The Pirate Queen

Chapter 2

One Year Later

That morning at dawn, whispers of rumors we're already traveling by the time Eric woke for breakfast. It seemed last night a pirate ship only known by its infamous scandals and black raven flag had docked in their bay for the first time in a year. Hushed voices regaled tales of bloodshed, gunpowder, and no mercy given. 

Eric watched the flag waving high in the breeze over the terracotta roofs of the sprawling village below from his bedroom tower, chin on his hand as he dreamed of being on one of the boat decks instead of a castle. A sharp rap came from his door and he didn't have time to answer before his butler Jora, walked in with breakfast. The man was the youngest butler in the royal service, only five years older than Eric's 21. But he was loyal, with the ability to know and hear everything that happened inside and outside the walls of the castle of Darmken. Not even the King's own men had the power Jora did, and Eric was the only one who knew it.

"Good morning sir, I trust you slept well?" He asked nonchalantly, balancing the tray in one hand while he cleared away a spot on the cluttered desk to set it down with the other. 

Eric shrugged, running a hand through his tousled hair, inky black like a raven's wings. Just like his mother's. "When's the last time you knew me to sleep through the night Jor?"

The butler's lip twitched up in a smile. "Catch anything on the beach last night?" He started pouring the tea, plopping in two sugar cubes. 

"No, Max kept scaring the fish away," Eric snapped, referring to the English sheepdog drooling at his feet. He reached down and gave the mop a loving scratch behind the ears regardless of his failed attempts at fishing in the dead of night. 

Jora only chuckled, handing Eric his tea before reaching for the rolled oats and hot water. "Did you see the Dauntless docked this morning?" he asked, eyes focused on preparing the breakfast before him. 

Eric glanced again out the window to the black and steel flag, the raven's wings outstretched in flight. The most infamous pirate ship on the sea, with the most bloodthirsty Captain to boot, docked on his shores. It was rumored that the Captain could tell a lie within thirty seconds of it being spoken, and throw you overboard just as fast. A few years back the Dauntless fleet had been on the brink of collapse until, through some miraculous fortune, it came back stronger than ever, with twice as many ships. 

"Do you know why?" 

Jora stirred the oats, adding in a splash of cream. "Repairs and supplies. Captain Nott has a meeting somewhere in town, but I haven't learned with who or why." 

"Oh, the King won't like that," Eric muttered, sipping his tea. In fact, he knew the King would hate seeing that raven flag on his shore even more than the debt he owed to its Captain for saving his country and his own armada fifteen years ago. It was the only reason that pirate ship was allowed to dock alongside the rest of the merchant ships because the Dauntless was the only reason they were still around. 

He glanced down at the books and letters in front of him, more of his assigned duties as sole heir and Prince of Darmken. The ledger that had drawn most of his attention since sunrise was looking bleaker and bleaker the longer he looked at it. His country, tiny but mighty, was struggling to stay afloat. The letters covering every part of his desk were from citizens and lords and dukes begging for aid that the crown simply did not have to give. It made his stomach roll, his shoulders ache with tension, and a headache began to bloom behind his eyes. Not to mention the whispers of war that were also floating through the hallways of the castle and into boardrooms. A war over resources, people, money, Eric didn't know. But he did know that if Darmken was dragged into it, it would spell ruin for them all.