Cat looks at the slain Spaniards and returns topside to listen to the captain. She rolls her eyes at his mention of the plank, then sits down on an unused hatch cover with her back to the wall.......

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For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not die, but have everlasting Life. ~John 3:16~





~The Mercenary A-U Gentlewoman~

Hedoc leaned over the railing, savoring the salty night air. The stars, sprinkled in a last blanket of velvety darkness above him, shone down with cold ardor.

Whatever else Hedoc hated about piracy, this was not one of them. No British redcoats on his tail, no looking over his back for street thugs, no enduring the disdainful gazes of aristocrats. For one ephemeral moment, he could almost pretend he was free.

No sooner had this throught crossed his mind than he sneered at his own sentimental fancies. Freedom was illusion. The only freedom any human could ever achieve lay in death.

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The night went on silently without any noises as the ships sailed quietly in the night, as the sun began to rise Francis was already up looking around quietly on the deck at the few working crewmembers. Francis headed for the cargo deck below to see the treasure before they would share it.

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Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!

Hedoc woke suddenly to a pale dawn. Sitting on the floor against the railing, he'd inadvertently fallen asleep. He leaped to his feet. He caught sight of the captain moving towards the cargo hold. His eyes narrowed.

What exactly was this treasure? Francis had allowed few to rest eyes on it. What was so special about it?

Hedoc intended to find out. The few crewmembers already up were paying little heed to him. Surreptitiously, he slipped into the cargo hold behind the captain.

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[bump]

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Francis quietly walked up to the chest and let his hand run on the lit before he pushed it open revealing the gold pieces with a skull carved in them. He watched at the treasure quietly before raising his eyebrown as he found a knife in the chest, he tossed it into the chest and picked up a piece of it with a smirk as he examined it before his eyes.

"So these were the *beep* paps was after... sure as hell will make a good profit..."

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Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!

From the shadows behind the ladder, Hedoc appraised the stone chest. It was a chest. It was made of stone. The stone contained coins. The coins were made of gold.

Hedoc wasn't impressed.

He stepped out from his hiding place with the words, "So this is what we've been after all along?"

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Francis` eyes narrowed as he took a quick step back as Hedoc appeared, but then calmed down and continued to look at the gold piece in his hand. He flipped it around in the air and then catched it to drop it in his pocket.

"Yes, what no one else except I know that I was after this treasure with my old man and this treasure has been payed with his blood so I made a promise to find it. Yet look around, we have many other treasures here so they will be fairly shared like the contence of this chest."

_________________

Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!

Hedoc walked over to the stone chest and peered inside. It was filled to the brim with similar gold medallions, each embossed with a skull. He picked one up out of the chest and gave it an experimental toss. It was alluring, in a way that couldn't be defined. He decided to keep it, as Francis still had hundreds more.

From above deck, someone shouted, "Land ho!"

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Francis closed the lit and almost pulled Hedoc out to the deck before he went to the railing, he smirked as he realised that they weren`t too far away from Tortuga now.

"Okay lads, we stop before Tortuga to split the treasure and then you can go to land to have some fun if you wish..."

The Wayfarer and the treasure galleon stopped before Tortuga, the town was in the horizon as they all gathered to the decks of the ships while crew members started bringing the treasures up. They were all put into one pile from, which equal shares were given to the crew and finally they brought up the stone chest. Francis pushed the lit open and stood looking at everyman whom took their share from the chest.

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Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!

Drake took his share quietly, the blue eyed boy now had a long, red, scar from the corner of his eye, to the corner of his mouth..

~~~

John was the last to take a piece from the stone chest. He got his share, then looked at the captain, making eye contact, John watched the captain watch him. A smile appeared at one side of his mouth, then her turned, and instead of going into the town, stayed on the docks...

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(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Hedoc took his share without meeting anyone's gaze. He decided to explore Tortuga. The local taverns might have something for him after all.

_________________

Francis entered his cabin and began reading the captains notes should they reveal anything about the spaniards other plans, other treasure ships or just information that their foes could use.

_________________

Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!