(Continued from Ch 6, Pirates In Training)

The Chronicles of Rapina
Chapter 7, Red Jack's Isle 


Red Jack felt the new recruits were doing well. Most of them were, anyway. One tried to make a break for it as soon as the ships were unloaded, but he did not get very far. A few of the pirates had chased him down and surrounded him. To his credit the would-be escapee had lasted through twenty-five minutes of constant pummeling. He would have made a great pirate had he the stomach for it. Jack shrugged and surveyed his base camp. Logan appeared from inside one of the many tents and shacks the camp was composed of. Jack was pleased to hear that everything went smoothly during his absence. He knew that Logan was a trustworthy and capable man. Jack dismissed him and took a walk through the camp. 

"Why do pirates have to plunder such heavy things?" Drake mumbled to himself as he hefted a large chest out of the rowboat. He had never really stopped to consider how much actual work was involved with being a pirate. He almost wished he had stayed a farmer. No. A farmer's life was not what he wanted. He wanted to lead men into glorious battle. 

"I guess I could have always joined the King's army," he mused. That thought came a little late. It was beginning to look increasingly like he was going to be a pirate for the rest of his life. He wondered when he was going to learn all the important stuff about being a pirate captain. He had heard Roger and Red Jack discussing it a few nights ago. At least he thought they were talking about him. Drake decided that he would do his best to prove how capable he was. They would not be able to overlook the great feats he would accomplish. 

Kent had just finished stowing the oars and checking the rigging. Only a few more checks to go before he would row to the island with the remaining crew. Roger was directing the few men who were left on the ship. The first mate walked up to Kent looked him straight in the eye and set about checking Kent's work. He turned to face the young man and said, "Not bad...for a land-lubber that is. We'll make a sailor out of you yet. Yes. That's right. I said sailor. You can be a pirate after you learn to sail. Think of it as a sort of graduation. Until then keep working hard." Roger turned and walked away without any hint of emotion playing on his face. Kent pondered his words for a moment. He had never heard it put that way before, but he had to admit that it made sense. What was a pirate, but a ruthless and cunning sailor? He picked up his things and went back to work. 

After finishing his duties, Edgar sat heavily on the ground. Could they give him duties that were any more boring and humiliating? He was itching for a fight but he realized that he would most likely get the stuffing beat out of him again if he tried something. Edgar decided to explore the camp instead. He noticed that the pirates kept a very close eye on his every movement, but that was to be expected. "I'm dangerous and they know it!" he muttered to himself. A chill ran down his spine and he stopped abruptly. Looking around Edgar could not find who it was, but he knew that someone was watching him intensely. He turned and almost jumped back ten feet when he saw the eyes staring at him. They were an emerald green and possessed an intense savagery. He inadvertently took a step backwards. The eyes were peering at him through the bars of a metal cage. It looked like an oversized birdcage hanging from a large tree. 

Edgar squinted as he tried to get a better look at the inhabitant of the cage. He dared not get too close, but from what he could see, it looked like some island savage. The savage had coppery-red hair, bronze skin with blotches all over it, and deep penetrating green eyes. Edgar was startled when Froggy came up behind him and slapped him on the back. "I see ye've met our pet elf, boy! Come say hi. He won't bite. Oh. Wait. Yes he will bite." 

Froggy laughed and then stepped up to the cage and shined his lantern into it. Edgar saw that the savage was indeed an elf. He also saw that what he had mistaken for blotches on the savage's skin were actually a series of tattoos. They were the most intricate tattoos he had ever seen. They seemed to twist all over the elf's body in a colorful struggle for dominance. Some of the tattoos seemed graceful and elegant and others seemed harsh and sinister. Talk about contrast! 

A sound that could only have been described as feral startled Edgar from his reverie. The cage swayed as the elf tried to grab at Froggy who was hitting the bars of the cage with a stick. For a moment, Edgar thought the elf would surely escape as his muscles bulged and the bars whined in protest. The bars held and he leaned back with a growl. 

"Aye. Ye'd do well to calm yerself elf! Either ya gets a better attitude or ya gets dead." Froggy laughed as he walked away. "C'mere kid! Time to fix up some grub." He grabbed Edgar roughly by the shirt and pulled him along. 

Jack could not help but smile to himself as he watched the scene with the elf, Froggy, and Edgar unfold. Although the elf was too dangerous to let out of the cage, he was useful in another way. Everyone was afraid of him, including Jack although he never would admit it. The threat of rooming with the elf was enough to keep every man in the camp in line. He would keep the elf as long as this was the case. Jack was hungry and the smell of cooking food reached his nostrils. He smacked his lips and headed off in search of its source. 
--- 

Rapina was sent to Red Jack's Isle with Piggy not long after the longship weighed anchor in the hidden lake. The first thing Rapina noticed about the marsh was the great number of biting insects that called it home. Rapina swatted her shapely calf. Of course it didn't help that she was wearing only a very short sail-cloth skirt that Milo had made for her, and a small rough silk tunic with a v-neck that oar master Pike had won for her by beating one of the smaller sailors at knuckle bones. 

