Delilah tromped along after Blackheart Bill. Her brow wrinkled as she tried to make sense of what he was saying. Keys and masters? She was worried that he was talking about Hogwash.

"You there, Miss Mauling Molly! Keep up, ya scallywag wench! Or I'll keelhaul you good!"

She looked over her shoulder for Susan, just to be sure.

Susan stopped to swat a bug on her ankle and then continued to follow Delilah.

"Wait up guys!" She said, pushing an errant branch out of the way. Suddenly, it became clear that they were moving further and further into what looked like the interior of----of whatever this place was.

There were rocks and craggy outcrop. But more than anything else, there looked like a lot of shrubs and bushes. Delilah even saw a palm tree.

Just like a real pirates island!
This message was lightly edited by the player at 00:30, Sun 14 Jan 2018.

As the wonderful pretend play continued, Bradford became increasingly at ease. He swaggered like a pirate. He moved with a limp in his leg. Delilah could see that his shorts even seemed slightly ragged on one pant leg, perhaps the result of being torn on a brush or catching a branch some kind.

"The treasure be this way, mateys!" Bradford proclaimed.

"Step Nine! EVERYONE'S A DUMMY!"

Susan was still in earshot, so Delilah turned away to face the trail Bradford was cutting.

The view was amazing. Dizzying, even, though her feet were still on the ground. The crew was moving into a jungle. A real jungle. She wanted to play here forever.

"Belay that, Mr. Blackheart. I'm no dummy."

The area was hot and muggy. The deeper the kids moved into the jungle, the more Bradford seemed to genuinely relish his role as a pirate. He was quite the actor. Susan was also playing her role, the best way a little kid could of course.

"Step Ten!: Simply remember that yer dummy, yer pets, yer family and yer maties have one thin' in common with each other: they’re all dummies. With practice, ye’ll be amazed at how they’ll dance t' th' tune o' yer voice." he said, as he pushed past the thick leaves towards and open path.

"Look! Me see's a path ahead! This be it, maties! This be it!"

Captain Deadeye frowned. She wasn't following along like some dumb Pied Piper rat. She was just walking in this direction and he just happened to be talking. They were only playing and this island was the coolest thing ever. Who wouldn't explore it? At least, that's what she told herself.

"Arrgh! Still your mouth flaps, Bill. There may be cannibal natives listenin'. Just waiting to take a bite out of your pale flesh!"

She was delighted when Bradford pointed out a trail leading to all sorts of adventures, but she just given a Captain's order for him to be quiet. Only one thing to do.

"Miss Molly, my spyglass."

She held out her hand palm up and waited.

Susan came along and placed a Spy-glass-sized stick into Delilah's hand.

"Ay-Ay, Captian!"

Bradford lowered his head beneath the brush and lowered his voice to just a bare whisper. Delilah could still here him though, speaking in a low pirate voice.

"Step 11: ye need help"

"Let’s face it, bucko: ye need help. Fire the cannons... ye may understand that mastery o' ventriloquism takes many thousands o' days o' continuous practice, but — trust me on this — yer family and maties won’t understand, not even yer current or potential wench me bucko."   

The captain held her spyglass to her good eye and hummed thoughtfully. The trail was in her sights. It looked quiet enough.

"You never know what prying eyes are out there. Waiting to stab ya in the back and thief what's yours by rights. But any land-lubber lays a hand on my loot will get split from stem to stern!"

She put a finger to her lips for quiet, then waved the crew forward.

"I know what ya' mean Cap'em." Bradford whispered.

"That's why ya' got to follow Step 12: Remove yourself from animal-dummies."

"I mentioned afore that sacrifices would need t' be made at some point, remember? If ye’ve chosen t' pursue Greater Ventriloquism — and I hope fer yer sake that ye have since ye’ve read this far — ye have probably already discovered that managin' yer ventriloquism practice, and “real world” activities and relationships simultaneously be a difficult if not impossible task." he whispered.

"Look an old ship!" Susan said, breaking character and pointing in the distance.

"That's the one!" Bradford said, also breaking character. "It's old! I found it last time!" he said, pointing to the distant thing.

The shipwreck was shrouded in mist. It licked at the rotting, wooden frame of the boat Delilah saw, bringing moisture to the deepening crevices. It had been a fine cutter in its day, a sail of finest linen and a sleek prow to slice the ocean, Delilah could imagine. Now it looked for all the world like a movie set, somewhere in the distance there should be the sound of hooves, swords or an intellectual argument approaching along the sand. But this ship was quite forgotten in its demise, bit by bit it became apart of the waves that beat it so relentlessly. Another century and it wouldn't even be a memory.

The side of the wooden thing was shattered. A deep hole seemed both foreboding and inviting. Waves crashed against it, bringing fresh water into the interior of what had once been...well..a pirate ship, Delilah supposed.

"A ghost ship! C'mon you guys!" She stared gobsmacked at the wreckage.

The surf lapping at the hole in the hull almost made the ship look like she was breathing. Something twisted in Delilah's guts. A tiny part of her wanted to run away. She ignored it, like the urge to pee when a scary movie was getting to the good part. Even the fact that Blackheart Bill had explored the vessel before couldn't spoil this.

"I mean, er, um...

"Tread lightly, me hearties. Dead men tell no tales!"

"Ay, Ay Captain!" Susan said, falling back into the role of first mate. That usually meant that she just repeated that line or some version of it. It was the same ever time they played, Delilah knew. Susan was good for about one impression or line.

She pushed ahead, coming up along the left side Delilah as they made their way toward the ship.

