chains must have tangled around the bars of his cell as he fell, and cursed his luck.

"Get this bastard cell open!" came a yell from above, and Alex began to fear his escape attempt would be for naught. There was the sound of metal sliding against metal, and the chain holding him aloft began to tug to one side--

But the link remained caught on the rock, and as the tension increased, the rusted iron gave way, severing Alex once again from the chain and leaving him in freefall.

He landed neatly on the ground and quickly ran into an alley and out of view of the prison, where, he glanced back to see, the two guards were looking out and arguing furiously with each other.

Alex moved quickly through the town, signs of ensuing chaos everywhere, and eventually stumbled upon a group of pirates accosting an individual. He interrupted with a jovial, "Hey guys. Listen, do any of you know where a guy could get a drink around here?" He glanced down at his wrists, still bound in metal clamps with a short length of chain hanging from it. "Oh, and a locksmith, I suppose."

The shopkeeper fled Hunting Earl's shack, shoving notes into his bag with one hand and brandishing a rather scary looking weapon in the other. He no longer needed to guard his stock so he was bucking it. He very quickly vanished out of sight.

After a couple of moments Moira also emerged, armed to the eyeballs. In fact with the rediculous amount of guns she now had strapped to her body her schillouette was now unrecognisable. She walked out quite calmly as the last of the gunpowder in the shop ignited.

BOOM

One of the pirates looked around at the last moment to see what must have been a demon walking from the firey gates of hell. Yes, it must be. His bladder released it's contents, and he fled.

Moira flicked her head to clear her hair from her face, turning to a pirate who was staring gobsmacked at her.

"Deal with it." Her shades gleamed.

She removed the sunglasses she must have put on whilst making her transaction. Since when did she have shades? This makes no sense.

A pirate leapt for her, and she aimed her gun and proceeded to have a fight so badass with the many pirates in the area that any civilians still in the area started crying from the massive overdoses of awesome she was handing out.

She worked her way through the town until she reached a tavern where she spoted a well dressed gentleman also fighting pirates. If there was anyone she could trust, it would be a man who knows his or her smart fashion. And this gentleman certainly did.

"Excuse me sir!" she called as she dodged another pirate wildly swinging his cutlass at her. She brought her leg up and roundhouse kicked the pirate in the ribs. "Do you fancy a team up?"

The fact that this woman actually referred to him as "Sir"was more than enough to assure Colin that she was a trustworthy sort of woman.

...Plus, he wasn't going to argue with someone carrying twice their body weight in firearms.

"Splendid! We shall dispatch these brutes as a team! We can be just like a crimefighting duo!"

"No." She replied. Bluntly.

"Okay, you can be the edgy one that acts all cold on the outside, but deep down you actually respect me."

"No."

"Well, we've got to have some sort of dynamic..."

"No."

"Fine..." Colin gave up and clubbed a pirate with the hilt of his cutlass. "We'll discuss this later." Just as Colin finished his nonsensical gibberish, a cannonball flew overhead and into a building behind Colin.

"Seems our grizzly friends are bringing out the big guns!" Colin pointed to a pirate in the distance rolling a huge cannon down the street.

"You've got the guns, you take care of him! I can handle these nobodies!" Colin gave another pirate an uppercut and sent him flying.

Moira nodded curtly then launched herself down the street. She weaved through the crowds at quite a terrifying rate.

"GOD DAMNIT I SHOULD HAVE ORGANISED THIS BETTER" she fumed as she fumbled around the many firearms strapped to her body. "Where the hell is it!"

She paused to dive into a roll to avoid a particularly nasty looking sword being swung in her direction. She swung around and knocked his knees out from under him, before knocking him out with the handle of a pistol, then continued.

She the reached the pirate with the cannon and did a flying kick to knock him to the floor. She quickly rolled him onto his front then sat on his back.

"Hang on a minute" she told him, still rummaging around. She had the perfect gun, absolutely perfect for the occasion. She couldn't just use anything.

The pirate moaned and tried to get up but she put a foot to his neck. "Keep still"

She was so engrossed that she failed to see the three other pirates take hold of the cannon and continue it on it's course.