After the ship's boat that carried them to shore landed, Piggy led her up a trail through the encampment to the central fires where they met the camp cook. 

"Oi, what 'av we 'ere, a prisoner?" the cook said, rubbing his hands together. 

Rapina thrust her chest forward and cocked her head. "I'm a crewman, not a prisoner." 

"Crewman, prisoner, it's six 'o one half a dozen o' the other for a green recruit it is," Fishy chuckled. "Me name be Fishy, once I war a stout pirate, but ill luck struck me down. 'Least that's what I call 'im, I ne'r got 'is name. A woodcutter 'e war, swung an 8 foot length 'o log and shattered both o' me knees. Hurt like the devil, but I were movin' fast enough that I fell forward and gutted 'im with me sword. Leach Kennon, fashioned me legs o' cypress wood, but I canna' run no more." 

Rapina swatted a fat mosquito on her thigh. "These bugs are horrible!" 

Heh, heh, heh, you got a lot o' fetchin' skin showin' thar, you'll be wantin' some o' Leech Kennon's bug ointment. I gots me a bottle, but I had ta pay for it. I'd consider lettin' a bit o' ointment go fer free long as I were controlin' that amount by puttin' it on ye meself. 

Rapina looked at the stout cook. "You and oar master Pike must think alike." 

"We do? Na what would a man o' my short stature have in common with that muscle-bound North man?" 

"He suggested the same arrangement as you did, only with regard to soap." 

"'Ee did? Why 'ee stole me idea then, the rapscallion. Did ye take 'im up on it?" 

Rapina nodded, "He washes me each evening." 

Lucky devil. Glad ye told me though, Ifn' I were ta pinch ye too hard, Pike 'd likely crack me jaw for me trouble. 'Might be worth it, but I be needin' me jaw for tastin' the food. If I can't taste it an' I make it bad, Red Jack'd have me roomin' with th' wild elf in yonder cage. 

Rapina turned and looked across the central clearing. There were a few rough buildings to the right and to the left was a cage hanging from a tree. Inside she could make out a humanoid shape, but the shadows of evening were too long for her to make out more than that. Rapina turned towards Fishy, behind him she could see another building, a house of sorts, built with greater care than any of the other buildings in the compound. She guessed the little house must belong to Red Jack himself. Just then, another bug bit her on the neck. Rapina swatted it. Ouch! 

Fishy grinned. 

"Oh, all right put it on me." 

"heh heh heh, th' pleasure be all mine." 

Fishy produced a bottle and rubbed ointment from it on Rapina's feet, and up her legs. He lingered as he went up her thighs. Rapina looked down at him, "hey." 

"Well, we wouldna want ye'er precious gettin' bit up would we," Fishy chuckled and moved on. 

Two weeks ago, Rapina would never have dreamed of letting a stout, scarred and muscular raider lustfully rub ointment under her skirts, but for better or worse, things, and Rapina herself had changed considerably. The drooling, grabby men were much more appealing if one's senses were attuned to lust. Rapina drifted into thought. Surrounded by pirates, Rapina's senses tingled most of the time, and her own lust had been kindled to such a degree that waiting for night when she might have a man seemed like a longer eternity every day. "Perhaps if I could contrive to have more than one man each night," Rapina mused. "Maybe that would make the day seem less long." Rapina snapped out of her reverie as she realized that Fishy had his hands down her shirt and had been anointing the fullness of her breasts for far too long. Rapina glared at the pirate. 

Fishy chuckled and moved on, finishing his job on the captivating young woman. 

"Thar now, thar be cookin' ta do, and now that th' bugs won't be eatin' ya, ye can help Piggy 'an me cook the eatin' fer the men. 

After the cooking was done, Rapina weathered the swats and pinches from the men as she helped serve the food. She really didn't mind the coarse attention she got from the pirates, save the ones that pinched too hard. She was sure she would have been greatly annoyed if not terrified had things been different, but the mens' lust lubricated her senses, and somehow all the coarse attention she got just made her that much hungrier for a lover. When the captain emerged from his house and sat at a table not far from the central fires, The cooks sent Rapina with his tray of food. 

"Here you are Captain Red Jack, sir," Rapina said, maintaining a certain mannerly formality in front of the men. 

"Thank ye wench," Red Jack grinned as he patted Rapina's rump. 

Rapina's chest flushed, and her errant nipples swelled at Jack's touch, denting the raw silk tunic she wore. 

