Stone cold (closed)

"There she is, boys. The Lady Fair" the handsome young man said as he lowered his spyglass. He had been tracking the ship for days.
"What shall we do, captain?"
"We wait untill nightfall, then, when the lights are out, we attack." The young man ordered his men to get some rest as he sat atop a barrel, and lit his pipe. He watched the speck in the distance, the Lady Fair, and took a deep pull from his pipe. He hated the very notion of slavery, so he hated that ship.

The lights on the Lady Fair went out, and the captain put his plan into action. The men stormed the ship, fiercely murdering the crew while freeing the slaves. The young man came across a cage with a single white woman inside. She was clearly a prisoner, and not a slave. The young man was filled with rage, and broke the lock on the cage. The young man looked at the woman with a heavy heart.
"You are free now miss" the young man said as he opened the cage door for her, his head dipped down to show he meant no harm.

Looking up she smiled. "Thank you." She said as she stood and stepped out of the cage she had been in. "I need to get into the captain's quarters to get my things..." She said as she looked around to make sure there was no one else there. She winced as she and held her shoulder but seemed to shake it off.

She then walked off from him obviously heading to where her things were. A naval officer came around the corner only to meet her fist. She hit the man square between the eyes before she stepped over him. She wouldn't be captured again. The wound in her shoulder reopened when she hit the man but she was determined to get her weapons. She would have to get new clothes when she got back to nassau. For now the dirty white cloth pants and tunic would do fine.

The young man headed to the deck where the slaves had gathered. He looked at the slaves, seemingly trying to work something out in his head.
"You are all free men and women now. I will appoint one of my men as captain of this ship to take you to your homeland. But, if you wish to join us, I have no issue with that." The young man turned to his quartermaster, and ordered him to organise the now free slaves, and have a medic see to them.

The young man made his way to the captain's quarters, and knocked on the door.
"Miss, are you in there?"

Aye." She said as she opened the door. She was just buckling her belt which held her sword, crossbow and two daggers. "By chance are you going to nassau? If so would you mind if I joined you?" She asked as she looked out at the now freed slaves. "You got them all yes? Even the one's below deck?" She asked hoping they had all been rescued. Shaking her head she smiled and held her hand out. "Forgive my rudeness... I never introduced myself. My name is Eden. Eden Foster."

"We found them all, miss. Yes, we are heading to Nassau soon." The young man looked the woman over before taking off his hat, and bowing to the woman. His ashen hair flowed in the wind like a gentle stream. "I am Günther Steinhauer, captain of the Drowned Maiden. It is a pleasure to meet you, miss Eden Foster" Günther said as he held out his hand for her.

Smiling she placed her hand in his. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I would be forever grateful if you would allow me to go with you to Nassau. I have a friend there and I can pick up some new clothes." She said looking down at the plain white clothes she was wearing. A red stain showed on her left shoulder where she had ripped a wound open .

Günther kissed her hand softly, in the way a noble would. There was definitely more to him than met the eye.
"You are more than welcome to sail with us to Nassau. I'm sure we have some clothes that might fit you." Günther stood up again, and put on his hat. "Please, come with me. We'll get you cleaned up, and I shall tend to your wound" Günther said as he stared at her shoulder.

Nodding she looked at her shoulder. "I truly appreciate your help. I admit I don't think I could have gotten out of there myself..." She said speaking properly as like a lady would. She followed him back towards his ship and boarded. "This is a beautiful ship." She said complimenting his vessel as she looked around.

"Thank you, miss Foster. It was my father's ship, and his father before him. I can assure you that they do not make ships like this anymore." Günther opened the door to the captain's quarters, and led Eden inside.

The room was filled with candles, oddities, and trinkets. There was a large ornate bed on one side of the room, and a single bed surrounded by scratches in a cage on the other side. The falcon that was perched on the chair behind the desk screeched violently at the sight of the strange woman.
"Das ist genug, Sterben" Günther said sternly as he glared at the falcon. The falcon immediately stopped its screeching. Günther dug through a chest, and found some clothes for Eden which he set on the large ornate bed. "The washroom is behind that curtain over there. You'll be sleeping on the large bed. I'll be on deck sorting out some business." Günther whistled, and the falcon flew to him, landing on his shoulder. "Take as long as you need, miss Foster" Günther said before leaving the room.

Eden nodded and watched him go before she unbuckled her belt and began undressing as she took the clothes behind the curtain. Quickly cleaning herself up she changed. It was nice to be in new clothes. She took about thirty minutes and was putting her hair up as she stepped out of the room. They were already sailing away from the slave ship and she smiled as she felt the wind hit her face. She was used to being on a ship as her father had, had his own ship and he use to take her with him sometimes. She smiled as she walked out and over to the railing of the ship and smiled again as she took in the fresh salty air as the wind blew past her again. Her ebony black hair blowing in the wind.

Günther sat on the railing, smoking his pipe as he watched his falcon fly around the ship. He watched as Eden emerged from his quarters, and watched her hair flowed gracefully in the wind. He stood up, and approached Eden slowly.
"I trust you enjoyed washing away the filth of that vessel" Günther said before taking another pull from his pipe. He looked out over the ocean before looking to Eden again. "I need to see to your wound as soon as possible. Come inside when you're ready." Günther whistled for the falcon, and headed inside.

