hot nights of the temperate kind, i'm lost in a pornographic haze of disillusionment, just like an opium drenched dream i clutch for her but she's ever so elusive with her black hair leaving a trail of stars and her ruby lips making the sensual shape of perfection, i trace my finger around their curve and she smiles and as her tongue teases back. i lay back, the fan working overtime, cool air swivels out from it as it blows across our skin. the carpets becomes and ocean, the mattress our ship, i see myself captain mission heading for the wider open sea, sword in hand, a reckless crew, sparse but loyal, they wait for my orders, all female, the deadliest of the species. we take no prisoners, our names are feared, our flag the black skull....

'these are strange times,' the witch says, her cards spell 'death, fortune and the lovers.'
'nothing strange about killing, robbing and fucking.' i say.
'the truth you see is surface deep, one must peer into the depths under the surface to recognise the truth.'
'there is no truth witch. only this sensation of life. eating, drinking and fucking. the feel of gold tis a fickle whim.'
'aye captain but the cards never lie.'
'no witch. it is you that never lies. i will retire to my chambers, send me the spanish girl and bring us wine.'
she collects the cards and disappears through the cabin.
the spanish prisoner appears before me, she is bound in iron and her hate seared into her eyes. she starts to scream as soon as i take her gag off, 'you bastard, i will cut out your heart and eat it in front of you. then i will kill your crew.'
i smile. i have heard this from every member of my crew, it is a prerequisite to sail with me.
'sit.' i command. she looks deep into my eyes and sees futility in arguing.
she sits opposite me as i pour her some wine.
'i offer you your freedom but all i ask is you give me 10 minites of your time.'
'my freedom is not yours to give me.'
'no you are correct however indulge me, for i offer you much more than freedom.'
'speak englishman. then i will slit your throat.'
'the war we fight is just a battle, a small skirmish between tribes within a larger war, one of many wars, but the big picture reveals the war to be against the forces of light and darkness.'
'you speak of holy things.'
'the spiritual dimension is misunderstood by the holy.'
'you see me as your enemy becuase you have been conditioned to think in terms of duality, up down, in out, good bad. but all i have done is try to live according to the law i hold to be true.'
'your law lets you kill, rob and plunder my city.'
'i have only taken a fraction of what your city has stolen and plundered from others.'
'you took me.'
'yes. but you can leave if you chose, we will set you down at the nearest land we find or you can hear me out. you are not a prisoner after you hear what i have to say.'
'speak.'
'you have only seen part of the picture, the one your experience lets you see but your experience is based upon other peoples values, laws, morals and codes. therefore you are the centre of your universe and the slice of the universe you inhabit appears to be the whole thing, but the real big picture is somewhat different.
'you speak of a war between light and dark? to me you are the beast, darkness himself, how can you justify yourself?'
'i don't justify anything, all i have is intention and my intention is to set you free.'
'i was free.'
'no!' i yell. 'you thought you were free but in fact you were enslaved by your own thinking. you were enslaved by your parental programming, your education, your religion, your law, your idea of relationships, your institutions and constructs.'
she was listening. 'you were a slave of your power and control, a slave of your ideology, a slave of your own beliefs, i have come to set you free.'
she is silent and breathing is slow breaths, contemplating all that i have said, it is a lot for her to absorb. i can see her intelligence working behind her eyes.
'i think for myself, i make my own decisions.'
'do you?'
'yes!'
'you make the decisions your patterns and conditioning lets you make, because you cannot think outside their confines. you need to be deprogrammed before you can be free.'
she looks at me, as the fire in her eyes dim, i can sence her mind absorbing the truth, she knows i am right.
'my crew were all once like you, they were my enemies and i gave them the same chance i give you.'
a small smile transforms her face, she raises her head and looks me in the eye, her lips move towards mine. 'tell me captain mission. where do we sail?'
'libetaria.'