"Now thar's a wench!" Jack chuckled. 

Rapina noticed that Jack's pirate-like mannerisms were much thicker when he was with the men. In private, he seemed more cultured and educated. Either way, Rapina's body was schooled to the fact that he was as fine lover as she had been with when he wanted to be. She had great difficulty not responding to his touch. 

"Make no mistake, mates, this pretty wench, crewman Rapina, be captured booty belongin' ta me, just like me ships. I've nothin' against ye enjoyin' 'er bein' 'ere and I'm enjoyin' this sail skirt Milo made for 'er as much as the rest o' ye," the captain said making Rapina squirm as he reached under the short skirt and fondled her. "But ye best treat 'er well. Ye wreck me wench, and ruin me fun, ye'll suffer the same as if ye wrecked me ship. An' if ye damage 'er w' yer gloms 'er tryin to force yer salty spar on 'er, ye'll be roomin' with the elf." Jack pointed at the cage hanging at the edge of the central clearing wherein the men sat. Jack's grin gleamed above the central fire as he saw some of the men swallow in fear. 

After the captain's speech, there seemed to be a consensus among the men that a pat was safer than a pinch. Rapina was much happier with the new arrangement. 

After the meal was served, Fishy put together a gruel jumble of what was left into the large leaf of a swamp plant set in a wooden bowl with a long handle on it. This'n be fer the caged elf. Offer it up to 'im, but don't ye get too close, and don' let 'im grab the bowl from ye. If he tries it, yank it away an' 'e don' get no dinner if 'e grabs the bowl, understand? 'Ee grabs the leaf out o' the bowl or 'e gets nothin'. 'E's a wily an, a dangerous sa watch ye're self. Fishy handed Rapina a torch on a long spear handle. Plant this'n in th' ground well away, so ye have light an both hands free for manin' the feed bowl pole. 

Rapina nodded. After taking the feeding instrument and torch across the clearing Rapina planted the torch a dozen feet from the cage and took up the pole-handled bowl. The elf was quite a sight; his body was a tapestry of tattoos that seemed almost alive in the flickering torchlight. Rapina stood well back from the cage and stretched out the bowl, hoping the elf would take the leaf, but steeling her grip in case he tried to take the bowl instead. 

The elf stared at Rapina for a long time. His emerald eyes seemed to be able to see right into her soul. His gaze never wavered the whole time their eyes met. Despite the savagery he had exhibited earlier the elf's eyes possessed a strong sense of lucidity. The cage swayed gently as he leaned forward. A heavily muscled arm reached through the bars and towards the bowl. A macabre mix of tattoos danced their way up and down and around his arm. Delicate vines wrapping around his arm were being eaten and hacked away at by demonic creatures. A beautiful full moon on his shoulder was marred by a tortured face within its diameter. Graceful steeds galloping across his forearm were being chased by foul creatures, and a falcon in flight on the back of his hand was flying through a sky of dripping blood. These were the first of the elf's tattoos to come close enough to Rapina for examination. 

As his hand neared her, the tattoos seemed to flare up with an unearthly light. A muffled sound escaped the elf's lips as he withdrew his hand and sat back in the cage. He had not grabbed the leaf or the bowl. He was just sitting there looking at Rapina with his head cocked to one side. His eyes narrowed and a moment later he spoke. The words were unintelligible, but were harsh on the ears. They almost hurt. It was like listening to someone describe the most horrible thing that could ever happen to a person. 

"I can't understand what you are saying, or what happened to you, but it sounded terrible and sad. I am sorry; you must have been through a lot. Aren't elves supposed to live a long time and be more civilized than humans?" 

Doanthalas waited for a moment and then leaned forward in the cage once again. The elf reached out and deftly removed the leaf from the bowl. The cage swayed slightly as he sat back. Before he started eating he looked Rapina straight in the eyes and said,"ThÚau luneah." This time his voice sounded soothing and gentle. He sat back and started eating his food quickly. 

Rapina watched the elf eat. He was about the right height for an elf, she supposed, but he was certainly more powerfully built than she had heard of elves being, and his movements were much more savage. Rapina smiled as she felt the elf's lust dance through her sensitive nose. Certainly, he was a man, and he had revealed a hint of something not at all savage just now that left her confused. Rapina imagined how it might be to make love with him -so much rippling muscle covered in magical tattoos. Her errant nipples responded instantly, denting the fabric of her tunic so rapidly that it made her blush. She bid the elf goodbye and decided she would have to ask an elf what "ThÚau luneah," meant if she ever ran into one who spoke common. 

After the dishes, oarmaster Pike appeared and he and Fishy contrived to give Rapina a bath. She was just getting dressed when word came that the captain wanted to see her. 