Aaron turned around, and to his amazement there was a fox bound in chains around his wrists with a cut chain, who just stumbled upon the situation with him and the couple of pirates whom were threatening him. To his amazement even more was that the guy seemed to be joking! What kind of situation did this look like, where a band of pirates was ransacking and destroying the entirety of Atele Roo that it warranted joking?!

"Get out of here!" Aaron shouted at the newcomer. "Just run!"

"Foxy's going nowhere!" shouted out the lanky weasel pirate, dropping his loot to the ground and charging towards "Captain Alex Reeves", his sword held high. He swung it in a large arc, aiming straight for the fox's head. Alex raised his arms in self-defence, trying to block the incoming attack, and to his luck it worked, for but a second later the sword cleaved through the rusted iron shackles across one wrist and just narrowly missed the fox's chest. Alex dived back a bit, putting distance inbetween him and his attacker, one of his arms now newly freed from the cuff.

"Just get it on wit it!" called out the weasel's piggish companion. As Aaron looked on at Alex's and the weasel's confrontation, he had momentarily forgotten all about the other pirate. Aaron stumbled and fell backwards as he tried to get away from the pig. The pig sneered and oinked menacingly, closing the gap slowly, enjoying the look of sheer fear across Aaron's face. But the pig's elation at Aaron's misfortune was shortlived, for a second later he felt a sharp, stabbing pain in his back. And the reason for that was quite simple; after all there was a sharp, stabbing sword stabbed sharply in the pig's back, before being pushed further in the pig's chest. As the pig gasped in agony, he stumbled around looking for his atacker, to spy an unusual cloaked figure looking at him and waving at him.

"Sorry, mate, nothing personal, but I can't let you go killing this lad here." said the cloaked newcomer, walking up to the pig, spinning him around and pulling his sword out of the pig's back, before kicking the dead pirate to the ground and out of the way. "G'day, gentlemen. I'm here to help."

"W-w-who are you?!" exclaimed Aaron.

The cloaked figure paused a second, as if he was inspecting Aaron and deliberating what he'd say before he did so. Afterwards, he turned and began walking towards the weasel, who was now just slightly miffed and scared at the fact that this guy had just killed his companion.

"Tell me, young lad, have you heard of a pirate called Captain Fishears?" The cloaked figure asked, not breaking stride as he continued his approach to the weasel. A large yellow puddle began forming at the base of the shivering weasel's feet, as he shakingly held his sword towards the cloaked figure.

"Captain Fishears...? The infamous pirate who terrorised the seas, before dying and becoming a ghost, and still continued to terrorise the seas?" Aaron questioned. At the same time, a wayward shot from one of the pirate's vessels launched a cannonball into the air, and it began sailing down on the group's position. "Is he the one who's doing this?!" Aaron shouted. "Is he the one attacking my town?!"

The figure stopped. He turned, and looked back towards Aaron. The figure's body posture demonstrated a sigh before shaking his head. "No, he's not the one attacking your town." At that, the figure raised his sword in the air, still held in his scabbard, and in a feat both amazing and awesome and god knows the plausability of, he swung the scabbard like a baseball bat and batted the incoming cannonball away the instant it was about to land and blow the entire group up. Aaron, Alex and the weasel all stood around, their mouths agap in shock. Elsewhere, across the town, an explosion rang out from where the redirected cannonball would have landed.

The figure retracted his hood. "I am Captain Fishears!" the long haired and unshaven pirate shouted aloud, a wide grin across his face. He pointed his sword, still held within the scabbard, towards Alex, and then to Aaron. "And I am here to help you!"

BOOM

Moira dived to the floor as the explosion blasted the street apart. Just their luck, the cannonball had landed directly onto the cannon. Two of the pirates rolling it were dead, and the third was on the floor sobbing. Around them various other people were laid out on the floor too, groaning.

"Typical I find it now" she sighed, finally finding her rocket launcher. Would have been perfect to use on that cannon. Oh well, she'll just have to remember for next time. And she saved ammo.

The pirate she was previously sat on got up. "Well. That was unfortunate. That cannon took ages to steal" he sighed. He looked at Moira. "Well... seeya then" before walking off.

Moira just stared. She then shook her head, got up and squinted into the early afternoon sky. Where the hell did that cannon come from? It wasn't from where most of the cannons had been fired.

