A Dream of Mine
I've finally done it. I finally became captain of my own ship. However I did not acquire my ship in the most honorable of manners, in fact I stole it in a sense, not literally of course, one cannot just snatch a ship off the pier. You see, I was actually given ownership of the vessel after I invaded it. How did things come to this? Why was I there? Why would I need to invade a ship? How did I do it? Well, it's a long story, but one worth telling. My ship logs from those few days of glory should provide some insight to my thoughts at the time of my highest point.
Captain's Log 142909
The previous captain had to retire due to health reason so I, Andrew Morgan, have been appointed the new captain of this vessel. The trade route this vessel has been appointed goes in between mainland Japan and the southern islands of Shikoku, Kyushu and Okinawa. Starting today, I will be in charge of the ships safe passage to and from our destination and the condition of the oods we will be delivering. Hopefully the crew take well to this sudden change, although I trust them to be willing to be under my leadership, after all, I've been one of them for several years before this promotion.
Captain's Log 182909
As I expected, the crew has accepted me as their new captain without much qualm and the ship's first trip on the route under new leadership went smoothly. The goods were delivered unscathed and we managed to stay well in schedule. The route is easy in terms of navigation and the winds are often favorable. The coastline is very crowded with other vessels, though it is understandable, seeing how many trade routes there are connecting various cities along the coast.
Captain's Log 262909
There have been warnings and rumors of an earthquake occuring soon. However, as long as the ship is at sea, there should be no problem. We will continue sailing the route as normal, even though some of the crewmembers have expressed their concerns. As I stated earlier, there should be no danger as long as we are at sea.
This decision proved to be my downfall. The center of the earthquake was at sea. The shockwaves caused a huge wave, and ultimately a calamity when the wave hit ground. However, all the boats at sea at that time capsized and sank. Of course, I was one of the few unlucky, and ultimately stupid, captains who lost their vessel. In addition, the trade routes along the coast were given over to vessels offering emergency aid. In other words, I lost everything I was given in that incident, much like the people living along the coast.
I was of course bitter, very bitter. I cursed my stupidity over and over and spiraled down into the depths of despair. I mourned the loss of my newfound pride in being able to say I was captain of a ship. After all, the memories and the legacy of past days and past owners that are tied to each vessel mean much more to me than I would like. The heritage of the clippers we use to travel the seas nowadays have a deep meaning and a whole subculture surrounding them. The captains and crews like dressing up according to the time period these clippers were originally used in and the ships tend to be furnished and decorated in accordance as well. However, since these ships that are basically relics were kept operational, something had to be done to get them up to speed in terms of efficiency. This was solved by the addition of compact yet very powerful engines that were connected to a pair of propellers under the ship. This meant that the ships didn't change in appearance at all, yet  they were now able to transport goods quicker, safer and generally more reliably than before.
Over the years people grew very attached to these clippers, seeing how they looked gorgeous and were still useful in transporting whatever goods necessary. The ships themselves became something close to a family heritage in most cases. Fathers who were captains would urge their children to keep doing what they do. It didn't take long for the position of ship captain to become very coveted, as you basically had to be born or accepted into a certain family for that to be possible. It is also one of the resons why I was so very bitter. The circumstances in which I was promoted were very unlikely and rare. The previous captain had no family or close relatives who could have accepted the position with such short notice, so the position was given to the next in command of that particular vessel, and that person was me. In other words I was extremely lucky and blessed to be given a chance like that.
Anyways, having lost my position in such a way, I grew spiteful. During my depression there was one man in particular I grew to despise, a disgustingly privileged individual called David Bartholomy. He was the son of a very dignified family with a long history in sailing. He was the owner of six different vessels and the captain of one of them. I saw him many times when I was working as a dockhand after the disaster (most of the men who had lost their ships and survived were given new jobs as dockhands or as handimen on other ships) and I could see that he always wormed his way out of all his responsibilities, mostly by making someone else take care of them. Sometimes I would follow him after a trip and see that he mostly just drank a lot and had someone else (again) take him home. Other times I would hang around his ship and overhear the crew complaining. They seemed very unhappy to have this unpleasant man as their captain, but couldn't really go against him because of his  status.
Not only was his attitude and way of doing things unpleasant, but he also looked unpleasant on the outside. He was slightly overweight, but still seemed to think of himself as a being that is above every other human. His face was constantly in a disapproving scowl and he always wore dainty clothes, even by the standards of the past. I really felt sorry for the crew on his ship. I did manage to have a word with them in secret and I managed to find out that one of the ships under his control would enter the dock in around two months for preparations to transfer to another trade route. This basically meant that some of the crew would be replaced and the ship cleaned thoroughly.
