Escaping the pirates

As Maris is traveling along the ocean on her own, she enjoys the sunny weather and the pleasent wind.

She isn't exactly sure what her next goal should be.
But the Island Town shouldn't be too far away.
She doesn't know a lot about that town, but it might be a promising stop.
There usually live smart people in the towns.

As she walks around on the ship and looks out, she notices another ship.
It's not the first time this happens, but this ship is getting closer and closer from behind her.

As she looks through the telescope, she notices some guy standing at the front. It's Jack from the pirate crew she met earlier this day.

Why do they make such an effort to go after her? She didn't steal anything from them.
She only defended herself when they tried to rob her.
Are they only there for revenge?

And where did they even get such a ship?
It's not huge, but at least larger than hers.

As they're getting closer and closer, she gets a very bad feeling.
They know she doesn't have a crew yet. She told them.
So they could just attack her and steal her ship.
Maybe that's their plan...
That really sounds bad.

At least the ship doesn't seem to have weapons, but it's already bad enough like this.

Maris tries to get faster, but she's already moving with maximum speed, so it won't get faster.

So she looks around for weapons and picks some knives from the kitchen and then goes up and waits on the deck.

Soon the other ship catches up and is now traveling next to her in the same direction.
Jack is standing at the railing.
His leg, which Mara had stabbed with her knife before, looks like it has been treated amateurishly.

As Maris and Jack face each other, the distance between the two ships is getting smaller and smaller.
And soon the ships are only a few meters apart.

Hey, you! I'm the captain of this ship now.
Captain Jack. How does that sound to you?
Did you really think, you could get away that easily after hurting my leg so badly?

Uhm...

Don't worry.
We'll just get your ship and then you'll be part of my crew instead.
We'll have a lot of fun together.

Maris really doesn't want that.
She would definitely be their slave.
Maybe distracting him would help...?

How did you even get this ship?
And how did you find me?

Your friend helped us to steal the ship and told us the direction you chose.

Jack waves back and suddenly Rafferty appears next to him holding a sword in one hand and some glowing ball in the other hand.
The ball is not the treasure he stole.

You? Why?

You're just too naive.
You should have learned your lesson after escaping us.
But you just made friends with somebody else on this island.
You can only blame yourself for that...

He's right. Maris should have been more cautious...

Only one or two meters, and the fun will begin!

The ships are still getting closer and closer.
It should be possible to jump to the other side already.

Suddenly the tip of a sword comes out of his belly.
Captain Jack only looks up with a face wrinkled in pain.
Then the sword disappears and he falls down above the railing into the water.
Rafferty suddenly appears behind him, holding a bloody sword.

I guess I didn't have another choice...
He was talking shit...

He throws the glowing ball behind him and then jumps to the other side of the gap.
Maris looks at him in surprise.
Rafferty just barely made the jump.

Just after he landed on her ship, there's a huge explosion on the other ship causing it to shake strongly.
This creates waves pushing their ship away.

Maris almost falls to the ground because of that, but she is able to grab the railing just in time.

I'm so glad I found you!
Yeah, I really found you, dear...
Uhm...

I'm Maris.

Oh, I'm not good at names.

It's because you didn't ask yet.

Maris still doesn't know what happened.

I already thought, it was over.

Don't worry. I'm sure their motors are damaged beyond repair now.
And besides that, their captain is dead.
They shouldn't be a danger to us anymore.

I guess you're right. Thank you very much.
I already thought you would betray me, too.
Weren't you mad when I left you alone?

Don't worry. It was the only way for you to leave this place safely.
I'm glad you left without me.
And as you see, I'm here now.
I'm rather with you than with these guys.

Uhm, thanks...

Maris isn't sure if she should be happy or annoyed.
He tried to help her, and everything turned out well, but what he did was very risky.

But he's a handsome guy, and he did his best.
So she will trust him for now.

You were great!
I don't know what I would've done without you.
You're officially part of my crew now!

Really? That sounds great!

But let's go down now.
I'm still very nervous and need to calm down.

Rafferty nods in agreement and they go down together.