The sailors (or slaves, to be more technical) didn't pay much attention to Sean and the other three men as they came on deck, but heads turned as whispers reached all corners of the top deck that there was a woman on board. One of the guarding pirates managed to hear one of these mumbled 'appreciations' of Maeve's appearance and turned to see what all the commotion was about.
"The woman has escaped!" he suddenly yelled. The other two turned and bore shocked expressions to see an armed woman standing there with four other armed men. Immediately they all came running, with weapons drawn. All the men on the top deck stopped what they were doing and moved closer to watch. *Poor fools,* the men thought, *They're sure to be killed by the Captain's men...*
"How should we go about this, love?" Sean asked Maeve.
"Hmmm..... Let me take the slender one."
"Agreed."
The five split off into groups. Ahmud and Hamek took one of the guards while Clyde took another on his own, disarming him with his whip and then engaging him in hand-to-hand combat. Maeve and Sean teamed up on the third one, who was more skilled than the other two and was actually giving them a little bit of a hard time. Meanwhile, the Captain was awakening below and making his way toward the unusal noise he was hearing above him.
Clyde, Ahmud, and Hamek knocked their opponents unconscious, tied them up, and then joined the crowd of men who were watching Sean and Maeve battle the third pirate. That's when the Captain appeared. Maeve saw him first.
"Sean, you think you can finish this guy off?" she asked while dodging a blow.
"Sure thing, sweety."
"Thanks," she made her way toward the Captain, "And my name ain't Sweety!"
"So, little wench, getting ambitious, aren't we?" the Captain drawled as he made an attack easily paried by Maeve.
"You got something against ambition?" Maeve made a high swing as the Captain ducked.
"Only when it interrupts my plans." The Captain swung low, trying to slash at Maeve's legs, but she jumped to avoid his sword.
"What a spoiled child you must have been. Always getting your way. Well not anymore!" Maeve's blade caught the Captain's shoulder, but it only seemed to make him angrier.
At this point Sean finished off his opponent and saw what Maeve was doing. *Maeve's going to get herself killed! She's crazy!* he thought, and somewhere in his subconscious he added, *And that's part of why I love her.*
The Captain managed to back Maeve up against the rail, giving her little choice as to what move to make next. Maeve was about to give up when she thought of what Sinbad would do in a situation like this... Then it came to her: She jumped up onto the rail while dodging a blow and then flipped over the Captain's head, switching their positions. (Wearing pants now had its advantages.) That earned her a collective gasp from the spectators, and a resentful glare from the Captain. Now he was the one stuck between a rock and a hard place.
*If she can do it, so can I!* he decided determinedly. Not nearly as gracefully, he managed to jump up onto the rail. He began the motions to attempt a flip, but had to dodge Maeve's sword in mid-jump and lost his balance, falling over the side of the ship and into waters that still churned from the storm that had been keeping the Nomad from the Night Raven.
Maeve dashed to the rail and watched for the Captain to resurface. He never did.
Before she knew it, she was in Sean's arms. "You did it, Maeve, you did it!" Sean cried.
"No, we did it," Maeve corrected.
Sean smiled at her. Only his Maeve would be so humble in a time of such victory. He looked into her chocolate eyes, at her cherry lips, and couldn't resist any longer. He didn't care if it was in front of half the crew, he pulled her to him and stared into the very depths of her soul before gently lowering his mouth to hers. Maeve closed her eyes and allowed herself to be kissed, in front of dozens of strangers, by a man she hadn't even known for a week. Not just a brief kiss. This one lasted... and lasted... and lasted... And when it ended Maeve wished it could have lasted longer. It had been everything, sweet, tender, passionate, powerful... Sean had pried Maeve's soft lips apart and deepened the kiss with his warm tongue, causing her to become weak in the knees. He had gladly helped support her weight while Maeve put her energy into returning his passion. As they broke apart, still holding to each other, they had too many emotions coursing through their veins to express them all, so they stood in silence, understanding without words.
"Sean," Clyde said, "I spoke with some of the men. They're confused. They need answers."
Sean nodded and turned to the men, reluctantly letting go of Maeve's body but keeping a firm grip on her hand. "Men, this is Maeve," he began. "She was taken by the Captain's men, but she is very unlike the other women we've seen come and go on this ship. She's strong, independent. You've witnessed her fighting skills. She subdued the Captain and, in fact, led this mutiny. Now the old Captain is dead. Things here will change. You need a new leader. Who will it be?"
"Maeve! Maeve! Maeve!" they chanted.
"Looks like you've got yourself a job," Sean said to her, his eyes smiling.
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A Fact Of Life - Part 8