Captain Red Jack's house was small, but well built. There was a guard posted outside the door who let Rapina in and motioned towards the door on the left. Inside was the captain's parlor. It was not very big, but it was surprisingly luxurious. Tapestries bedecked the walls and bee's wax candles lit the room. Inside sitting on a comfortable chair, was a man Rapina had never seen. Jack himself sat on a couch. 

"'ave a seat thar Rapina," Captain Red Jack said. "This here is Leech Kennon, 'e's our camp doctor. Ye'll be off kitchen duty now, Kennon will be usin' ye in the afternoon after ye do combat practice w' the recruits. Right now I want ye to see if ye and Kennon can fix ye up with those same herbs ye told me about that keep ye from conceivin'. A pirate camp's no place for children." 

Rapina named the herbs she used, but Kennon was only familiar with the one that brought back a woman's menses when she feared she might already be pregnant. The herb Rapina had used on a daily basis was unknown to him. 

"Sorry Captain, I'm a Leech not a midwife. I'll be taking the girl to hunt and pick herbs to be dried for poultices for the men's wounds, maybe she can locate the plant she needs. If she can, then we can set up a supply for her." 

"That'll have to be the plan then, Kennon. See that ye locate the plant soon and put up a supply." 

"Yes sir," Kennon said.

"Rapina, yer ta report to Leech Kennon's hut straight away after arms practice tomorrow, understand?" 

"Yes sir," Rapina replied.

"That'll be all then, Leech Kennon, dismissed." Red Jack nodded towards the door.

"Aye sir." The healer got up, and let himself out. 

Rapina relaxed a bit as the captain put his arms around her. 

"There now, I've some ship's logs to finish up, would you like to do some reading before bed time?" 

"Yes, I'd like that," Rapina said, barely disguising the enthusiasm in her voice. Of all the people she'd known, perhaps only the late reverend Evangeline owned more books than Captain Red Jack, but the Reverend's books were mostly religious texts. Aboard the longship the captain had nautical books, and one book had maritime stories. 

"Well then, I guess ye'll be wanting to see me library. The captain took Rapina's hand and led her out the back door of the parlor and up a tight spiral staircase. Soon he opened a door to a room with a table, shelves and a great many volumes. A great oak desk stood against one wall. The captain lit the room's candles, hung Rapina's mage light from the chandelier in the center of the room and settled in at the desk. "There we are, find ye'rself a book and do some reading if ye like. 

"Thank you Captain. I had no idea there were so many books not about religion." Rapina was nearly overwhelmed. The captain had maybe thirty volumes aboard his ship but here were hundreds, enough that she was unsure whether the reverend had more than the captain did. She did not know where to start. 

The captain chuckled. "Ye'll find better caches in the houses of most noblemen, but I've gleaned many a volume headed for a nobleman's library by raiding ships and towns over the years." 

"It's a wonderful collection," Rapina smiled as she looked at books. Rapina looked at one book; it was all maps. She put it back, she wanted to read words, not look at pictures. The next book left her mouth wide open. 

"What's a matter, did ye find a dirty joke in there?" The captain laughed heartily. 

"This book, it's all words." 

"That'd be a dictionary. It's a reference book, all the words are in alphabetical order. If ye get stuck on a word in another book, ye can look it up in there and see what it means." 

"Can't I read this one? I had no idea there were so many words." 

The captain grinned. "Sure ye can read it if ye like, but I'll caution ye not ta try out the words on me men. They'll think yer speakin' code or talkin' down to 'em." 

"Okay," Rapina said softly, her mind already fascinated by the number of words she had never seen before. At first, the wordbook was frustrating. Many of the definitions contained words that Rapina did not understand. When she looked up those words, sometimes their definitions had other words that were also new to her. Nevertheless she found the book as fascinating as it was puzzling, and spent the entire evening reading about words starting with the letter "A." By the end of the evening, she was understanding most of the definitions much better, and did not have to look up so many words beginning with letters other than "A," just to figure out what the "A" words meant. 

The captain chuckled every time he looked up from his logbooks at the enthralled expression on Rapina's beautiful face. Had anyone asked him the name of the most fascinating book in his collection, he would have rated the dictionary right near the last just before the few holy books he owned. 

The next morning the captain rose early. He rummaged around in a sea chest and came up with a narrow swatch of cloth. 

"You're going to combat training this morning. Here, take this and bind yer breasts tight ta yer chest. Ye'll be running a lot today, and yer a big girl, I wouldn't want to see yer pretty tits loose their shape on my account."
--- 

Hock looked the men over and raised an eyebrow when his eyes lit on Rapina. "Why the captain even bothered sending a wench to him, he would never know. The sooner she washed out, the better. Let her spend her time on her back, cooking and washing dishes, not wasting his time," Hock thought. 

"So, ye all want to be pirates eh?" Hock asked gruffly.

