Captain - Where everything ends

After the stranger had been taken away, the old man took out the silver coin from his breast pocket, which he always kept there to pay the person responsible for the security of the Lord Curious, "a soldier with full pockets wields a sword better." After paying the stout guard who guarded the vessels, Captain tapped his back pocket to make sure he still carried his small bag of coins, feeling relieved upon touching it. He made his way to the Fish Tavern, the closest one he could remember. The muddy streets filled with dung had always been loathsome to the old sailor; he preferred to be on the sea. The tavern was a stone shack with a thatched roof where the poorest liked to spend most of their time. When he entered, the place was crowded, with people shouting, laughing, and vomiting. The old man headed towards the counter. Upon reaching it, he realized that most of those seated there were the same ones from the previous night, which was understandable. He sat in an empty chair and waited to be served.

"The usual, Captain of Love?" The tavernkeeper enjoyed teasing the captain, and he always found the sharp jabs amusing, although he knew the woman had a man and never crossed any boundaries.

The captain lowered his head, with a serious expression, as a sign of affirmation. The woman found the response strange but maintained her smile as she fetched a glass and the bottle of Golden Rum. When the girl went to fill his glass, the captain intervened.

"Wait, not this one. Wine, on second thought." The woman nodded, smiling. When she finished filling the glass, the old man held onto the bottle, causing the girl to release it and leave it there with him. The liter was slightly more than half full, and it became empty after some time in the captain's hands. When he finished, he paid the bill without saying a word and left that noisy place.

The journey back to the Lord Curious seemed to pass in the blink of an eye. Captain was so tired that nothing around him seemed to make sense. The past seemed like a farce; sleep was the only thing that mattered. "If I sleep, maybe I'll wake up from this nightmare," he thought. As soon as he reached the cabin, he turned the rum barrel to block the door and sat on the bed. He took off his muddy boots and placed them aside, then lay down. His body trembled with gratitude, seeming to merge with the fabric that cushioned the plank he had improvised years ago to rest. He had always said that he would find time to prepare a proper bed or a hammock, but in the end, he never had the time to fulfill his desires. There were no lit candles, only the glow of the moon shining into the cabin through cracks in a wooden wall, a makeshift "window." When he closed his eyes, his pulsating mind seemed to travel as fast as the wind, although he couldn't think of anything.

And there he was again, in front of that motionless statue. The sky was dark, as black as the ocean. The ship was empty. "They're all dead," he thought, "all because of me." Despair washed over him like a gust of wind, and Captain found himself on his knees, crying in remorse for dying alone. But the sound of his sobbing was drowned out by the movement of the waters. In front of the ship, the ocean parted to reveal a mountain of dark blue scales with glowing crimson eyes illuminating the darkness. The creature had a head the size of a warship. For a while, the captain simply trembled, hoping that the gigantic octopus wouldn't spot the old ship in front of it. That hope was in vain. The monster rose from the right side of the water, its tentacles darker than the night, descending upon the ship with indescribable violence. Half of the Lord Curious broke apart and sank into the depths. The back part, where Captain was fortunate enough to hold on, filled with water and sank faster than anyone could imagine. Other tentacles reached toward the sky. Ten, maybe a hundred. Captain didn't count. When he had time to think, one of them came towards him, carrying the shadow that men fear so much. Captain didn't have time to scream; the deadly blow would finally claim his life.

Then he jolted awake, with his heart racing, as on that fateful night... or day. The ship reeked of blood and decay. Captain had forgotten about the bodies in the hold. When he stepped out of the cabin, he realized that the stench was even stronger outside. The day was bright. People avoided passing by in front of the ship; the smell seemed to drive them away. His sailors must not have mentioned what had happened, as no authorities came to inspect the vessel. Men are good at taking secrets to the grave. Wrapped in rags, the statue of Parrot lay there, with the face of disdain and unhappiness of the young lad who died while carrying out a task he didn't want. The blood on the deck glistened pink under the sun, and there were still arrows embedded in some parts of the ship. Captain decided to expedite his tasks. Alone, he descended into the hold. There, he found a piece of cheese lying near the barrels with the bodies. The smell was unbearable; a sealed barrel must have ruptured, and the rot of the corpse had taken over the area—the taste of the cheese couldn't be worse. And it wasn't. Captain spent a good amount of time bringing barrels up and going back down to fetch more, placing them next to the golden statue. Fifteen barrels and one petrified body—that was the result of his longed-for voyage. It was his gift to the king. The ship would be forever cursed. Captain opened one of the barrels and let the gunpowder catch a glimpse of that beautiful blue sky. Then he headed back to his cabin, picked up a candle, and lit it. Fortunately, as he was about to pass through the door, he noticed a bit of smoke wrapped in apple leaves. He lit it with the candle and proceeded to finish his spectacle. When he returned to the vicinity of the statue, he couldn't bring himself to open the other barrels. All he could think of was how much he regretted that night when he decided to drink and share his plans with his companions. "They would all be alive if it weren't for me." "In the end, it is a true captain's fate to die with his crew." Captain looked towards the pier and noticed a young boy playing with a shell necklace nearby, as he gazed at the ship. Their eyes met for a brief moment, and then Captain smiled at the boy, who responded with another smile and a nod before running off. Captain felt his arm weaken and his eyes well up with tears, so he let the candle fall into the gunpowder barrel.

The explosion was instantaneous and deafening. In a second, the entire old ship seemed to have been consumed by flames. The dock was covered in fire. People were thrown into the water, and fragments of stalls, ships, and trinkets that were being traded on the dock were launched towards the crowd. Immense waves formed and crashed onto the other ships, but the worst was the wreckage of the Curious Lord itself. Rotting chunks of flesh whirled for kilometers and rained down on the beach. Shattered gold pierced people, ships, and walls as if it had been fired from a weapon. One minute later, countless people lay dead on the shore. Bloodied men and women ran, calling for help, while others took their last breaths, trying to stem their bleeding. A tower of smoke rose to the sky as the ships quickly filled with water and sank. The chaos had drawn all of Ard Taj to the port, except for a few sailors from the Fish Tavern, who raised their glasses to toast the honor and courage of the captain who had saved so many lives just a few days ago.