Angel At Sea

Captain

Chapter Four: Captain

~~ My legs were as heavy as led as I opened the door to the Captain's Quarters and found that the cabin boy had high tailed it back down to the deck. Anyways, it was as if I was stepping into a mysterious womb, everything before me was red; the walls, the rich Persian carpet on the floor, the pennants suspected from the concave roof. Soft, subdued candle-light and a heavy aroma of fragrant oils and incense made the atmosphere weigh down upon me like an enchanting cloud. A strange, heavy lethargy began to creep over me and I had to blink to clear my head before I could focus on the man who reclined upon the floor cushions. In stark contrast to the warm opulence of his surroundings, he was dressed from hand to foot in black and his face was now entirely concealed behind a white mask.

The effect suggested power, a cold, thrilling majesty; it was as though I had stumbled upon one of the ancient gods of mythology! He did not look up when I entered and for a long while he continued to tinker with an intricate looking casket whilst I hovered by the doorway, troubled by a growing sense of invisibility. He ignored me so completely that I began to be persuaded that he was quite unaware of my presence and consequently I allowed myself to stare at him with vulgar curiosity. I could not help but notice his fingers, which were extraordinarily thin, I would say scarcely more than bones. They were of positively inhuman length and they moved with a graceful dexterity that was oddly fascinating.

Mesmerized, I stood and stared; then, suddenly, I became aware that he was watching me stare! 

The scrutiny of those unblinking eyes behind the mask made me very nervous. There was something sinister, almost reptilian, in the stillness of that black--clad figure, something that reminded me, uncomfortably, of a cobra reading to strike. "So, they've treated you right, have they?" Asked he and my mouth hung agape, for, nothing in his austere appearance prepared me for his voice. Even when I heard it, quite in close vicinity, I hadn't heard it without all of the din of the deck and angry pirates muddling it. I had never expected to hear such a voice outside of paradise; to encounter it here, in this draughty, ill-lit room,  which held its own kind of terror, for who was he--what was he--to be possessed of such divinity of sound?

Now, I wondered whether I beheld an angel or a devil; and even now, after these years, it is a question I still ponder.  "E-Excuse me?" I asked, falling back down from the observant heavens to reality; he gave a chuckle that sent chills through my spine.

"Did the men treat you right? They didn't hurt you anymore?" He clarified, a smile passing his tight lips. My cheeks flushed burgundy, and I felt an emotion I could not fathom.

"N-No, they didn't; in fact they were...uh...q-quite helpful." I said hastily, lapsing into stuttering in my confusion. The captain continued tinkering with the strange, little casket; it was black with shimmering golden designs swirling all over it. White colour lined the edges of it. He held the casket towards himself, the top was opened and a golden star was painted on the top; there were a few sharp clicks and he grinned, placing a small screwdriver beside him (or, it seemed small in comparison to his fingers) closing the lid and setting it on the other side of him. He rose and I became awash with apprehension as he took a step towards me.

"And, how was this ensued upon?" He asked, a slight hiss in his voice. The menace in his voice had become indescribable and his physical nearness was a thing of terror.

"I...I...I" I stuttered, taking baby steps away from him; I could clearly tell he was smiling at himself beneath the mask. 

"Are you afraid I'm going to hurt you, madam? Do you believe I bite?" He paused, a sinister smirk taking the place of the self--absorbed smile. He stepped ever closer, over the satin pillow that worked as a barrier between us; I continued backing up until my personal space was nothing but a piece of dust floating about the room. He cornered me and placed his right hand against the wall, beside my head; the smirk still glued to his face.