"Yes sir" 

"What did ye say? I couldn't hear yer pansy voices." 

"YES SIR!!" 

"That's better. Now, The thing that separates a pirate from a common sailor is steel. The arms master held up a cutlass. This is the traditional weapon o' sea pirates, the cutlass. It's relatively heavy, and it's made o' cheap steel, but it hacks pretty good if ye know how to use it. Bein' as how we are inland, we also run up against plenty 'o village guards wielding' short swords. They're a little lighter and made o' the same cheap steel. They don't hack as well, but they have a better stabbing point." 

"Now I know what ye're thinkin'. You don't see these weapons on the veterans here about. The preference is for Viking swords, axes, long swords, broad swords and the like, but we don't issue those kind of blades to recruits. They aren't as common, there's more steel in 'em, and it's harder to make one that's serviceable. If ye want a good sword once ye're out o' basic training, then ye'll have to pillage it or save yer loot and buy one from someone who's got a spare. Here we're going to whip ye into shape and teach ye the basics 'o sword and shield. Fletcher Arzael will teach ye a bit o' archery." 

"First thing we're gonna do is run ye 'round Red Jack's Isle ta see how tough ye are. Then we'll separate ye into groups. Yer going to see some walls and obstacles set up. They're not there for ye to run around, they're there for ye to climb or jump over, understand?" 

"Yes sir!" the recruits hollered.

"I don't cater ta wimps here, an' this trainin' is orientated ta survival o' the fittest. When ye get back here, ye're going ta form a line. If ye get back first, ye'll be first in line. Me an' Froggy an' Buck are goin' ta help each of ye select a weapon. We have a motley assortment here; some weapons are lots better than others are. If ye get back first, ye get yer pick; if ye get back last, ye get yer pick of the few trashy items that're left, understand? Stay ta the course, it's clearly marked. I got men watchin'. If ye take a short cut, I got somethin' for ye. Hock patted a whip at his side. Okay now, get lined up here behind this length o' rope, and when I blow me horn, head between them two barked trees over there and foller the course. 

"The horn sounded and Rapina ran with the boys. She was so glad Pike had found her a pair of men's sandals that fit her. She ran as fast as she could, but soon realized that most of the boys were passing her. She out-paced only a few of the smallest sailors, and one with a bad leg. The first obstacle she jumped without difficulty, but the second required climbing. Thanks to the river trip, her arms were stronger than they had ever been before, but she was still no match for most of the other recruits. Her long legs and good coordination carried her through jumps, over logs and low fences, but climbing walls and embankments slowed her down. 

By the middle of the course, Rapina was exhausted and all but a few of the boys had run by her. Her breath came rasping from her throat. As she ran, she flashed back; she was running down the river in calf-deep water. She could hear Constable Rasper and his dog Blitz crashing through the brush in the distance behind her. She remembered bits of the river trip and the power, the Reverend's power, the life force that had sustained her through her escape. 

Rapina smiled. Drake, Kent, Edward, Pike and Red Jack had all contributed small bits to her current store of power. It had been a while since she had done it, but she now drew on that power. As she ran, her aching muscles eased, her rasping throat knitted, her stride lengthened and she overtook a few of the boys who had passed her earlier. The climbing still slowed her, but her arms did not feel the horrible fatigue they had been feeling. 

Rapina began to pass exhausted recruits, one after another, until there were more behind her than there were ahead of her by the time she broke out of the forest. There she gritted her teeth and with a final burst of speed, she ran through the clearing. She passed two more recruits before getting in line. Ahead of her, she could See Drake, Jake, and many of the more athletic recruits she did not know. Surprisingly, she saw Edgar only a few recruits behind Drake. He had not seemed as athletic as Drake, perhaps what he lacked in physique, he made up for in will power. Either that or he had gotten away with a short cut. 

After the boys ahead of her had selected blades, Froggy took Rapina out to look at what was left. 

"Fer a wench, you'll want a short sword. There's less strength, more dexterity and cunning involved with the short sword. Froggy pointed out three blades. "Those are the best ones left, but take what you want."

Rapina tried each of the three. One had some fairly fancy workmanship on the hilt and she was tempted to take that one. After trying all three, she decided on the second one; it too had some hilt workmanship, though not as flashy, and it seemed a little lighter and easier to swing. 

"Good choice. That one came from a village garrison sergeant; it's not a bad blade, better steel than the others. Now take a shield, ya might as well have this one, it belonged to the same man. Froggy grinned and handed a shield to Rapina. "It's a scutum." 

