Captains Log - Jan 31, 1467

Cap. Slap of the Maidens Blade.

The echoing of steel on steel echos across the small bay leading into the fort. The Duchess reputation as a fierce fighter has most definitely been understated. Crane in the water my sword crashes though the Duchess femur. Parry, followed by River over the moon, is the perfect counter to her low guard. Again my sword smashes through her now brittle bones. Sidestep left, She lunges in hard missing by a mile. She stumbles and looses her footing. Now off balanced I hit her with Tiger in the Valley which brings my sword crashing through the side of Her decaying head. The sword partly cuts, but mostly smashes Her skull as it passes through. The large, reanimated frame of a once prominent person comes crashing to the ground lifeless... once again. A necklace falls out of the top of her dress revealing the final piece of the adventure, The skeleton Key. I look over at Bob. He's bloody, bruised and developed a bit of a limp, but hes still breathing. I scoop up the key and we head into the island.

The adrenaline is coursing through my veins as we move aside the vines leading down to the stronghold. At the end of the path sits massive, wooden doors as tall as they are wide. Crudely designed, you can tell they're made for function rather than looks. Resting in the middle of the doors is a mechanical lock roughly the size of a plate. Unlike the door this lock was made with a lot more care and precision and just as much intention for keeping people out as the brutish door. That is... unless you have the key. I hold the key close to the lock and it begins to emit a sinister green glow. Closer to the lock they both begin to glow. As I'm about to put it in, the key rips out of my hand and locks into place. A deep bass reverb echos out of the tunnel as the seals break on the door. Ancient dust falls from the top of the door as it begins to lower into the earth.

I look over at Bob and his look of pain and exhaustion has turned into excitement and anticipation as the massive door slowly rumbles open. Blinded by the excitement, and deafened by the sounds we never heard the crew approaching from behind. They knew what was happening and used every moment to their advantage. The initial crash of the door opening, they keged our ship. As the door rumbled down the rest of them snuck their way into the tunnel. Patient. Methodical. It wasn't their first time. It wasn't until the door settled that I felt the end of a barrel on the back of my head... just long enough for us to see what wouldn't be ours. The click of the hammer seemed to echo louder than anything I've ever heard.

BOOM!

But not from the gun at my head. I flinched, and only realized I'm still alive when Bob collapses beside me. His lifeless body hits the floor with a hollow thud and the doubloon sized hole in his head starts pouring out blood. The smell of gunpowder, burnt hair, and guts begin to fill the air.

"Sorry Slappy. Your times up." comes a hoarse voice from behind.

The smell of rum and his foul breath mix with the others currently in the air.

"Why?" I ask.

The voice replies, "We're pirates mate..."

Click. BOOM

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TL;DR IRL: Literally seconds away from finishing the fort we get ambushed. I mean right at the last second. If I'd had been able to hit my dumb shots we'd been alright... buuuut nooo. Raggin, fraggin, dumb, fort steelin, good fornothen, PIRAAAAATTTTEEESSSS!!!!! It's ok... I'm good. Keep your head on a swivel out there Mates.

Thanks for reading my stories all. Have a short one today!

You can find me on the seas - GT: Slaptac. Shoot me an invite anytime and lets adventure!

Previous stories:

• Vol.1 Booty
• Vol.2 Flying Dutchman
• Vol.3 Fishing
• Vol.4 9/10 robbery
• Vol.5 Reapers Bounty
• Vol.6 Ghosts on the Water