Murkcrest's page

Besmara? She is a good goddess to follow for any pirate and I honor her, but I am not her priest. Gozreh, they of two forms takes her sea she shape on the waters, and only a fool mocks them, but the only god of the sea or sky, and I am not a priest of they, no. So many gods sail the seas, if you but look, but only one calls the Tengu his people. He is Hei Feng, Duke of Thunder, he of the smoking feathers, the sword of lightning in his hand, and gentle blessed rains and terrible storms are his to gift: I am his priest.

I remember many of my father’s words of wisdom before I was taken from my family. Words such as “Before you judge another, you should walk a mile in their sandals. That way when you judge them, you are a mile away and have their sandals”, “Don’t sweat the small things and don’t pet the sweaty things” “Life is an onion, you peel one layer at a time, and it makes you cry.” I would later learn father stole these sayings from many sources, but that’s wise too. Bits of Wisdom are like pearls on a shore, if someone was stupid enough to forget them, they’re free for the taking.

But I digress. One wisdom my father told me was this “Don’t let any human tell you what a Tengu is, they haven’t the beak or the brains for it.” And suddenly, my heritage was not something PRESSED upon me that I would rebel against, but a prize non-tengu might strip away; and like any youth I became rebellious and held to it tighter. I embraced the worship of Hei Feng at a young age. I chose to be a priest and learned what I could. I had not gotten far when I was abducted as a youth by pirates who drugged me, and took me upon their ship as their ‘Jinx Eater’; a task I had heard of but had little idea how to perform. They dubbed me Murkcrest, and I have kept the name save when talking to other Tengu.

I wasn’t treated unkindly, by pirate standards. Indeed, I am sure many had it harder than I. Their belief I was somehow a bringer of luck also meant they did not abuse me. I had been taken, but I had on me at the time a holy symbol of the Duke of Thunder and enough holy writings that I continued my studies. No one else on the ship spoke Tengu, so they didn’t under my conversations with Hei Feng, and in his teachings I found enough wisdom to help the crew with their bad luck. Often what they called bad luck was merely the fruits of their own stupid actions. I just had to explain it to them diplomatically. Consequence is the guest you invited but are still surprised to see when he is at your door at dinner.

They were surprised the first time I healed one of them. So was I. My value grew, my popularity too. But they had stolen me, and when my power grew enough, I left. They could not stop me. Piracy had gotten into my blood though; I LIKED it! Why shouldn’t I have pretty things as long as I apologize for taking them from foolish merchants as my god would have. Why shouldn’t I embrace the passions of living instead of sitting in some moldering shrine? Hei Feng kept answering my prayers; so I knew he agreed. I joined more than one ship, until I settled on a ship with a Tengu captain. She was a raider, a thief, a gambler and a drinker. She was wild and untamable…
and I loved her. I loved her like a gemstone loves light.
She was quick to any prize, and that proved to be her undoing. We had robbed a Cheliaxian galley, laden with more shiny trinkets than most Tengu see in their lifetimes. Oh she dripped with them.

Barnabas Harrigan must have gotten word of our success. Perhaps he wanted something on the Cheliaxin vessel for himself? Perhaps my lady captain had angered him in some private feud. I don’t care. His ship attacked by ambush while we were drunk and happy and heading to port. It was something of a blur, but the shortness of it is she died, and our ship was badly damaged. I called out to Hei Feng for help, and he answered, the ocean swelling and parting our ship with the enemy. We lost a lot overboard. Much of the treasure, a few crew members, and the body of she who I worshiped second only to my god. So I could not raise her.
When we got to shore we split what treasure we had, mourned our dead, and went on with our lives. A new Captain would be found, the ship would be repaired, and nearly half the crew would have to be replaced. I left. It was just too painful to stay on that ship no matter how much they refitted it.

Then, I learned of another ship, the Kiss of Vengeance they called it. Vengeance against who, I wondered? Stories arose that hinted at an answer. It was enough. I signed on, not as a priest but as merely a sailor who played the drums and could entertain (I am rather good with the drum, actually, and I hope it pleases the Duke of Thunder). It wasn’t like any of them seemed to recognize the holy symbol I had partly hidden anyway. My god encourages flamboyancy but I want to make sure the officers hate Harrigan almost as much as I do before I offer my full services. I think they do. And I think that time is coming.