Saudade (Published under Indie Pop)

Chapter 37: The Fall of the Pirate City

           

CHAPTER 37: The Fall of the Pirate City

I settled on the space beside the pirate who was now holding a dagger and his gun. The blood from his wound was showing on the cloth I used to wrap it and I couldn't imagine the pain he was currently in. He seemed to be in agony in every scrunch of his face but he was trying his best to hide it. He tensed as he realized that I was watching him.

"I'm Primrose," I said, breaking the silence between us.

He didn't answer and instead looked at anywhere but me. I understood that he was still seeing me as the person who brought this war upon them - I was the reason why those two pirates were lying dead on the deck. I decided to be silent and wait for the Skull to come back to me.

"Aiden," he suddenly murmured.

I turned to him in confusion. "Excuse me?" I asked.

"My name's Aiden. You might forget me when I die. You might not even remember my name that's why I'm wondering why you even asked. But Aiden - Aiden is my name," he answered in his sad, low tone. It was the sound of a man who was already on the verge of hopelessness. And my heart was aching knowing that somehow, I caused this sorrow upon him.

"You're wrong. I won't forget you. You're one of those few pirates who protected me from the attack of your own. How can I forget that?"

He smiled weakly as if he didn't expect my answer at all. He was probably near the age of Erasmus. I could almost see the soft-looking, handsome young man behind the pain that was painted on his face.

"I didn't protect you. I just moved and then was thrown back to my place by Arman. He was far stronger than me and I'm sure there would be nothing I could do against him -"

"I'm sure that there are a lot of things you can do if not for the arrow that pierced you," I cut him off. I've never met a pirate who was so insecure of his capabilities. Most of them were so sure of their strength and they would probably see themselves stronger than the other pirates. Maybe it was the war. Maybe it was the dead bodies that were lying few meters from us.

After a few moment of silence, he suddenly handed me his dagger. I looked at the sharp metal with confusion in my eyes.

"The Obsidian pirates are good fighters. Surely, they taught you how to fight, yes?" he asked.

Understanding dawned at me as I took the metal in my hand. "They didn't show me how to use this," I answered regretfully. Somehow, I wished they did. But as I stared into the dagger, I couldn't help but think about all the people I could use this for. The marines of the West land? But those people were my people. They came for me. They were in this battle with the purpose of saving me. The pirates who wanted to attack me? But I had lived the way they did and I learned their ideals. And I came to understand them - feel them. And in this journey, I knew that they were also my people - the kind in which I felt that I belong with them.

"I've never thought of the need to use this. I guess I'm not born a warrior at all," I said sheepishly. This man was years younger than me and he surely knew how to do a lot more things compared to me.

"I wonder how it feels like to have a mind that thinks of nothing like violence. You must be sleeping peacefully at night."

I looked at him thoughtfully. He had probably been through a lot but he must have not encountered a sickness like love. He didn't know how it could break one's heart and mess up the mind. My eyes turned to the direction of the entrance wishing that I would see the man I loved coming back to me.