“Oi!

Are yuh taking a fooking wank in here or sumin!?”

My door slides open to a scruffy man with dirt blonde hair, his face and clothes are smudges with grease…

Peering at me sternly through his diving googles, his curved nose turns suspiciously as he asks,

“Are you good mate?”

“Who are you exactly?” I ask confusedly

“Naw, now I know you’re taking the piss, Kage

I’ve gotten used to that sarcasm of yours,”

“Do you know me?”

“Fack you mate!

Hurry up and get to the deck,

Stop trying to play your mental games with me!” the man slides the door shut in my face

……..

Turning it back open I follow him through the hall,

(What is this place?)

Navigating through a corridor of metallic and grey walls, I follow the man who is already hurrying to his next destination,

There are a few other doors that line the corridor, presumably bedrooms like mine,

…………..

“Auhh!~

I told yah we’re going to be rich soon after we sell the loot from the last job,

Now call me daddy Bulldog!”

“Grauhh!”

Some voice moan from behind one of the doors,

I quickly walk past it…

(Is this another memory?

No, that man called me Kage, this has to be reality.)

…..

“What the flying fack Steve-o!

I told that was my milk it had a fooking label on it for fucks sake!” a woman’s voice bellows as I near an open room,

“Errh, sorry mate but you forget I can’t read”

Smack!

“Vomit it up then!”

“Cam on now Dusty,

Yah know I would neva hit a lady, don’t go cheap shoting me like that..” a man’s sly voice responds

Poke!

“Agh!

My fackin eyes

You liar!”

"I neva said anything bout poking you in da eyes!”

Tackle!

Crash!

Walking into a cafeteria I see people sitting around eating their breakfast,

However this morning two individuals seem to be having a physical altercation.

Bump!

The scuffle rolls in front of me,

Which I promptly step over,

The other people in the room don’t pay mind to my appearance,

They all seem to be familiar with me…

……

Continuing on I come across some stairs which lead upward…

……

……

Vwooh!~

A cool breeze blows ambiently like an organ being played, as my face pokes up from under the floor,

Gulls cry happily, waves patter about noisily.

Scouting the area, I see that I’ve arrived on the deck, of a metal plated ship which churns along steadily on a blanket of water,

All the sounds together combines together beautiful like a natural orchestra or sorts….

Standing in the wind I listen to and experience the musical atmosphere…..

…….

Despite having no need for a mast, the ship still has a large one that serves a symbol of—

—“Hmm rare to see you getting up late lord Kage” a woman nods to me speaking sarcastically

Her eyes are bloodshot red, set into her hard but still feminine face,

As she speaks I can see the glimmer of a few false sliver teeth, her head is covered in a cloth with a skull over what looks like a deep-sea trench, but the dyed gray strands of hair still poke out from under it…

“May I ask you who you ar—"

Stab!

“—Aghh!

What the hell!?”

She lunges at me unexpectedly driving a dagger into the left side of my abdomen,

The sudden jolt of pain causes me to crumple to the floor..

“Did you wake on the wrong side of the hammock mate?” in disgust the woman looks down at me,

“First yah make me, send someone to wake yah up,

Now yah can’t even remember how to dodge?”

“I didn’t know you were going to attack me!” I retort indignantly

“Pfffttt

Its fooking training we do every morning what yah mean yah didn’t expect me to—"

Whump!

She cuts herself off instead choosing to kick me in the stomach,

“Uhgn!”

“Get up pussy!

Did yah have a bad dream last night?

Did yah dream that yah were a pussy?

Now yah wake up and act like one!?”

“I don’t even know where I am,” I protest

“Hah! are yah pulling my leg right now?

That warped sense of humor yah have

Feel I not getting use tah i—"

—WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!

A loud siren goes off commanding the woman’s attention away from me,

“Oi it’s the fed!” a man shouts

“Go get the captain!” someone else yells,

“Fuck!” the woman spats leaving me and running below deck,

(What is happening?)

“Go get your weapons!” she shouts coming back up armed with two assault riffles

“I thought we shook em’ after da last job!”

“How could they find us again!?” someone complains

Ddhhdhdhdhdhhd~~

A squadron of boats begin to the circle the deck…

This is the International Police Federation, surrender now pirates, or be raided and detained with force!

“Fuck the fed!”

“Yeahhhhhhhhhh!!”

A man war cries and is met a chorus of cheers from his crewmates,

The crew now begins to rush up to the deck weapons in hand,

The deck, which was previously empty, barring the miscellaneous items that were scattered about its cold steel floor and the little hut to the head of it where the pilot presumably navigates the craft, now becomes crowded as men and women now line the rails around the deck, their weapons aimed at the incoming boats.

“Fiyah!”

Brrrrrrrrrrt!

(That sound…

The bullets

The mountain..

Karina)

Brrrrrrrrrrt!

BOOM!!

BOOM!!

BOOM!!

One by one the surrounding boats, explode without showing any signs of retaliation,

“Ha-hah!

Take that!” the pirates cheer

Pomp!

A strange sounding shot goes off,

“Ahhhhh!

What is thi—”

The man who had barged into the room I woke up in earlier, begins to spin strangely collapsing in on himself,

A single steel ball drops in the place he just stood

“Aye what the fuck is this!?” a slightly scared voice goes cries

Pomp!

Pomp!

Pomp!

Pomp!

“Aiyeee!

They’re coming from above!”

“Blasted government tech,

We didn’t even hear a thing!”

“They hid themselves in the clouds shoot u—

—Pomp!

The number of members begin to dwindle as shots from above rain down,

People dressed in riot gear start sliding down ropes,

“It’s over!

Surrender!”

Pomp!

Pomp!

“You won’t take me alive!”

Brrr—

—Pomp!

Lying face down on the deck I dig my fingers into my wound letting it bleed more

(Please think I’m dead)

Soon the whole deck of people disappears in its place small steel balls,

“Check downstairs to see if there are anymore pirates, and free any captivates,” An officer orders,

“Yes sir!”

The suited men march past me going below deck

Brrrt!

Pomp!

“Die fed fackers!!”

Pomp!

Pomp!

I hear a few more shots going off,

…..

Buuuuuuuuuummmm! A large horn blares from above, more officers come dropping on to the deck,

“Check the area for any ‘hiders’ and collect all weapons and stolen goods!”

“Yes sir!”

……….

“Huh?

We don’t use lethal force,

Why is there an injured person here?” an officer finally notices me,

“Hello?

Are you a one of these of pirates?—

—Huhhh!” the officer turns me over, then gasps resoundingly through his helmet,

“No—” I begin to reply hoping he believes me

“Kage is that you?” the officer inquires sounding somewhat relived

“You know who I am?”

“It’s me Kage,” he takes off his helmet

Now it’s my turn to gasp.

“Apollo?”