It was time to rendez-vous with her partner in crimefighting and do some action sleuthing.

"Wait a minute," said Alex, breaking the stunned silence of the group, which the newcomer seemed to have been enjoying. "Fishears?"

"Yes, lad?" he replied.

"Captain Fishears?" repeated Alex.

"That's me name, lad," the captain answered.

"Aren't you..." mumbled Alex. "Didn't we... Haven't I..."

"Spit it out!" yelled the weasel, who clearly took anger as a good distraction from the dripping taking place from between his thighs.

"...I can honestly say I've never heard of you," Alex finally decided.

"Really, now?" said Fishears, looking the fox over. "From the look of you, I can't say that's a surprise."

"Hey, are you telling me I look stupid!?" shouted Alex indignantly.

Fishears shrugged. "Perhaps. What's your name, lad?"

"Captain Alex Reeves," the fox replied without hesitation. Fishears frowned.

"Strange, I thought I recognised you as someone else. What did he call himself...THS, I think?"

Alex looked a bit embarrased. "Well, I used to call myself that, but...you know when you're about ten, and you think names like Spike sound cool, and then you grow up and realise how stupid it actually sounds?" He paused a moment. "Actually, with a name like yours..." He caught himself, trusting not to incur the newcomer's apparent wrath. "So anyway, you say you know of me?" he asked, clearly proud of himself.

"Kind of. Tell me, if you're a captain, where, exactly, is your ship?"

"My ship?" The fox looked a little staggered at the question. "Well, uh...it's...out in the bay! Where else would a ship be?"

"Lad, there were only one ship out there, and that's where these rats were coming out of," Fishears said, pointing down to the dead pirate. Aaron shot Alex a disdainful glare, while the pirate's friend muttered, almost inaudibly, "I'm a weasel, not a rat..."

Fishears held his arm out in front of Aaron to stop him from charging at Alex. "Calm yourself, lad, the fox isn't involved in the attack. Listen, Reeves, I know you've got yerself no ship, and it were the boy here I'm most interested in. Yer free to come along, if yer want to be part of a crew again."

"What? I don't even know you!" shouted Alex. "Why would I want to come with you for...whatever it is you're up to?"

"Suit yourself," sighed Fishears. "Just one thing before we get going." He walked up to the weasel, who had evidently forgotten he was in danger, and ran him through with his blade, blood dripping into urine on the ground below. "Well, that's us, lad," said Fishears to Aaron. "Come on, we've got work to do." Aaron seemed a bit uncertain, but followed anyway.

Alex edged away from the bodies, moving toward an alleyway to go back to finding some reliable way of removing the remaining shackle. As he moved down the alley, he caught a glimpse of a small group of pirates running past the far side, pursued by a pair of city guards, who looked suspiciously like the ones in the prison earlier. Alex promptly stopped, turned around and chased back after Fishears, hoping he hadn't been seen.

//bluh this post is a bit naffer than i thought it would be oh well

OOC: Huge post is HUGE. Sorry for this, chaps.

IC:
Aaron followed Captain Fishears, as the pair of them raced down the cobblestone streets in the direction of the docks, towards the looming pirate ships in the distance that continued their unrelenting cannonfire upon the town of Atele Roo. As the town around them crumbled apart and continued to be engulfed in flame, Aaron noticed that the sounds of the screaming were beginning to die down. This didn't instill Aaron with any sense of confidence, chances are that it meant that almost everyone in the town had already been killed.

"Why are you trying to help me?" Aaron asked, as he tried to keep apace with Fishears, but at the same time keeping a safe distance. The man had admitted to being a pirate (a captain nonetheless!) and already killed two men in cold blood before him. What was there to show he could be trusted? Granted, Fishears had saved Aaron from being killed, but to what end? Why would he save Aaron, and why would he be willing to help him rescue his sister?

Fishears looked back at Aaron without breaking stride. "If we don't hurry up and focus on the situation here and now, me laddy, then your sister will already be gone." Fishears faced forwards again, and pointed ahead towards the town square, where, aside from the burning wreckage of the quaint townhouses and shops that were here before, there were only a small handful of pirates left. "The pirates are retreating!"

