19 January 2023

Not really sure what to say about this one. Also still no idea really where this is going to go; I’ve been playing with different ideas on what might be up with the captain. Also been considering weird romance-y bits, with the ghost and/or Liz falling for Cap and influencing the other. It would be hard to take that seriously, though, so I haven’t decided yet. Depends on what else is going on; if the rest of it is comedy-oriented, then sure, why not.

Elizabeth followed his finger to the image of a pale, translucent woman. Her clothes were old fashioned, over a century out of date; if Liz remembered correctly, that would line up with the previous expedition and colonization attempt quite nicely.

Once she realized that, Liz narrowed her eyes. This was all an elaborate trick, wasn’t it? Designed to either scare her off or spoof her for their own amusement. Well, she’d let them know exactly what she thought of that.

As soon as she stood up, though, the ghost turned around to face her. Liz had to take a step back, because the entire left side of the ghost’s face was missing, leaving just the skull below the hairline.

Even that, Liz could have handled. One doesn’t become a field-based anthropologist by being squeamish, especially around human remains. No, the trouble came when the ghost opened its mouth and screamed.

It wasn’t just that the scream terrified Elizabeth. Rather, it felt like the scream itself was terror and all those who could hear it were helpless in the face of it. Certainly, Elizabeth herself thought that death was inevitable.

And yet, somehow, the captain still had that cheeky grin on his face. He rose and began to make his way toward the ghost. The ghost turned her attention on him, and let loose an even louder, more soul-wrenching scream. This time, Liz noticed the waves of darkness rolling off her to buffet the captain. Still, he moved on, as if it wasn’t even worth noticing.

Once again, the ghost screamed, this time distending its jaw. Her face shifted so the entire thing, not just the left half, looked decayed. Liz could tell that whatever else, the ghost was determined to frighten the captain.

Even then, the only reaction from the captain was to stroke his beard. “Well, you’re a lively one, aren’t you?”

To Liz’s shock, fear filled the ghost’s face, and she disappeared into a cloud of mist. Moments later, Liz could feel a chill running down her back. When she turned her head, there was the ghost–her face whole and complete, now–hiding behind her, watching the captain apprehensively.

Liz, too, watched him with a great deal more wariness. What kind of man could scare even the haunts and spooks into submission?

17 January 2023

I came up with the idea for this story seed while pondering on Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean. Specifically the first movie. In particular, it was about Gibbs and his superstitions, and the way each of his captains handled that differently. When he brings up his statement about bad luck (including “it’s bad luck to have a woman on board”), Norrington kind of waves him off, ignores it. Later, though, when Jack Sparrow hears Gibbs’ concerns, he validates them, while still holding his own position, all with one simple line; “It would be far worse not to, however.”

That approach struck a chord in me. And then I’m taking it too far. :) Rather than simply acknowledging and being considerate of a crew’s superstitions, what if a captain weaponized them and twisted them to suit his needs? It’s actually kind of terrible, now that I stop and think about it; incredibly manipulative. Might be a fun story anyway, though. Not that we’ve got to that part.

Elizabeth wiped the sweat from her brow and pushed a lock of red hair behind her ear. “So you are tracking this place down off a rumor that there’s a ghost here?”

The captain turned back to flash her a grin, with a twinkle in his eye. “But of course! How else would I drive off whatever curse the ship has?”

Elizabeth gave him a flat look, though the effect lost a lot of its power since she was drenched in sweat. “Ghosts aren’t real. And even if they were, wouldn’t that be the exact kind of thing your crew would avoid with a passion?”

“As to your second question, I have it covered. ‘Twill be a simple matter to convince the crew a ghost would be to our benefit, so long as it comes willingly. As for you first statement, on the reality of ghosts, well…” The captain pulled a branch away and pointed into a clearing within the jungle. “What do you make of that, then, I wonder?”