It was then that I came up with my plan for regaining my lost status. I  thought of it as some sort of Robin Hood-ish thing at the time, stealing from the rich and undeserving to give to someone in need. Thinking back on it, I was just being selfish beyond belief. Anyways, I came up with plan I could carry out by myself, a really simple plan too, just walk on board nonchalantly (I was a dockhand so it wouldn't raise too much suspicion), dispose of any remaining crew and then, in a best case scenario, sail off, or in a worst case scenario, tell the authorities that I was on deck for some work related reason and that the perpatrator already ran away. I already knew when the ship would arrive at the dock after all.
During the two months of waiting I kept a low profile and obediently did my job, trying my best to seem like just a normal guy. I knew it would work, everyone knew me only as that one guy who never smiled. After a long wait the chance was finally presented to me. The ship arrived at the dock one cold morning and most of the crew seemed to leave with most if not all of their belongings in tow, probably meaning they would not be coming back. After the slowly moving stream of sailors had passed, I started looking for a way to get on board the ship without raising any suspicions. I ended up following the people who were carrying cleaning supplies onbard. No one seemed to notice me, but I decided to play it safe nontheless and hid, first in the engine room, then later in a lifeboat that already been cleaned and double-checked. I waited until nightfall and just as I was supposed to leave my hideout, I froze mid-jump almost. David Bartholomy was there, in person, and engaged in a ve ry one-sided conversation with a shady-looking man. I slowly snuck out of the lifeboat, my limbs numb from not moving for such a long time.
"You need to remember this for the rest of your career as a caretaker, so you'd better listen closely and take these instructions to heart" said. David with a voice just as full of discontent as his eyes. "You were recruited only just now and that's why you must learn this right away or face getting kicked off the ship. The stormlock on the door separating the deck from the living and sleeping areas works unlike any other lock on this ship.You must first turn the key counter-clockwise twice and then clockwise three times to make the lock work.". I had been listening very closely, however the same was not true for the shady-looking man. He had only stated "I understand.", after which Bartholomy had left. the shady man then proceeded to just stand still for what seemed like an eternity. Finally he moved though, scratching his head as he slowly walked towards the sleeping areas below the deck.
I quietly followed behind him, trying to make as little noise as possible. Just as he reached the door with the stormlock on it I hit him on the back of his head with all my might. He yelled out in pain but lost conciousness regardless. I took his keys before turning to face the crewmembers his yell had alerted. Thankfully there were not many, only three in fact. My first action was to run to a place where they could not take advantage of their numbers. The narrow staircase leading up to the steering wheel seemed  the most logical choice. I ran up the stairs, turned around and faced my opponents. One of them seemed to be missing for some reason. The other two I was able to take on somehow.
Bruised and battered from the fight with the two men I staggered down the stairs again. The missing third man was at the foot of tge stairs, glaring at me with menacing eyes. He was huge too. "I called the boss a while ago, he should be here any moment  now so don't even think you can get away with this!". With the last syllable of his sentence he started his charge up the stairs. With most of my remaining strength I managed a kick. it landed square in his face, and with a spectacular display of him losing and regaining his balance while stumbling on the stairs he fell, but not on the deck of the ship, but overboard somehow, I had no time to waste time though, since David would be here any minute now.
Just as I finished my thought on the matter I heard a car rounding the corner of the nearby harbor storage buildings and the door to said car opening. Footsteps could be heard coming towards me like a small storm, echoing in the cold night air. Finally I was at the storm door again. I started turning the key, first twice countercloxkwise, then quickly clockwise. By the time I was doing the second clockwise turn I could see Bartholomy running towards me as fast as possible, and he was pretty close too already. I knew I would make it though. The effort required from me to turn my wrist once is ridiculously small compared to the 5 meters Bartholomy needs to run. So, with perfect composure, I turned the key for the final time, and with a resounding click the door was shut tightly. Bartholomy could be heard cursing outside the door.
Why Bartholomy never called the authorities, I'm still not sure. Maybe he thought that I had proven myself a worthy new owner, or perhaps his family had told him to clam up about it to protect their name. Whatever the reason, the conclusion was that I had a ship again, and I was captain. I'm still torn about whether I should feel proud for my achievement or not. What I did is still effectively stealing another mans property. Anyhow, I now had a reason to live proudly again as captain. i would make my family proud.