A man stood in the centre of the town square, pirates running past him, carrying stolen loot and struggling women back towards their ships. His posture was that of one who was calm and in control, and his appearance was of one who was a farcry from the rest of the pirates that were beseiging the settlement. His pirate's coat danced in the air wildly as the flames neared around him, illuminating his clean, good-looking face, and his odd golden hair. "Alright, you scallywags! It's time to move on out! Anyone who isn't back at the ships within five minutes will be left behind!" The man bellowed aloud. "Captain's orders, the navy are nearing in!"

"Commander Matthews!" called out a short pirate, carrying an unconscious small girl over his shoulders. "Is this the girl you told me to capture?"

The man known as Commander Matthews looked at the girl, and nodded. "That's her. Bring her back to the ship, and make sure she isn't harmed in any way, understood?"

"Aye, aye, commander!" the short pirate continued on, running down the hill to rejoin his ship.

"Renee!!" called out a voice from behind the short pirate, but the pirate didn't stop running. Commander Matthews turned towards the sound of the cry, and identified Fishears and Aaron running towards them. Aaron was shouting out a hoarse cry; the captured girl was no doubt his missing sister.

Fishears stopped the pair of them as they reached the town square, facing Commander Matthews who turned to meet them, and inspect them. His face looked incredulous, a look of genuine shock and surprise as he identified the two men. "You... but how could you be here?" he asked, looking straight at Fishears. Fishears scowled, and put forth a protective arm in front of Aaron, encouraging him to get behind him.

"Be careful laddy, this man is dangerous. He's not one you want to go blindly fighting otherwise you'll be dead in but an instant." Fishears cautioned. "This man here is one of the most powerful men in the world, and me complimenting someone is not an easy achievement."

Commander Matthews' face returned to the more calm and emotionless expression it had worn earlier on. "You're fortunate that I do not have the time to be dealing with you, otherwise I would find out just what on earth is going on here." Commander Matthews turned around, and began walking towards his ship. This was all it took for Aaron to rush past Fishears, and began charging towards Commander Matthews on his way towards the ships. And he would have died but a few seconds later if Fishears hadn't barreled Aaron to the ground, protecting him from the amazing event that would transpire next.

Commander Matthew's entire body seemed to glow, before the ground itself erupted into flame. Across the entire town of Atele Roo, a large wall of intense flame shot up from the ground towards the sky, incinerating anything and everything in its way, and blocking off the majority of the town from the docks and the fleeing pirates that were reassembling at their ships. Their escape was perfect and undefeatable.

"W-what the hell happened?!" Aaron called out, feeling the warmth of the fire wall but a few feet from his face.

"That man is Commander Matthews, a member of a feared band of pirates known as the Rumble Pirates. He carries the strange magical ability to produce and control fire itself... no doubt it be he that caused the majority of the fires here in this town." Fishears began to explain. "Not to mention he's dangerous enough alone without that ability... or that he's not even that pirate band's captain. Saving your sister now isn't possible."

"What?! But I can't let her be taken by those madmen!" Aaron exclaimed.

"I will help you get her back, for a price, but now is not the time I'm afraid. We will find them, and rescue your sister." Captain Fishears replied, standing back up and lifting young Aaron up with him.

"A price? What do you mean by that?" Aaron asked, inquisitively.

"I'll explain in due time, but first things first, we shall need to find the rest of the people who will accompany us in this town." Fishears nodded, walking away from the fire wall and back towards the remainder of the ruined town.

"What other people?" Aaron inquired. Too many questions, so little made sense, and as more time passed his sister was being taken further and further away.

"The people whom I'll need to join my crew. You're one of them, and that fox you saw earlier...? He'll be another."

"What? Why him, and what makes these other people you mentioned so special?"

"Because they're integral to my plans and ambitions. Not to mention... it be their destiny." Fishears smiled. "Come, let's go meet the rest of the new members of our soon-to-be happy little family."

Colin watched as this wall of fire engulfed the town, "This certainly limits our options now doesn't it?" he said, walking towards his female accomplice after she laid the smackdown on those unfortunate fools.

"I could totally do that if I wanted." Moira grunted.

"Looks like our grizzly friends are retreating to the docks." Colin pointed down towards the pirates amassing downhill from them. "And seeing as how I don't fancy being burned alive, or succumb to carbon dioxide poisoning from smoke inhalation, I suppose we'd best head that way too."

