Day 7, September 21th;
I must say, I welcome the opportunity to do battle with sloops from beneath the depths. It is good practice for my cannon shots.
Today I had decided to make a stop at the Gold Hoarders and take up the task of finding one of their hidden vaults. I never found one of them before so I figured it would be a worthwhile adventure. Before I did start it proper though, I encountered an emissary of the order and... They shot at my ship. Nearly hit me with their cannonballs. I opted for my charismatic approach and make a joke out of their siege. It worked in my favor as they decided to clog any holes on my ship and then go about their business as usual. I must say that one of them had a very keen sense of style, I would even say that it put my humble clothes to shame.
The journey to find this vault was long and arduous... Primarily because of my approach to the task being lacking. As I had mentioned at the beginning of this entry, that I had taken part in some battles against skeletal sloops. But it was for a worthy goal as they had onboard several bountiful treasures. Most notable were some chests that... Made me feel awfully dizzy. It must have been one of those cursed treasures that the gold hoarder representative talked about.
Eventually after much sailing, and working off of only two fragments of the treasure map, I had found the vault key, leading me to the distant island of Devil's Ridge. To allow you a moment to laugh at my misfortune, I walked past the entrance multiple times, I just did not know that I had to put the relic ontop of a pedestal that was very much close to the entrance.
Once I entered, I was amazed by how... Disappointing the vault was. Do not mistake my disappointment as me thinking it unimpressive, and you must forgive me. For when I enter a secretive vault, I very much expect a grand room full of glittering gold and treasures that would make my head spin. While there were certainly piles of gold scattered about, it was still very much just a small circular room with some treasure chests scattered about, and none too valuable chests either. All of this did distract me and I ended up being trapped inside the room with only three chests carried out of the chamber that would become my watery grave... At least until the Ferryman decided to kick me off of his accursed ship.
It was late at this point and I decided it would be a good time to sail into the sunset. I decided I would bury the trasure chests, leaving one slightly exposed to give any passersby a glint to guide them, and then I set off for the Reaper's Hideout to drop off some logbooks that I had found. But on my way a Megalodon had encountered me, and it was a lengthy fight that I had with it, finding myself knocked off a number of times, certainly a moment to spur me to get back on my ship as fast as possible lest I become lunch for a monster.
Eventually the beast fell, and I had an opportunity to take anything that it may have coughed up in its deathrattle. I carried those goods back to the hideout as intended, and the Keeper was pleased with my progress and decided I would be worthy to look the part of his order. I did not dare to decline his offer of the costume that he wore, but I do not feel any temptation to wear it. I decided to just give him some of my gold so he'd leave me alone.
I had some Megalodon meat at my disposal and I thought I'd carry it to a seaport. As I was making my way, I saw in the distance an emissary of the Merchant Alliance, making a stop not too far away. I decided that after I had finished my business with the order of glorified fishermen, I'd see what the man was doing. I greeted him merrily, and had seen that he was diving into the sea to acquire the cargo of a merchant vessel. I decided that I would help him, and... Then they came.
An army of sirens decided to attack our position, a desperate battle for survival as we tried to stay afloat and not be dragged into the depths. I was careful with my aim so as to not accidentally hit the stranger. We were able to drive off the first force, only for them to begin their deafening song, not only causing me a headache, but summoning a swarm of sharks to aid them as well. The stranger swam for his ship as a shark chased him, I pulled out my pistol and shot the oversized fish dead, giving him a moment of reprieve, even though it sealed my own demise... Before the Ferryman personally lifted me up and tossed me out the door.
I had noticed that my new companion had troubles with his ship. I swam my way towards it and I offered what aid I could. The sloop was practically barely holding on as it was filling with water fast. I jumped to the task of bailing the water out, as he mended the ship of any holes. After that was done, we looked out... The sirens were gone. All that was left was the treasures that he had come looking for.
The stranger was grateful for my assistance, and it brought me joy to assist him. We then took to the business of loading his ship of the exotic goods floating in the water, it was much faster with two pair of hands at the job. After the last crate had been stored, he wished to offer me a gem that one of the sirens had lost during the skirmish. I declined as I was in a hurry to rest my weary head for the night. But efore I did depart, I did ask him for a favor, one that would give us a mutual benefit. We traded in some stolen secrets that I was offering willingly to those passing me by, and I believe it was something he benefited from as well. Overall, I would say that I had made a new friend out at sea. Or at the very least, brought a stranger a flicker of joy.
Though I must admit, I had a chance to see that the man had a wanted sign at the local tavern, which did leave me somewhat concerned. Still, I feel a warm feeling knowing that I had a chance to help a stranger out in an unforgiving land. Not only that, I even had a chance to purchase the bandana that I was looking for. The merchant did not even seem to care that I had only traded in the stolen secret.
It was certainly a good day. And thus concludes my seventh day, fulfilling a week of my return to the Sea of Thieves. I believe it poignant if I were to reflect on this time spent, but I think I shall do so in another entry.
My final thought for this day: This took up more time than I expected, I did not even have time to write poetry!