The shield was rather large, but Rapina trusted the man whose sword she now possessed knew more about what went with a short sword than she did. Next Hock sent Rapina across the field to Fletcher Arzael. He was lean, wiry and not as tall as Rapina. His features were fine and the tops of his ears nearly came to points. He was dressed in forest brown with green accents, and he wore a long thin blade of a type unfamiliar to Rapina. From the shape of his ears she decided one of his parents or grand parents must have been an elf. He grinned at Rapina as she approached. It was a welcome change from arms master Hock's scowl. 

"Hello sir," Rapina said. 

"Hello," Arzael nodded to the first female recruit he had seen in quite some time, and without a doubt the most beautiful. Her raven hair and emerald eyes enhanced her pretty face, the curves of her body were more magnificent than any he had laid eyes on, and he was older than he looked. 
"How strong are ye lass? Pull my arms apart like so. Use all your strength." 

Rapina tried to pull Arzael's arms apart, but he was deceptively strong. "Strength isn't my best feature," Rapina sighed. 

"In Archery a good eye and a dexterous hand are of as much importance as strength. You've done all right for yourself in running the course. Many of the stronger boys have been here already, but they've taken up the stronger bows. You'll need a lighter bow, and they've hardly been touched. This one here is the best of the bunch. It'll be a bit stiff for you, but if you can bend it, it'll treat you well. 

Rapina smiled. The bow was long and not easy to bend, but she could do it. She was tempted to take a lighter or shorter bow, but the evident quality of the bow, and the fletcher's charming manner convinced her to do as he said. "It will take some growing into, but it has a good feel to it. I'll take good care of it." 

Arzael beamed with approval at Rapina's promised care, as if the bows he gave the recruits were living things, entrusted with some ill ease to careless youths. 

After the new recruits had weapons, they were instructed in their care, then the recruits were taught some basic moves with their weapons. After their first training with weapons, the recruits were sent to lunch with instructions to stow their weapons in their sea chests and their bows on the pegs in their barracks. From then on, they were told to bring their weapons only after lunch, for the morning exercises would be conducted with practice swords made of wood on practice dummies filled with straw. 

This first day things were reversed and the real weapons were to remain stowed until tomorrow after lunch. Rapina found her sea chest in the barracks where the rest of the recruits were assigned to sleep. Rapina wondered how often she would really be sleeping here. She hoped it would not be often. Red Jack had so many interesting books, Rapina would have preferred to do nothing but read. 

The remaining two or three hours of practice was filled with grueling exercises and knocking into dummies with shields. Rapina did not hit hard enough, and received a tongue-lashing from the arms master. 

At last the arms practice ended and Rapina joined Leach Kennon at the medical hut. It was a welcome change from assisting the cook. During the remaining daylight hours, the leech and three pirates, Duke, Rabid, and Gash delved through the marsh and the surrounding forest in search of herbs. Duke was a large, powerfully built man; both Rabid and Gash were lean and wiry with long legs. Rapina suspected they were along to do more than protect the doctor. Duke and Rabid stuck to Leach Kennon like glue, and Gash never let Rapina out of his sight. Although sometimes one or two of the pirates would lend a hand, at least one would always stand on alert watching. 

As it turned out, Rapina was unable to find a stand of the herbs she needed. At first, Leech Kennon looked as if he felt their existence was dubious, but by the end of the day, Rapina had identified enough unrelated plants that the Leech had a little more confidence in her ability. At last they passed an area that was about right for the plant Rapina was looking for, but since it was already beginning to get dark, Leach Kennon said that they would have to continue the search tomorrow. The leach had some of the herbs he had been looking for, and employed Rapina in washing and hanging them for drying once they had returned to camp. 

At last the cooks served dinner and Rapina got off work. She did not miss having to do the dishes. Her new job was superior to the old one in that respect. At last she'd have an hour or two when she could sit around the fires with the men. Then maybe she would dally with one or two of them in a thicket to renew the supply of energy she had begun to tap during the morning arms practice. 

At dinner, Rapina talked to Drake who was stationed in the same ramshackle barracks as she was. 

"What did I miss not sleeping at the barracks last night?" Rapina asked between spoonfuls of fish soup. 

Drake gulped down the last of his soup and grimaced. "What foul swill that was! Ack!" He turned to Rapina with a Roguish grin. "What did you miss at the barracks? Well not much. Only about an hour's worth of complaining, five fist fights, and a bunch of smelly snoring pirate 'recruits'. That's all. Heh!" 

He seemed to be in good spirits although he was obviously tired from the day's work. Drake had done well in almost every area of the training. His technique was not very refined yet, but he had the strength, stamina, and will to succeed. The fact that he was very likeable did not hurt either. He had already made quite a few friends at the camp. A few of them were sitting around him as were Kent and Edgar. 

Kent was not enduring the physical exertion as well as Drake and Edgar were. He had practically come in last during the obstacle course and had been berated just as much, if not more, than Rapina during weapons practice. He had a lot of work to do yet. Although normally quite talkative, Kent did not say a word. It looked like he might fall asleep in his soup at any moment. 

