Raven

“Xin? ….. Xin?” Her voice was faint. A whisper. How far away was she?

“Lore?” I tried to speak softly, but it came out in screaming anger.

She laughed. It was that soft, loving laugh at first, and she was standing in front of me. Just her with that wonderful olive skin, her sweet scent surrounding me. I wanted to reach out, to touch her again, but the closer I got, the further away she was.

Then came that cackling, mocking laugh. “You were just a mark.” It echoed through my mind.

***

I gasped myself awake, nearly gagging on the taste body odour, rotten food and faeces hanging thick in the air of the passenger quarters. 

Her smell was gone. It had been for over a year. 

I got up, gave myself a very satisfying stretch and neck crack, then looked about the dim hold. I must have slept in. Most of the hammocks were empty with only a few men on one side and one woman a few spots down from mine. I looked at her and she gave me a small smile, so I returned it.

She wasn’t the only woman on this ship, but she was easily the most beautiful. She mostly kept herself covered with a cloak, but with the occasional glimpse of skin I did catch, I noticed dark tattoos running up her neck. During our voyage she hadn’t done much more than send me a few smiles. It felt like she wanted to talk to me, but didn’t at the same time. I supposed I could instigate it. I wasn’t much of a talker, but I was getting pretty starved for conversation over the last year. Maybe it would get my mind off of Her.

Come on, deep breath. Just do it.

I cleared my throat. “So… Are you travelling alone?”

Her eyes went a little wider. She averted her gaze and started picking at the hem of her cloak. 

I smacked myself mentally. Way to come off like a creep right away. I could already feel my cheeks going red. “Sorry. That was a creepy question. I’m um… Not great with small talk.”

She started with a chuckle, then it turned into a full on, gut busting laugh. Sure, it was funny, but I didn’t think it was that funny.

As the laughter came to a slow, she wiped a tear and said, “Sorry, that was rude.”

I chuckled. “Don’t worry about it.”

She sent that small smile at me again. “So where are you docking?”

“Few more ports from here,” I answered, thanking the gods she took up leading the conversation. “Over at Birka.”

“Oh, I see.” She seemed disappointed and relieved at the same time. “I’m off at the next port. At Aarhus.”

I heard an increased amount of whispers and chortles from the far corner where a handful of men were secretly, but obviously watching us. I didn’t like that, so I made a mental note of where my swords were.

I turned my attention back to the woman. “That’s good.” She seemed a little hurt by that, and this time I actually slapped my head. “Sorry, it’s just… It’s not really safe for a woman to be travelling alone.”

She laughed again, not quite as loud, but still obviously entertained by my incompetence. “So, what’s your name, oh awkward one?”

I chuckled and scratched my head. “Xin, Xin Romo.”

An inquisitive smile spread across her face. “Xin Romo? That wouldn’t be Xin the Executioner would it?”

“Heh, yeah, I guess that is what they’re calling me now.”

“Oh my, I didn’t realize I was in the presence of a celebrity.”

“Ha! Is that what I am? A guy kills a few weird creatures and suddenly he’s a celebrity, huh?”

“Well, that and the rumour that you decapitated five men in a single blow.”

“That’s not what happened.” I sighed. “There were at least seven.”

She laughed, and this time it was a sweet laugh. As she wiped a tear from her eye, she said, “My name’s Raven, by the way, in case you were wondering.”

“Huh… Raven. I have a tendency not to trust the corvid birds. They always seem to be watching me.”

She laughed again. “Well, I can’t promise that I won’t be watching you, Xin the Executioner.”

I gave a soft laugh. “Ah, just Xin is fine. I’m not actually an Executioner, just a swordsman looking for jobs.” And to hunt down that bastard Konstantin, I thought. Lore was looking for him too. Would I see her again before I found him? Would she get to him first? Probably. She was always the one with the plan, I just wandered around finding trouble. What I wouldn’t give to fight side by side with her again. 

“Who is she?” Raven asked, and the question caught me off guard. 

“What?”

“You’ve mumbled her name in your sleep a few times. And that look…” She was picking at the hem again.

“Oh… She was…” I sighed. I could tell her that she was the absolute love of my life and she tore my heart out, but that was more than I wanted to share. “...Old girlfriend I used to work with.”

“Oh.” A smile was back on her lips. “So do you have a girlfriend now?”

I cleared my throat and felt my cheeks start to get warm. “No.”

She chuckled a little as she started to swing back and forth in her hammock. “I see. So… is there a hurry to your next island? I could… use some company in my house. It’s pretty empty.”

“I…” Shit. I could already feel my face burning hot. I was bad at small talk, I was even worse at flirting. I looked her up and down a few times. She noticed and gave me a smile. Part of me really wanted to. She was absolutely beautiful, but-- “S-sorry. I can’t. I need to get to the next island. There’s a really big mark I can’t miss out on.”