Nodding and watched him go. she stayed by the railing for a few more moments before following him inside. Closing the door behind her she walked inside. "The wound isn't very serious..." She said sounding a little nervous as she knew she would have to expose her shoulder for him to treat it.

"None the less, I must treat it. Gods alone know the diseases and infections one can get on a slave ship" Günther said as he readied the supplies. He poured some spirits onto a cloth, and wiped his hands with the cloth before setting clean gauze on the desk, along with a bottle of spirits, some ointment, and a swab. "If you are shy to show me your wound because it is on your shoulder... You have nothing to fear. The shoulder does not have sway over me. Besides, I am not about to let a woman succumb to infection." Günther pulled out the chair from behind the desk and gestured for Eden to sit down.

Eden watched him for a long while as he got everything ready. "I uh... no one has ever.... seen any skin under my clothes..." She said blushing some as she moved over and took a seat in the chair. She knew he meant her no harm. If he had he would have hurt her as soon as the door to her cage was open.

"I understand. But please understand that I mean you no harm, I simply wish to help you. If it would make you feel better, I will tend to your wound with my eyes closed." Günther knelt next to Eden, and poured some spirits onto the gauze. He looked up at her, his violet eyes looking into hers.

Eden stared back into his eyes with her own. "It's ok... Just work as quickly as you can... You won't be able to see if your eyes are clothes." She said after a few moments. Closing her eyes she pushed her shirt down over her shoulder exposing a gunshot wound. It didn't have an exit wound however which meant the ball was still inside her shoulder. The wound itself was angry red and inflamed.

Günther looked at the wound, and shook his head. He grabbed a pair of tweezers, and sighed.
"This may hurt a bit. Just keep your eyes closed, and breath deeply" Günther said with a sigh. Günther placed the tweezers into the wound, grabbed the bullet, and removed it as quickly as possible. He placed the bullet in a dish, and quickly set about cleaning the wound with spirits. As soon as Günther was happy with the wound, he stitched it up, applied the ointment, and covered it with a bandage. "All done. I apologize for any pain or discomfort that you may have experienced."

She let out a gasp of pain as she felt the tweezers enter the wound and pull something out. Once he was done she slumped in the chair taking deep breaths. "I'm alright..." She said pulling her shirt back up and over her shoulder. It has hurt but at the very least she wouldn't die of an infection.

It took her a moment to compose herself again but once she did she calmed her breathing. "Thank you..." She said as politely as she could. "I owe you quite a lot."

"You owe me nothing, miss Foster. You were in need of help, and I was able to deliver what you needed." Günther packed everything away, and cleaned his hands. He tilted his head, and not a moment sooner, there was a knock at the cabin door. Günther opened the door, and a boy walked in, set the plates on the table, and left. "Dinner is served."

As soon as Günther was finished, he tidied up, and made for the door.
"The boy will return in a few minutes for the dishes. I suggest you get some rest. I would like to inform you that only authorised personnel are allowed on deck after eight. Good night, miss Foster" Günther said with a bow before heading outside for the night.

Eden ate anything that was offered to her as she hadn't eaten in two days she struggled to eat with any manners. Once she was done she stacked the plates up to make it an easy cleanup. She looked up when she was told she wasn't allowed on deck after a certain time but she would respect his rules. "Good night then." She said as he left the room. Once he was gone she took a moment to really take in his room. It was interesting but then again the owner of this room was interesting himself. Looking over at the bed she found herself feeling extremely tired as she hadn't really slept while she had been on the slave ship. No telling what those men would have done had they caught her sleeping. Taking off her boots she set them side by side by the bed before laying down, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

There was quite a bit of noise on deck, and a few men were shouting in German.

The captain of the slave ship was pitted against a big black dog, although it was more beast than dog. The beast snarled, and licked it's lips before lunging at the captain's throat. The captain screamed before his screams turned to a squeal. Then, silence.

Günther staggered into his cabin, and locked himself in the cage where he lay for the rest of the night.

Günther was sitting at his desk writing as the sun peaked through the window. His hair was brushed neatly, and tied in a tidy tail.

Eden didn't wake up till late morning. Yawning she sat up and stretched before noticing him. "Good morning..." She said as she rubbed her hurt shoulder. She knew it would hurt for awhile so she made no complaints about it. She was still a little tired bit she wanted to go out on deck and enjoy the ocean before they docked at Nassau.

"Good morning, miss Foster." Günther put his pen down, and closed the book he had been writing in. He looked across to Eden, and at her shoulder. "I trust you slept well?" Günther rubbed his eyes, and stretched. He hadn't slept for a long time, a few days, maybe a week.

I did. Thank you." She said smiling. "I heard a lot of noise last night. May I ask what was going on?" She asked tilting her head as she put her hair up. She may not be a nobleman's daughter anymore but she always did her best to look her best.

"It is difficult to explain, fräulein. We do not take kindly to slavers, what you heard was the slaver captain going up against the black dog" Günther said with a sigh. He stood up, and ran his fingers through his hair. He didn't trust her, he didn't trust anybody. "She is not German, she doesn't know our lore, you can't trust her" Günther thought to himself. Günther swallowed, pushing aside the memory of his sister. "I'm sure you are hungry? Come, the cook has prepared breakfast. I'm sure you would like to eat in the ocean breeze, a free woman?" Günther put on his hat, and headed outside.