Edgar shoved Kent who almost fell onto the ground. "Wake up pretty boy! Isn't time for you to go shine Roger's ass? Hmmmm? I hear he's teaching you ALL the tricks it takes to be a good little pirate boy. Too bad your skull will most likely be crushed by one of these pirate thugs before the end of the week." That said Edgar shrugged and went back to eating his soup. 

After dinner, everyone went about his duties. Kent went and studied with Roger, Drake went to work with Arms master Hock, and Edgar got stuck doing guard duty with one of the most unfriendly pirates in existence. He never did tell Edgar his name, but anytime Edgar started to doze off he was awakened by a big meaty hand pounding him in the head. 

Dinner last evening had been especially late, much as it often was aboard ship when the captain wanted to take advantage of all of the daylight hours for sailing. This evening it had been a little earlier. Rapina was due to go back to Leech Kennon's after the dinner hour, but she had a few minutes left. She found Fishy loading up a large leaf with a jumble of the nights leftovers for the caged elf. "Can I feed him?" 

"Aye, ye can; me wooden legs 'd be glad ta be spared the walk. Careful though. Remember ta keep a good grip on th' handle and not go too close." 

Rapina nodded she took the food to the elf. She could see a few more of his tattoos this evening. They had an eerie appearance bathed in the glow of the setting sun. The reflections made them seem almost alive, but without the flicker of the torch to impart as much a sense of movement, they looked as if they were frozen, waiting for the darkness to grant them life. 

"Hello, sir elf, time to eat," Rapina spoke, planting her feet carefully and extending the bowl on its pole. 

The elf-savage gazed at Rapina with his deep emerald eyes for a long moment, but did not say a word. He seemed calmer when Rapina was about. He never tried anything when she walked by, but if any of the pirates strayed too close to the cage, he would always try to grab them. Some were lucky and jumped out of the way in time. Others still bore the scars from their run-in with the elf. None of them ever got too close to the cage again. 

The cage swayed as the elf-savage reached through the bars and gently lifted the leaf with his food out of the bowl and pulled it back into his cage. His gaze lingered on Rapina for a moment more before he began eating. He desired her. There was no doubt of that. What man didn't desire Rapina? The difference was that the elf-savage did not allow his desire for Rapina to influence his actions in any way. 

Rapina returned the pole-bowl to Fishy. 

Thankee darlin'. Ye be sure ta come by a little later. Pike an' me be fixin' ta give ye a bath. I heard tell from a good source the captain be pleased with ye bein' clean fer 'is pleasure, sa we be more like th' official bath 'ouse men now. 

Rapina smiled, she enjoyed being clean, and having a tall, burly Norseman like Pike do the cleaning just made it all the more memorable. "Okay, I'll come as soon as Leech Kennon lets me out. See you." 

"Aye, lass we'll be seein' ye later." 

Leech Kennon spoke to Rpina. "For now, I'll be using this couple of hours after dinner as a teaching period. The captain says you can read?" 

"Yes sir, though I have some trouble with some of the words. I need a dictionary nearby." 

"I have a healer's dictionary of sorts, I'll let you use that. I have a book on herbs I would like you to read. You can start with the first chapter tonight." 

Rapina nodded. 

Kennon sat Rapina at a desk in his back room, in front of an array of tallow candles that he lit. "There now, here's the book, and here's the dictionary. I'll ask you some questions at the end to see how much you understand." 

Rapina nodded. She was already formulating a plan. All the words educated people knew that she did not were to found in dictionaries. They were like whole books of cheat notes that only wealthy people owned. Rapina was determined to read them while she had the chance. When Kennon left her, she opened the herb book and got an idea of how many pages she would have to read. Then she pushed hard, forcing herself to read as fast as she could and keeping a finger earlier in the chapter. 

Kennon came in to check her twice, but she heard him and flipped back to an earlier part of the chapter. In spite of having to look up a few words, she finished in just under an hour and began to read the dictionary. Some of the "A" words were the same as in Captain Red Jack's dictionary, but some were different. When Kennon returned to check her, she pretended she was looking up a word from the chapter. By the time Kennon returned to quiz her on the chapter, Rapina had read all of the "A", "B", and "C" words and was in the midst of the "D" words. She stopped when she heard Kennon coming and pretended as if she were just finishing the chapter. In spite of having read the chapter quickly, Rapina had no trouble answering the Leech's questions. When she was finished, he let her leave for her bath. 

Pike and Fishy had put their heads and backs together and set up Fishy's largest caldron in the middle of the pantry shack. It was full of steamy water, and the men were at least as steamy as the bath water. Their lust drove Rapina to distraction. After using up a portion of her store of power during the obstacle course, Rapina was hungry for more. 