“Oh…” She seemed more surprised than anything. Those hazel eyes studied me for a moment. “But you… were flirting with me, right?”

“No!” I cried a little louder than intended, and she jumped, that hurt look back on her face. “I mean… yes… maybe… I don’t know. I’m really bad at this. You are very pretty.” 

She started laughing again. “By the gods. I expected Xin the Executioner to be red from being covered in blood, not from embarrassment. You are adorable.”

I gave a weak laugh, trying my best to cool my face. “Gee, thanks.”

The men in the corner had apparently heard enough. They all started laughing, probably at me, then came walking over. Raven looked over, a panic setting in her eyes. I couldn’t blame her, we both knew what they were after.

Two of the stinking men took a spot on either side of me, another two behind Raven, and the tallest man sauntered up, leaning in close to Raven. I could only imagine his breath was just as foul as the rest of him. That guess was confirmed by her twisted, disgusted expression. 

As he spoke to Raven, offering to show her a good time instead, the two beside me put a hand on each shoulder. 

“Look buddy,” said the one with seriously bad teeth. “You had your chance. How about you go topside?”

I looked at Raven, and saw the terrified, disgusted look on her face, so I looked up at the guy and smirked. Though both men were clearly trying to keep me down, I stood up with ease. When they stumbled away surprised by their uselessness, I said, “Nah, think I’ll stay right here.”

He snarled and took a step towards me, but I didn’t care. Other than smelling terrible, the guy didn’t scare me. I just stood my ground, let my smile turn to a glare, and his second step lost it’s determination.

The tall one had turned his attention back at me, but was still speaking to Raven when he said, “You really think this musclehead is Xin the Executioner? This bumbling idiot? Please.”

I shook my head and picked up my swords that were leaning against the wall. With that all familiar motion, I strapped them to my back, creating my symbolic “X” shape. It started out as a silly kid thing, but I had started to enjoy the instant recognition I got from it.

It worked, mostly. All eyes went wide, but the ring leader shook himself out of it first. 

“That proves nothing, anyone can strap two swords to their back.”

I ignored him. “Hey Raven, kinda reeks down here. Feel like some fresh air?”

“I’d love some,” she replied, a thankful smile on her lips.

“No way buddy. We gave you your chance with her and you threw it away. She’s staying here with us to see what a real man is like.”

“Last I checked she was a woman, not some doll. How about we ask her what she wants?”

“I want to go topside,” she replied in a hurry, standing from the hammock and coming towards me. 

Before she could, the tall one growled and raised his hand. “Shut the fuck up.”

As his hand came down to strike her, she screamed, but I made sure the brunt of that stinging slap was on me instead. The man looked at me with surprise. I was faster than he thought.

I smirked. “Whoever taught you what a real man is like should really apologize. You’re not a man, you’re the scum on the bottom of my boot.”

As the leader snarled, Raven gasped and screamed from behind me. One of the men had grabbed her and had a dagger to her throat. Cowards. The others were closing in. Should I bother with my swords? I might get charged extra for clean up. Bare knuckle brawl it was.

Coward with the dagger was first. He was close enough for me to grab his scrawny arm. He tried to cut her, but I wasn’t going to give him anything. He strained and grunted, but I pulled his arm away from her, and when her throat was safe, snapped his arm at the elbow. He screamed in pain, and two others came charging in. 

Each one grabbed one of my arms. How cute.

The tall one came walking up. He was a bit taller than me, but not much. He geared up to punch me in the gut. I wondered how hard he could do it, so I let him. He hit. It wasn’t bad. Form wasn’t terrible. Still, nothing compared to what I’d been through before. 

I laughed at him, he wasn’t impressed. He cried out in rage and wound up for an even bigger punch. Stupid. He was completely open, so I kicked him in the diaphragm. He gasped for air but couldn’t find it, so he crumpled to his knees trying to regain himself. I knew how to fix getting winded, but I wasn’t about to tell him.

Next were the two clingers. Simple. All I had to do was bring them in on each other and smack their heads together. Down they went. 

I glared at the rest, and they seemed to lose their nerve, mumbling amongst themselves as they backed off. Guess they were convinced about my identity now. 

I turned to Raven and held out an arm. She took it with a nervous smile, leaping over the broken armed guy on the floor and together we went above deck. 

The crisp clean sea breeze was a welcoming scent, so I let it fill me, taking a nice deep breath, then giving a large sigh. She chuckled at me. I cocked an eye at her and she looked me up and down. 

“If someone had told me you had just been in a fight, I wouldn’t believe it. You’re not phased at all.”

