The mut of a pirate looked momentarily surprised by the muzzle now pressing against his heart. No palpable fear could be seen in those deep thoughtful eyes of his, rather an emerging curiosity. 

- How dramatic. I did not take you for a man of theatrics Captain. 

- I am not. This is a last chance for you, speak or become fodder for the creatures of the sea below. 

- Aye aye. I hear you.

He looked up towards me, after having inspected the barrel of my gun once more, still pressed harshly against his chest in warning. As our eyes met I couldn’t help but admire the man before me, his face showed no trace of fear, not many pirates would do the same in his stead. Most would cower or beg for their mothers warm embrace.

- Speak.

- Such demands. How about this, let's trade.

- I don’t believe you are in any position to trade, pirate.

- You sure? 

I cocked the gun, which only made the man smile wider. He was either a fool or a madman. I looked down towards my hand holding the gun, watching as my finger pulled tighter on the small trigger. Looking up at him once more, seeing him already watching my movements intently, feeling my eyes on him, he leans his head back far enough for our eyes to meet once more, his lips quirked in a lazy smile.

- I have quite the intel of a treasure.

- I don’t care for treasures-

- I think you care enough about this one though. If you knew who it belonged to.

- And who’s that?

- Sion Salvador.

I couldn’t help but let out a bemused snort. All who had sailed at least a month or so as a pirate, have heard the legends of Sion Salvador, a bloodthirsty pirate and thought to be cannibal, roaming the seven seas for decades before suddenly disappearing without a trace, or a single soul of his former crew to be seen ever again. It was hearsay, drunken tales from even more drunken sailors. 

- He is nothing more than a myth, a story of nonsense amongst illiterate pirates and thieves.

- One would think so, yes. I am though, someone who has both seen him, and knows of his treasure.

- Then you are clearly a waste of my time-

I watched as one of his hands slowly and gently wrapped around the muzzle of my gun, but instead of pushing it away from him, he pulled it towards his chest, closer to his heart. My gun was now pressing so hard against his chest that it would likely bruise. His eyes stayed on my own though, with little to no changes in his facial expression the entire time. 

- This is the deal. I give you the directions to this treasure, you take me to the nearest port. If this is not satisfactory enough for you, then so be it. Kill me.

The pirate now lets his other hand rest upon the first one who’s holding the muzzle of my gun against his heart. Not uttering another word, but rather letting his actions and eyes speak for him. Is he mad enough to lie like this, straight to my face, not a single bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face, no tremble in his hands that’s holding the gun towards his chest. He is seemingly genuine, but who knows. He might be the biggest liar on this ship, or the most honest pirate I have ever met. I am inclined to say he might even be a complete madman. I let my free hand reach through the bars of the cell, taking a hold of his neck, making his pupils narrow momentarily, but not resisting my grip on his throat. I focus on the pulse beating beneath his soft skin, in rhythmic thumps that are slightly quicker than normal, but not by much. 

I hold his throat for half a minute or so, simply feeling his pulse, as time passes it even seems to slow down slightly, making me consider his story to be, perhaps not a complete truth, true enough to be worth investigating.

- Deal.

I let go of his throat, ripping my gun away from his grasp, away from his chest, making him drop his hands to his side as I put my gun back in its holster. 

- Set your course towards Old Jaw’s cliffs to begin with.

- We will set sail then.

I turn quickly to walk off, but the voice of the pirate cut through the air like a bullet, making me halt mid-step.

- We have a deal Captain!

- Nearest port. Yes. I intend to keep my end of the deal, though you did not specify when I was to drop you off. I would like to truly make sure your claims are as true as you speak of them to be. If this all was nothing but a lie, and that we find nothing, if I am anything but satisfied with your “intel”. I will simply kill you. As you promised. 

- I know you will find something, but then what?

- Then I will let you off, in the nearest port. Just as we agreed.

His face was twisted in annoyance, yet he nodded slightly in agreement, likely realising his current position. I shrugged off the feeling of his eyes burning holes into the back of my skull as I made my way back up from the brig, and towards the deck. Just as I had put my first foot down on the upper deck, a slim arm wrapped itself around my own, knowing who it was, I felt myself relax.

- I see you have been down in the brig. Seen your new lover?

- He is nothing but a filthy pirate. Speak of him as such.

- Aye Captain, is he dead then?

- No. We made a deal.

At that I felt Alex stiffen, looking over towards her face I could see her expression sour instantly, eyes narrowed and filled with fury. 

- You are a weak hearted fool Vince.

- He knows where the treasure of the bone eater lay buried.

- I thought better of you than to believe in stories of drunken sailors!

- So did I.

David was leaning against the railing of the stairs leading up to the wheel of the boat, his face was as neutral as any other day, but his arms were crossed which was always a telltale sign that he was displeased with something. 

- He bet his life on this, gun pressed against his chest. His heartbeat was calm and steady. He is either a madman or he speaks some truth.

- By this point he must be a madman then, and so are you.

- Perhaps we should discuss this in private?

- Aye, let us retreat into your chamber Captain. This tomfoolery must not get to the rest of the crew.

I let myself be led, or rather dragged, back into my Captain’s cabin, with David tagging along a few paces behind. As the door was finally closed behind the three of us, all standing in the middle of the room, alone, Alex began pacing back and forth.

- What did he want then? Part in the treasure? Freedom?

- He wanted nothing but to be let off at the nearest port.

- And you agreed to it?

- Yes. Though I intend to keep him until his claims are shown to be truthful.

- And if they aren’t?

- He told me I could kill him.

At that Alex looked up at me for the first time since we’d met up on deck. Her eyebrows furrowing, eyes sceptical and deep in thought.

- I see no real harm in seeking this location, but I do see harm in not letting him go. He is a pirate no? He might have a crew. It is dangerous to keep him aboard.

- That is true, though I intend to keep him as a bargaining tool. His crew would be no real threat, if they even care enough to look for him.

- We don’t know that!

- The coordinates he gave are not too far from here, a few days away, what is the true harm? If it is untrue, we kill him, if it is true we get the treasure and then drop him off?

- His crew might be waiting for us?

- Where? He didn’t say a specific port, and we might as well drop him off at one of our’s.

- I suppose.

- You are letting him do this? David, this is madness!

- I see no harm in the location, but rather keeping the pirate on this ship any longer. The more time he spends here, the more time a possible crew has to track us down and take back their Captain.

- Captain? What makes you think that man- no boy, is a Captain?

- That or he is valuable in some other way. Perhaps a right-hand man? Regardless, I do not believe this tale of his, a treasure from a myth, and thus he is simply spinning tales of forgery to stall for time, time to be rescued by his crew, or even his ship. 

- If that shitstain downstairs is a Captain, make me walk the plank thrice over, he is nothing but a filthy liar and sending our men out on a wild goose chase, or into a trap.

- Either way, we are going. I’m not convinced this is true, but I do look forward to seeing that little life of his leave those eyes as his brain splatters across the ceiling of my brig.

Alex looked back up at me with large eyes, before cackling loudly.

- Now that right there, is my Captain!