piratejournal | 003 [voice]

[You all remember Hector, of course. The ass who's torn apart most of the folks who've asked stupid questions? And has been highly offended at the assumptions about the way he speaks? Well, he's just come upon a thought that struck him out of the blue, and really, in his opinion you just might want to pay attention.

But hoo boy, does he sound full of schadenfreude. Because he is.]

Just as an aside, as that execution do bring some things to mind. At least for meself, as I'm a bit more versed in the laws and rules of the sea...

You do realize, o'course, with your sailing and bartering without proper papers - letters o' marque or otherwise granting you permission to do such from a nation - you are all, in fact, committing acts of piracy, aye?

No papers, no authority to conduct yourself as a legitimate crew. No authority, of course, to organize yourself in a militaristic force. You aren't privateers. You aren't merchants, and you aren't treasure hunters.

You're pirates. Piss poor excuses for pirates, I'll grant ye that, but not a single soul brought to this place has authority to do anything. You're conducting in black market trade, operating a craft that is not, in fact, registered in any home port, and not a single one among ye has a place ye make berth.

This, of course, does include our little ship full o'sparkle and light in the name of justice et cetera, et cetera.

Pirates, the lot of you. Every last one of you be staring at Jack Ketch, waiting to be the next to dance the jig. No matter your noble intentions.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

So we'll be killed if we try to do it the right way... and killed if we keep going as we are and get caught. I don't know anything about the political structure of this place, so there's no way we can get a letter of marque to protect us, noble intentions or not. You're right - the only way forward is to fly our flags proudly and fight.

Forgive my ignorance, but... the Code? I'm having enough trouble learning how to manipulate the sails, I don't remember a set of rules at all.

Hoist your colors. Not loft your flag.

[There's an unseen eye roll.]

The Pirate's Code. As set down by Morgan and Bartholomew. I suggest you find a man named Gibbs, as he has far more patience to explain such than I.

Sorry, sir. I'm still learning. And I'll try and find him, or someone else to explain. Honestly, though... I'm surprised. I wouldn't have expected a code of ethics from pirates, given a pirate's normal activities. I'll be interested to see what's in it.

Aye, and I'd love to be there if and when Cap'n Teague ever heard a soul say as such. The Code be the law.

A code of laws? [That exists? It's not something she was anticipating, that's for sure.] Then it's even more important I see it. No matter how seriously any of us take the idea of what we're doing here, if we're ignoring the fact that there are accepted laws... I wouldn't expect sympathy from those that take this as a way of life. We'd just be putting ourselves further at risk.

You have my thanks, sir. I would never have thought to look for such a thing, and that might have been my end someday. It still may, but not through my own ignorance.

Of course you didn't think. We're just pirate trash, aye?

That's... admittedly a little of what was going through my head, not helped by some things that happened in the place I was before here, but not entirely.

It's more... piracy is a lawless endeavor in the first place. Except in very specific circumstances, the act of piracy is against the law in the first place. So I'm not sure what incentive there is to try to hold someone to laws when the only enforcement is "do this or we kill you". That'd just incite everyone to distrust each other, and everything would turn into a bloodbath. At least, that's what I'd think...

So, a non-pirate. Lecturing a pirate. On what it is pirates actually do. A pirate captain, no less, and Lord of the Court.

Ah.

I see.

[His voice is amazingly calm, amazingly moderated, and amazingly contemplative, considering.]

I suppose, then, the pirate trash, humble as we are, can't comprehend what it is what we do.

Let me... let me take a step back, here. [Rikka has a sudden feeling she will find herself sleeping with the fish if she's not very careful here.]

I... I admit that I don't understand. I am trying to make myself understand, and the best way I can do that is to try and rationalize what you're telling me against what makes sense in the world I came from. I'm sorry it's coming out like I'm telling you how to do your job, but I don't know any other way to make sense of it. Not without doing a lot of research that requires books I don't have, or resources that don't seem to exist here. [If she could hop on Wikipedia she'd be able to make heads or tails of this conversation in about five minutes, along with Pirates of the Caribbean spoilers she doesn't want.]

The world here is not so black and white as the place I came from. Piracy is something in the gray area that lies between, and while I'm not sure what to think yet, I understand that it's a way of life. I want to learn more, not just because it's what I'm going to be doing for a while, but because I'm interested. So... I'm sorry. I'm making a mess of things through my ignorance, and that was not my intention. [He can't see her bow through the voice channel on the book, and she realizes it only after she's done it.]

[And the easiest way to put is, "You're off the edge of the map, mate. Here there be monsters." But it's not a thought he's going to share here after practically having gotten his face spat in.]

Find Gibbs, as because of right now, lass, I've nary the patience to listen to either your insults or your rationalizations.

[Feeling of wrongness suddenly spiking even further.]

Yessir. Um... I'm just going to stop talking now. I'm sorry!

[There may have been a squeak of panic there. Regardless, she's closed her journal, stuffed it under her pillow, and is walking as far from it as she can.]

003 [voice]

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