“Ah, that wasn’t even a warm up.”

“I believe that. Now if only we could put some of that confidence into your small talk.”

I laughed. That was definitely something I had wished for before.

After explaining the situation to the Captain, the crew scurried off to take care of the idiots below deck. Raven and I went to the rail, watching them pull the screaming and crying men up from below with immense satisfaction. 

Raven chuckled, then slid up close to me. “My hero.” Those sparkling hazel eyes gazed up into mine. “So, what would you like as your reward?”

“I… uhh…” There went my face again. 

She came in closer and closer, her lips reaching up to mine. I leaned in a little, greeting her soft lips, and a million thoughts and feelings raced through my mind. She felt so good, but still… I had to pull away.

“What’s wrong?” 

I wasn’t even sure where to start. “S-sorry. I just… I can’t. Not like this. You’re in shock. I don’t want any sort of reward for what just happened. That’s not right. That and… well, we’re about to part ways and I don’t really do the whole… one night stand thing.”

She seemed confused at first, but then chuckled, relaxing against the rail. “A hero and a gentleman. That’s a rare combination around here.”

“Yeah, I guess it is.”

She started rummaging in her cloak, then held up that all so familiar stick of goodness. “Mind if I smoke?”

I shook my head. “No, go ahead.”

She lit it up, and took a deep drag. The exhale came over me, and that longing for the taste started to overwhelm me. No, come on, it had been over two years since I’d had one, I couldn’t go back on that now. I rummaged in my pocket and pulled the not as satisfying toothpick and put it in my mouth.

She looked at me. “Do you smoke?” I must have been staring. Damn. I forced myself to look away.

“Used to.”

“Oh, good on you for quitting. I’ve thought of it, but I already know how I’m going to die, so it seems pointless to give up on something I like.”

“What?” Did she really say what I thought she did?

She chuckled. “I’ve known the way I’m going to die for quite some time now. To be fair, I know how a lot of people are going to die. I’m a seer.”

“A seer?" I cocked an eye. "Then how come you didn’t know not to travel on a boat all alone?”

She gave me a sly grin. “Maybe I knew who I would find if I did.”

I gave her another skeptical look, and she laughed at me.

“My ability is pretty vague. More like puzzles I have to put together as it comes. Some are more obvious than others.”

“I’ve never heard of that kind of Blessing before.”

“Oh, it’s not a Blessing. It’s not a power from the gods at all. It’s a natural born human ability. Very rare.”

“Really? I didn’t know those existed.”

“Sure do.”

It seemed awkward to ask, but the question was eating at me. “How are you going to die?”

Another long drag. “Childbirth.”

I thought for a bit, then asked, “What if you… you know, try not to get pregnant?”

She laughed. “Oh, believe me, I’ve thought about it, but then I would be fucking up another predicion.”

“Oh?”

“Another puzzle. All I know is that my child will be important to the future. Some kind of hero. World altering.”

“That’s a pretty big thing to know.”

She chuckled, gave me an odd side glance, then took another long drag. “Would you believe that’s not even the biggest thing I know?”

I looked at her expectantly, but she just laughed again. “Some things are better kept to myself… swordsman.” She smiled at that word.

My mind was buzzing. She could just be bullshitting me. There was no proof to any of her claims, but I couldn’t help but feel she was telling the truth. I looked her over as she gazed out, then asked. “What’s it like knowing?” 

She gave a small smile. “Hmm… It was terrifying at first, but I’ve come to find it freeing. Like nothing else I do really matters, you know?”

“I see…” We stood staring out at sea while that cigarette got smaller and smaller. Finally, I had to ask the question. “Do you know how I’ll die?”

Her lip curled up into a wicked grin. She set those hazel eyes on me, and a chill ran through my spine as she whispered the word, “Yes.”

My heart was racing. Did she really know? 

“Well, I do owe you something for helping me. Would you like to know?”

I thought for a moment, then said, “I don’t know…”

“Well, I’ll tell you what swordsman” --There was a heavy emphasis on that word-- “How about the next time you come to Aarhus, you look me up. Then if you want, I can tell you then." She looked me up and down with a smile. "Or I can promise far more than a one night stand.”

I smiled, not really sure how to respond to that, so I just nodded, and felt my cheeks growing even warmer. 

She leaned in with a soft kiss on the cheek, then flicked the butt of the cigarette overboard and stretched. “Well, since those assholes are all taken care of, I should go get packed up. See you around swordsman.”

“See you…” I replied with a distracted wave as I watched her go back below deck, picturing that body under that cloak. I shook my head. It had been way too long. The problem was I only really wanted one person, but she didn’t want me. Maybe by the time I met Raven again, I’d be ready.

Until then, I still had a pirate head to take.