When Pike began to wash between Rapina's thighs, she thrust her hips against his hand several times and sighed. 

Pike looked at Fishy.

Fishy looked at Pike - both men grinned, as their hands flew to loose their pants. 

Rapina felt like lust incarnate as first Pike, then Fishy, then Pike again filled her with his lust and power. Rapina was amazed at Pike's stamina, for she pulled just a bit more energy from the two men than she had yet taken from pirates. She was hungry, and knew she would need what they gave her. Arms master Hock, though he did not seem like he was picking on her, had paired her with Beck, a wiry recruit about Rapina's height who was lean, fast and practically immune to fatigue. Though most would have forgotten, Rapina remembered that the boy had been second in the line after the obstacle course. 

After her bath, Rapina had a little time to talk around the camp fires with the men before the recruits were called to return to their barracks. There they faced another horror of pirate camp life. 

Brackston watched gleefully and chuckled as the recruits filed into the ramshackle barracks. Next to him was a large, dirty, yellow dog whose look was as mean as his master's. "Dare now, I am Brackston and dis be me dog Thumper, heh, heh heh. Standing in da doorway here is me friend Froggy, and last night we had de joy to watch yew fight and listen to yew grousin' and complainin'. Heh, heh, heh. Now I know who is de trouble and who is not. Now I let yew in on de rules here. If yew want ta complain, yew complain to me, hear? 'An I love ta here yer pretty voices, come an' wine any time yew like, hear? Maybe we can work sumfin out... Heh, heh, heh." 

"Now to de rules. Ye foller orders snappy like, yew get here when de recruit horn sounds fer bed, yew get ta yer practice an' other duties snappy like, yew don' question de orders of a superior. Yew do what yew'r told. Yew go ta sleep when I tell ya, yew get up when I tell ya. If yew want ta fight somebody, yew come an' set it up wif me, otherwise yew're in trouble, understan'? If yew slip up, anytime, anywhere yer problem is gonna be told ta de Brackston. Brackston poked his scared and burly chest with his index finger. But that's jus' fine, I like boys plenty, like ta deal with yer problems. Me an' Froggy, we're good with problem boys, real good. Heh, heh, heh. Maybe yew have a problem yew need help wif. Yew come to Froggy, or me, we can work sumfin' out with yew. Heh, heh, heh." 

"Now, see dis Connor boy? Before Connor could react, Brackston had clamped a black iron collar around Connor's neck. Brackston jerked on the chain attached to it and the young man's head was dragged down near the foot of Brackston's bed, where the chain passed through an iron eye set in a buried stone. Brackston's bed was the only bed that was not a bunk. It was just beside the door to the barracks. "I notice two things about de Connor boy yesterday. He has a big mouf, full of complainin' and he has a big ass, just de kind me and Froggy like de best. Heh, heh, heh. Brackston locked the chain to another iron eye near the head of his bed. 

Now let us look at Connor's complainin' butt. Brackston jerked the recruit's pants down. Not bad aaye?" The burly pirate took off his belt and gave Connor a few lashes until his buttocks were an angry red. Then looked at the other recruits. "I know, some of yew are thinkin' me father did that, so what, I don' have no problem wit it. Now I show yew what de father did not... 

Brackston dropped his drawers revealing a long, wicked erection. He smeared it with a bit of lard from an earthenware container sitting by his bed, then cleaned his hand off between Connor's buttocks. Before the poor boy could react, the dirty pirate impaled him. The boy screamed. The other recruits stood by incredulously while Brackston wickedly abused the boy. When Brackston finished, Froggy laughed heartily and made Connor scream anew. 

When it was over, the bravado had completely drained from the eyes of the recruits. "Dere now, yew complain all yew want, yew be late as much as yew want, de Brackston is happy when yew are bad. Now Froggy and me be done, but Connor, he complain so much. Look at his sorry butt, any yew want to make him scream, I give you free dis time. Heh, heh, heh." 

The recruits did not say another word. Most were too scared even to breathe. One recruit, however, was sitting there rocking back and forth. His lips moved as if he was speaking, but no words came out. He had an intense and wild look in his eyes. His name was Trevor and he was one of the more savage recruits. He had already beaten a few recruits to within an inch of their lives during weapons practice. The sight of him was intimidating. 

But for the ripple of lust from a few of the more sadistic recruits, Rapina saw nothing but fear and dread in the eyes of most of the boys. In spite of the brutal demonstration, Rapina slept well on the hard barracks bunk, the glow imparted her by Pike and Fishy fortified her strength.
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This ends Red Jack's Isle, Chapter 7 of The Chronicles of Rapina.
The story continues in Chapter 8, Training and Battle.

Copyright 2001 by Rapina