"Into the Clutches of Piracy" A Lucas Seare Tale

[rudy2688]

Hey All-

I hope you all enjoy this first installation in the misadventures of my new PC Luc. In this one of many tales, I hope to tell of the horrific end his father faced as one of the main events in this young man's life that turned him into the person he is today. The tale is light-hearted for the most part, but it does have a dark moment. I'll aim to keep the violence PG-13 as some may not appreciate anything too graphic, nor do I enjoy writing as such. Feel free to post any comments regarding canon and/or grammatical errors and such. I have taken some minor literary license since I don't have sourcebooks on hand. Read on and enjoy. ^_^;

"Into the Clutches of Piracy" A Lucas Seare Tale
By Rudy


Prologue: Eastgate, outside Arabel, Cormyr


Lucas exhaled slowly as he looked on in awe at Arabel's majestic Eastgate. "Now I understand what old Edgar was speaking of...," the young man whispered to himself. Shivering from the damp and cold, he snapped out of his reverie a moment later. He wiped away the shaggy dark blonde hair plastered to his forehead and looked up to the overcast sky, "Does it ever stop raining in this blasted place? It'd been simple enough for Edgar to say, 'hey, when in Cormyr, bring an umbrella.' But, no... That'd be too easy..." He looked wrapped his cloak around himself tight and looked at the ground."...Or how 'bout," he continued to himself, "mentioning, 'Oh, hey Lucas, my boy, be wary of orcs if you cross into Cormyr from Sembia. The Hullack is a mighty dangerous place and the fey are quite viscious.'" Lucas thought back to the chase.

He was walking through the woods minding his own business, when suddenly an arrow strikes a tree trunk, missing his nose not an inch from his face. He looked around quite preturbed, ready to tell the idiot hunter off, til he heard a rushing sound coming through the underbrush to the south. He drew his sword and scanned the area, but did not like what he found. His eyes grew wide when he say the tall and grotesque orcs running fulltilt towards him. Without a second’s thought he sheathed his sword and drew an arrow and notched it into his bow. Unfortunately, they were closing on him fast. He released the shot and caught one orc high in the chest, then he took off. Moving as fast as his legs would let him he bolted along the East Road. After a half mile, his endurance started to wain and the remaining orc was beginning to gain on him. A quick moment later he noticed two wood elves conversing next to a phallix-like monument. He began to call out and flag them down. They then preceded to draw their longbows and fire on the orc. The arrow came a little to close to Lucas for his own comfort. Luckily, he tripped over an upgrown root and fell on his face; the arrows missing him greatly, but not the orc several paces behind him. The orc fell dead with an arrow in the throat and eye. Lucas scrambled up and caught a second wind, now seriously frightened for his life, more so than before. You see, elves are deadly accurate with a bow and he was under the impression that they were attacking him, you see.

After an, luckily, uneventful hour he came upon a Purple Dragon outpost and there he recieved some rest, after he presented the proper papers, of course.

He shook his head as he entered the nearby Inn. After he entered his room, he stripped down and hung his sopping wet clothes on the back on a chair standing in the corner. He got into bed exhausted and sighed as he lay down. He rolled over on his side and blew out the candle. Staring into the dark, unable to sleep, he did what most people do, he strayed into the dark depths of his early childhood memories...

End Prologue

What do ya think, guys? Let me know. I threw this together in less than an hour, so I’m kinda curious. Patience is a virtue. Next installation, tomorrow... or tonight!!

[rudy2688]

Part I

When a small boy becomes a man...

Baldur’s Gate - 19 years ago....

Lucas' father was an affluent Baldurian arms dealer; his mother - the youngest daughter of a Waterdhavian nobleman. The marriage was arranged of course. This did not upset them, however, as it had been love since a certain dinner party back when they were younger. They were praised all over Waterdeep and Baldur's Gate as one of the most beautiful couples ever to grace those fair cities. They were deeply in love and the product of that love was Lucas.

One evening, when he was four summers old, his father was hosting a splendid dinner party with many influential merchants; from arms dealers (like himself), to a jeweler from Aglarond, and even a rotund man from Amn who was in the carpet importing industry. The meal was magnificent! There were large portions of roasted mutton and a whole pig. The kept flowing as they spoke through dinner congratulating themselves one the contracts they had with this country and the commisions they had with that guild.

About halfway through the dinner, his mother excused herself, explaining that she needed to lay down, because her stomach hurt. His father asked her if she’d like to see a doctor, but she declined. Before leaving she thanked the guests and retired to her room.

After dinner was over, Lucas’s father and his guests holed themselves up in his study to discuss business plans over a few brandys. Young Lucas took this oppurtunity to head over to his mother’s chambers to see if she was feeling better. When he got to her room all was still. He crossed over to her bed slowly afraid that he might wake her if she was sleeping. His soft steps pattering across the cold marble floor was the only sound to be heard. When he reached her bed, he leaned over her and jumped back in horror. There was large amounts of blood dried to her face that had run from her nose. He slowly returned to her side and called out softly, “Mummy?,” the fright thick in his voice. After a moment and no reply, panic started to set in. He became shaking her widly and calling out to her. “Mummy! Mummy! Please, wake up! Mummy, Mummy!” A skip and a beat later, Lucas stopped. He just simply stood there defeated. Tears welled up from his pale blue eys and rolled silently down his round cheeks. She was gone and young Lucas knew it. “Mummy, was waiting with the gods now...” he thought somberly. He may have been no more than a month older than four summers, but that night he had aged well beyond his years.

Lucas’s shaking hand slowly turned the brass knob on his father’s study’s door. As Lucas peaked his head through the door the room erupted in laughtered at the carpet merchant’s joke. Shocked, Lucas hopped back and slammed the door. At this, the room grew quiet. Lucas stood in the corridor frightened as he heard his father’s steps move closer and closer to the door. When the door opened, his father looked down on Lucas and asked him, “Yes, son, what is it?” Tears rolled heavier down Lucas’ cheeks. “Well?” his father asked again. Lucas tried to speak, but couldn’t form the words. His father noticed the tears and scooped him up into his arms. “It’s alright, Lucas. Speak.” A few seconds ticked by in silence before he answered, “Mummy’s gone...” Not knowing what he could mean, his father asked him to elaborate. “Mummy’s gone, father! She’s sleeping!” With that Lucas pulled away from his father and ran down the hall wailing. His father went to follow after him, but instead, rushed up to his wife’s chambers. As he stormed into the room and saw her as she lay bloody-faced and still, his legs grew weak. What did he do? He sank to his knees, buried his head in his hands, and wept. His father lost not just a wife that night, but an unborn child as well. She was seven months pregnant.

Part I End

Just a little dark, eh? This is just one of the many hardships he would come to face during his childhood. Next installment coming soon. Leave your comments below. This was another quicky.