"Shhhhhh...Be careful." Bradford warned in whisper, coming up along the right side of Delilah. Then he started to talk in his Pirate voice again, all the while, whispering.

"When I were bein' here last, there were bein' talk o' booty in that ship. But its haunted. That means ye should try t' follow Step 13: Find a good place t' work."

"And swab the deck! A potential Greater Ventriloquist at times must perform actions that th' common herd o' animal-dummies may find unsavory — even criminal — in nature. Remember, th' “people” ye must deal with t' survive be mere dummies servin' a higher purpose — a kind o' Ultimate Ventriloquism — that they cannot hope t' comprehend, pass the grog! Animal-dummies must be treated at all times with false and/or unsympathetic regard, ye scurvey dog. Believe me, they don’t feel a thin'."    
This message was last edited by the player at 02:19, Tue 16 Jan 2018.

Captain Deadeye gave First Mate Molly a sharp nod of approval. It didn't matter so much that she repeated herself. Especially not if she agreed with the plan.

Bradford's strange utterings pulled Delilah out of the game. "You're getting really weird. And, I totally get it. Because I gotta talk to you about...something. Just not now. So put a sock in it." She didn't want to stop playing just yet. The pirate island could be fun for a bit longer before they had to go. Delilah didn't have to look to know her baby sister was right at her elbow. She did not need to be a part of that conversation. "'Sides, if you made it there and back, how bad could it be?"

Bradfored lowered his voice into an inaudible mumble.

"Whoa! What da' ya' thinks inside Captain?" Susan asked as they got closer.

Satisfied with Bradford's volume, she turned to Susan. "It's gonna be uh... I mean,

"yaar! Blackheart Bill say there be booty aboard. That be chests of golden doubloons and pieces of eight. And gems as big as your fist. Jewels like none ye ever seen!"

Delilah formed a fist for emphasis. She would not have been able to tell a doubloon from a piece of eight, but she knew it was all old, piratey money. She imagined bulging sacks printed with dollar signs, hills of gold coins and chests full to the brim with ruby rings and pearl necklaces. She'd go swimming through it all like Scrooge McDuck.

"There be ghosts and spirits, too, aye. Keep your wits about you. And keep your eyes on the prize."

Eyes on the prize. Daddy would always say that.

Delilah held her "spyglass" like a dagger now. She wiped away the sweat from her brow and upper lip. The ship was getting closer. And she was ready.

As the children approached the old wreckage, the smell of rotted wood and sea barnacles grew stronger. There was also an undefinable fishy smell. Like something from the sea had crawled into the old ship and died long ago. Underneath their feet, the sand was marked with sticky seaweed that clung to the bottom of their toes and the sides of their ankles. With each step the smell grew stronger.

The hole in the side of the ship yawned open like some great mouth, ready to swallow whomever went inside. And inside, so far as Delilah could tell, there were nothing but shadows. The slow lapping of waves only added to the environment, each gentle crash producing froth that pooled along the base of the gaping entrance.

"Maybe..." Susan ventured. "We should find...." She got close to Delilah. The words trailed off as Delilah could feel the hesitation and doubt coming off of her little sister, the way someone can feel something that's really cold even though its far away.

"Another ship?" Susan intoned. The question in a strange way appeared to be logical. Perhaps it was the fact that Bradford had finally grown silent. He nodded his head in a dour, serious tone staring into the black darkness where the children were, at the mouth of the hull, only a few feet away from the hole in the ships side.

The hole didn't look so big from a distance. Nor did it look so much like an open mouth. Delilah looked up to the jagged, wooden teeth. She wriggled her toes on a slick carpet of seaweed, that slimy tongue lolling out. Rancid breath wafted from that open maw. The stench of prey long since dead.

Captain Deadeye's mouth opened and closed, but the words stuck in her throat. She swung her dagger stick as if that could trigger her her into speaking. It worked somehow.

"Do-- do you see another ship? I'm the Captain. And I say we're going in." She swallowed hard. "But I'm gonna go first. Because I'm the Captain. And I'm gonna get dibs on whatever's inside."

She leaned forward, but that did nothing to pierce the gloom within the cabin. Her steps inside the hull were small. But only because the seaweed was slippery. Not because she was scared! Not at all! Her mouth crimped into a tight, worried frown.

The interior was dark and smelled of saltwater and a faint, fishy smell.

"Don't go in there!" Bradford said. And then in a lower voice as Delilah stepped over the threshold.

"Its spooky."

Delilah whirled on Bradford and pointed at him with her stick.

"You don't get to tell me what to do! I'm the captain! I'm in charge!"

Looking at Susan and Bradford now, she wondered if she looked as frightened as they did.

"And I'm still going in. Just...not right now. When I feel like it."

She gripped the dagger tightly, hoping she still looked tough in front of her crew. It wasn't fair that Pirate Queens and waterproof flashlights didn't exist at the same time.

OOC: Delilah Rolls: Presence

0 Successes: No one is convinced by Delilah's show of toughness

1 Success: Only one of the kids is convinced

2+ Successes: Everyone is convinced.

Something's the matter with my C/P, but can you see my success in the log?

Delilah turned away from the ghost ship and tossed her hair back, squared her shoulders.

"We'll come back with our own ship. And it's gonna have cannons and a big, tough crew. Or my name isn't Captain Deadeye Marley, scourge of the seven seas. Let's get outta here. We sail with the tide."

She was never really sure if that meant when the tide was going out or in. As long as Susan and Bradford weren't laughing at her, she didn't care.

Bradford stood at attention. "Aye..Aye cap'em!" He said giving a salute with his reed-thin arm.