"You're very...wordy" Moira pulled a somewhat disgruntled face at him.

"Not every situation needs to be resolved with guns, one-liners and things generally blowing up."

"Well, it works for me." Moira shrugged and walked on towards the harbour, many buildings blowing up behind her.

Colin decided not to follow too closely. He realised he was in a bit of a pickle now. The passenger ship he came in on had been pillaged and no doubt destroyed, and there was very little chance of there being any ships coming this way any time soon. He considered the possibility of using the rather bulky Moira as a raft and sailing away, but he concluded that she would kill him long before he had a chance to do that...

The pair of Captain Fishears and Aaron walked through the burning remains of the town of Atele Roo. All around them they could see the bodies of the inhabitants who once lived here and the few pirates that died in the attack itself. Aaron could feel tears welling up inside of him, but he choked them down; he had to stay strong and he had to rescue his sister, no matter what. Fishears seemed like his best chance of doing so, so for now he would follow him. But he didn't trust him, after all this Captain Fishears was a pirate himself, and it was that self same breed of scum that had just destroyed his hometown.

"So where are these so-called special people, then?" Aaron asked, feeling a tad impatient.

Fishears shot him a glance, and then pointed straight forward, to a couple of people before them; one a well dressed gentleman, the other a shorter, somewhat mean looking woman with an awfully high number of weaponry adorning her body.

"Greetings, fellows!" Captain Fishears called aloud, alerting the two wary newcomers to his prescence. "I'm glad to see you both survived this rather harrowing series of events!"

Colin and Moira stared curiously at both Captain Fishears and Aaron. Around them, the flaming walls that blocked their access to the docks was dying down. The pirates had long since sailed away, and any influence that Commander Matthews magic had on the wall of fire was receeding. It still cast an eerie mixture of light and darkness upon all whom were gathered.

"And who, sir, might you be?" Colin Wells inquired.

"I'm sure ye might have heard of me before, m'laddy." Fishears smiled. "I am Captain Fishears, and I am here to give both of you an offer."

Naturally, this piqued the curiosity of both involved.

"An offer?" Moira asked. "What on earth could you offer me?"

Fishears smirked. "Well, I'll lay it out on the open. I want both of you to join my crew, along with this lad here, and one other we've yet to find again." Fishears pointed to Aaron. "And in return, I can help the two of you accomplish whatever it is you're after, amongst... other things."

Captain Fishears walked up closer towards the pair, and stretched out an open hand towards Colin. "For instance, young man, I happen to know the very man who's treasure you be searching for, and what's more, I can help you find it. And him, if you wish it." Colin raised a surprised eye, as Fishears then outstretched his other hand open towards Moira. "And as for you, young miss, well... I'm sure you'll want to keep the nature of what you want quiet for now, but make no mistake, I can help you achieve your goals, too."

A moment of silence loomed over the group, before Moira finally spoke. "And for all that, you want us to become pirates with you?"

"Why, yes," Fishears smiled, looking the young woman in the eyes. "What do you say?"

Moira smirked. "I call bull****. I bet you know bugger all about me. And quite frankly as notorious as you are it is quite rude of you to come sauntering up to us like you've known us for years when we've never even met."

She took a moment to take in the two people who stood before her. Of course she knew of Captain Fishears, she was quite suprised in fact that her accomplice hadn't. But the boy he was with looked like a pansy. He had the look of someone who was close to tears but trying not to outright cry, and his expression seemed somewhat confused.

Moira swung her arm towards him somewhat dramatically, bringing it to a stop with her pointed index finger inches from the bridge of his nose. "And you! I bet you've never even held a real weapon before, let alone experiance real battle"

She stepped away, eyeing the boy with obvious contempt. "Well. I suppose I've got nothing better to do. But there is no way I'll join a team without even knowing anyone's names. Especially you," she span around to face her well dressed partner in crime, "for a gentleman you are awfully deficient on manners."

"I'll start. My name is Moira Dennis," she curtseyed, quite a feat with all her weaponry, "Inbetween jobs, skilled with all manner of weaponry with a speciality in long-range arms."

She stepped back and folded her arms.