Sunrise and Setup

Oliver woke up early, as he always did. He quietly and efficiently dressed himself and made his way out of the cabin, not wanting to disturb Isabella’s rest. Rat Jack, he noticed, was already gone. Oliver didn’t see the diminutive man on his way up to the deck, but guessed that the cook had simply made an early start on breakfast. The sun was bright and the sea was shining as Oliver filled his lungs with the fresh scent of ocean air. The other members of the crew all seemed to have more sailing experience than the young sellsword, but he was eager to do his part.

Knots needed checking, the deck needed scrubbing, and Oliver was the man to do it. He worked quickly and carefully, not wanting to risk a mistake on the first day out at sea. Stepping back to admire his handiwork, he decided not to waste a good sweat and unsheathed his sword, beginning his daily drills.

“Good form,” Johanna said, causing Oliver to freeze, “I can see why the Captain hired you.”

Oliver turned to regard his senior crewmate, then immediately turned away again; Johanna hadn’t seen fit to put on any clothing this morning. The young man suddenly became very interested in his drills again, eliciting a chuckle from the naked woman.

“You can look all you want, Oliver. I don’t mind,” Johanna made a point of walking around in front of Oliver, forcing him to quit swinging his sword and furiously try to maintain eye contact. Johanna easily plucked the sword from his hands, inspecting it carefully, “I might be the Captain’s slut, but he’s not as possessive as you might fear,” She said, not quite alleviating Oliver’s fear. “Nice blade,” She eventually decided, handing it back, “Odd design, but it looks like you handle it well.” She ran a hand along his chest and arms before walking away, “I wonder how you’d handle me?” She mused aloud, a final parting shot to make Oliver blush and shiver.

The swordsman managed to finish his exercises without any further interruptions, but Isabella was there to hand him a slice of toast and eye him appreciatively after he sheathed his weapon.

“Thank you, Isabella” He said, taking the food from her and sitting down, “Everyone else eating?”

“Finished eating, more like. You’ve got a pretty involved dance routine, Ollie.”

Oliver shrugged, finishing his food before speaking, “That’s fair. Did I miss anything important?”

Isabella hummed thoughtfully, then shook her head. “A few more days of easy sailing before we’re likely to see any action. It’s good of you to stay sharp, though.” Oliver nodded his agreement, then Isabella watched him turn away and head back below, perhaps to seek out whatever scraps of food were left. The sellsword was certainly easy on the eyes, and Isabella wondered if she could convince him to start doing his workout routines shirtless.

The next man who came above decks, however, needed no such convincing. Bone never wore a shirt, his broad chest and powerful arms on permanent display. “Morning, Captain,” She called out, hopping up to sit on the railing, “It’s a good day for sailing.”

Bone paused, casting an appreciative eye out towards the sea, the sky, the ship, and finally to Isabella. “It’s always a good day for sailing,” He grinned, “Same’s true for fighting, pillaging, fucking, and drinking.”

“As you say, Cap’n,” Isabella agreed, “Doubt we’ll see any ships for another couple days, though.”

Bone approached, taking hold of the wheel just behind Isabella and taking a deep, appreciative breath of the salty air. “So less fighting and pillaging today, and more of the rest?” He asked, his eyes making plain that he wasn’t really thinking about sailing or drinking.

Isabella found it difficult to remain composed in the face of Bone’s flirtations, and she gave a nervous giggle before whirling away, “Like I said, sir. Good day for sailing.” She dropped from the railing onto the deck, deciding that she should check the holds or maybe see what Riley was up to, or really just go anywhere to get away from the dangerous eyes of her captain. Of course, turning a corner and stumbling headlong into beautiful, naked Johanna Stern was not much better.

“Careful, Izzy,” Johanna teased, taking the flustered girl by the shoulders and steadying her, “There are a lot of tight passages on a ship this size.” Johanna emphasized her point by pinning Isabella to the wall and pressing their bodies close together as she moved past.

“T-tight passages,” Isabella whispered, holding her breath and trying not to move, “Got it.”

Johanna smiled, her eyes flicking briefly downwards, “Very tight. Feel free to ask if you ever need help with them.”

Isabella gave a weak nod and watched as Johanna strutted away. “One day,” She realized, heading below, “I’m not going to last one fucking day.”