Captain Limebeard

A few weeks ago, a strange infection begun spreading among his crew. It started with Lionel Lightfoot, the usually chipper Poogle. The Poogle’s cheerful whistles got them through the long days, inspired camaraderie when the sailors joined in and sang their favourite sea shanties. That cursed day, however, was unusually quiet. When Eddy went below deck, he found Lightfoot swaying in his hammock, eyes unfocused and hazy with sleep. His grey skin was patched with purple bruises around his body, some darker than others. It was a nasty sight and that was only the beginning.

The days that followed remained hollow and quiet without Lightfoot’s cheer. Wiggles, the Nimmo herbmaster on the ship had tried her best to tend to Lightfoot but without medicine or supplies, there wasn’t much she could do.

The same lethargy and bruises spread to each sailor one by one like dominoes. Most were resigned to their hammocks like Lightfoot was, and those who could push themself to work on the deck seemed more like Zombies than Pirates. No one had the energy to row the ship when the wind was stagnant, hence their current station.

The Pirate Kateil perched at the top of the mast squawked loudly, indicating something close by. The Green Chia squinted at the surroundings, wondering what the Petpet had seen. It couldn’t have been land. He knew they were not close to any of the Islands. Then he saw it: aspeck of brown bobbing on the shimmering surface of the water. A crate that had fallen off a merchant ship, perhaps.

“Fins!” Eddy shouted from up in the Pteri’s Nest, his eyes never leaving sight of the bobbing crate. He could hear Fins, the Flotsam, scrambling up the rope ladder with swift skill despite his lack of limbs.

“Ay, Captain, y’called for me?” The Flotsam squeezed into the Pteri’s Nest and Eddy moved over to give the sailor some space. Eddy handed the telescope over to Fins and pointed it toward the floating crate.

“See that?” Eddy asked, pausing before Fins gave a nod when he spotted the crate. “I need yer to swim out, Fins. There might be somethin’ useful for us down there.”

Fins understood what Eddy meant, and didn’t need the Captain to elaborate. Food. Medicine. Anything. It was desperate times and neither of them wanted the suffering to carry on any longer.

The Chia and the Flotsam hurried down to the deck and prepared for Fins’ dive. It didn’t take much, given the Flotsam was the best swimmer amongst them and thankfully not affected by the strange disease yet. Other Neopets might have needed to be lowered down to the water with the tugboat, but not Fins. The Flotsam stood proudly on the ledge of the ship and dove straight down with nay a splash.

Eddy, along with other crew members, watched as Fins swam toward the crate. He pried the lid open and various objects pooled out. Under the moving green waters, Eddy couldn’t discern what they were from way up in the ship. All he could do was trust Fins. He watched on as the Flotsam continue to dive deeper, his figure now hidden under the shadows and waves.

When Fins finally resurfaced, he waved up at the crew. A brown sack dangled from his other fin. The Green Chia hoped with all his might that there was something that could help them.

“Get the ladder!” Eddy urged the crew members, though he did most of the heavy lifting and threw the rope ladder over the side of the ship.

Fins climbed onboard, leaving a wet trail of salty sea water on the deck. He dropped the canvas sack to the ground and began showing his loot. Eddy hovered over him closely, eager to see what Fins had discovered in that crate. A handful of Dubloons, Neopoints, and various treasures of the deep. If it were any other day, the crew would be chattering excitedly about the treasures they found but these valuables couldn’t help them now. They could have all the Dubloons in the world and it couldn’t sail them out of their plight. They needed food and supplies, and possibly a miracle.

Eddy let out a grunt of disappointment. What should the next course of action be? He patted Fins on the shoulder with a small nod of appreciation and turned to go back to his quarters.

“Oh, and this too, sir,” Fins added belatedly and pulled out a Chia pop from his pocket. It flopped over dully, obviously melted from the tepid seas. The Captain grabbed it and turned it over in his hands. He didn’t know how safe it was to consume. All the labels and signs had faded from its journey underwater. The packaging seemed intact otherwise. Was it worth the risk?

Eddy ripped the Chia pop open and took a sniff. Lime. It wasn’t much but anything was better than nothing. He started with the sickest of his crew, dripping the melted Chia pop into their open hanging mouths. After each sailor has had a share of the sweet syrup, Eddy gulped down the remaining few drops and licked the packet clean. He wasn’t going to waste any of it now! He watched his sickly crew, some still slumped over helplessly. Of course a few drops of an old Chia pop wasn’t going to make a difference. He knew that, yet a small part of him at stupidly hoped that some miracle would happen as he looked all the Pirates on his ship. The Neopets who had dedicated their lives to serving him on this ship.

At that moment he felt a gurgling in his stomach. Regret bubbled up within him as the gurgling brought about discomfort in his bones. He’d done it. He’d made the worse mistake of his life! He should have guessed that a deep sea Chia pop wasn’t good no more. Instead he had fed it to his entire crew and himself. He thought about all the lives that would be lost today on his ship. “Arghh!” Eddy cried out with anguish. The ache in his bones grew deeper, numbing him.

“Uh, Captain…?” Eddy heard Fins voice call out to him, worry laced his tone. But all the Chia could focus on was how his body seemed to burn inside out. His skin grew leathery and bumpy, and turned shade lighter than it was before. His green hair fell off the top of his head in clumps. What was happening to him? Even the sick crew members drew closer with concern, though no one knew how to help. “Captain!” Fins shouted again. “You’re Lime!”

What? Eddy looked down at his body. He rubbed the top of his head with his now stubby hands. He was a Lime Chia! That Chia pop must have been a magical one. In an instant, the numbing pain that coursed through his body vanished, and was replaced with renew energy. He felt alive. More alive than he had felt in the past week. He knew at once that it was the Vitamin C in his blood now. He could feel it, now that he was Lime.

With one swift motion, he grabbed his sword and sliced through his leg. The little nub of lime fell off with a thud. His crew shouted in horror. Did the long days on the open water make their Captain lose it, or was it the physical change that caused the outburst? Everyone backed off slowly, afraid of that their Captain would do. Eddy ignored all terror in their eyes. He grabbed the detached limb and hobbled over to the sickest sailor who slumped on the far end of the deck, too drained to comprehend the insanity that was occurring. “Eat,” he said. He didn’t want to explain anymore. He doubted they would have understood anyway in their haze.

Soon enough, the crew began to come alive again. In a few days, the sick sailors recovered, regaining their energetic Pirate spark. The tides had turned and the winds were on their side. When they finally made it back to Krawk Island, everyone spread the word of Captain Limebeard, their fearless leader who risked his life to save his crew.