L
Luigi_Vampa
Guest
Luigi woke the next morning long before his friend Aramir. He slipped on his boots and walked softly down the stairs and out the front door of the Inn. The morning air hung like wet sheets on a clothes line. It was days like this that he was happy his profession was a thief and not a laborer. The Summer was never favorable to Luigi which was most unfortunate since the majority of his time was spent in hot and humid climates.
The sun had not yet entirely broken over the horizon when Luigi began his walk. The only others who were awake seemed to be the bakers, healers and recovering drunks still wallowing in the gutters. Britain is a city of great contrast and that is what Luigi Vampa loved about it. One minute he could be drinking and fighting with sea rat sailors and miners in flea ridden bars, and after a brisk walk be in the company of the rich nobility that made their living off the backs of those same lower class companions he had earlier.
None of them knew every side of him, and in fact not many knew anything about him at all. Those that made his company most often either found themselves at the end of his blade or with their riches in his pocket. It was a lonely life but it was what Luigi was good at, as long as he had a few people he could trust around, such as Aramir, he could handle it.
He continued his walk to the Britain library in hopes of seeing the latest works that were available. He loved reading but the last six months spent in the Yew Prison had kept him out of the literary circles. That and there wasn't a library in Buc's Den, which came as no surprise to him or anyone else. Pirate's were not known for their passion for art and literature.
Luigi strolled in the library and asked for a stack of the newest works and and a cup of tea. The librarians were always pleased to see him unlike most others. Perhaps it's because he had not robbed them or maybe it was because even less people read in Britain than in Buc's Den. He couldn't be sure.
While reading through the lines his thoughts kept drifting. He could only think about the money he was about to make with the help of Aramir. It was a risky job but the payoff would be worth it and there was no immediate risk of being stabbed, which is always a bonus in Luigi's eyes. It would only take a little hard work and a little luck. His only concern was that luck had been running short lately.
Almost a month earlier Luigi Vampa had been a prisoner in Yew. He was caught during a jewel theft and do to an arrow being shot into his thigh he was unable to escape. The guards grabbed Luigi and threw him in a cell. What they did not realize however was that they had forgotten to remove the arrowhead from his leg. So for six months he used it to dig out the rock around his cell door. To the guards they saw no difference, especially since the only time they checked on him was to bring a cup of chicken broth or to delivery one of his weekly beatings.
Luigi worked hard day in and day out. He was not a man suited for regular employment little lone a prison cell. Most opted for suicide in his position but Luigi knew he had some fight still left in himself. Hours upon hours of scraping produced an massive amount of chipped rock and dirt. Luckily for him the straw matress concealed the product of his work quite well. Three months into his excape project he realized that it would take him around eight years of digging, if his arrowhead held up, and it was already beginning to show much wear. Luigi had to think of another plan.
A month of watching the guards and trying to learn their routines showed no signs of hope. They watched their keys closely, even too closely for a master pickpocket like himself to grab. When they opened his door to beat him there were always far too many for him to fight alone, maybe if he had a sword, but as it was he had nothing. He was starting to lose hope, which was very much unlike him, when suddenly things changed.
One day the guards brought in a new prisoner and placed him in the cell directly next to Luigi. He was a tall dark man with a very slender build. The sun had scorched his face and by the look of his hands Luigi knew he was a sailor. Having spent much of his time as a pirate Luigi waited until the guards were gone and struck up conversation with the fellow. As it turned out he was a member of a crew of pirates on board a ship called The Slow Forward. Luigi had heard of this and of its Captain, but he did not let this be known. Apparently their ship had some technical problems off the shore of Yew so they sailed in to attempt and fix them. The Captain and crew were however, totally unaware of the fact that a ship they had robbed three weeks earlier near the city of Jhelom had sent word of it and now every guard member in every city was on the lookout for Captain Dunhill and his crew.
The details were sketchy but the pirate, whose name turned out to be Christos, said that most of the crew including Captain Dunhill had made it back out to sea. Him along with a few others were too drunk to know what was going on and before they could figure it out were being carted off to the prison to wait for their execution.
Faced with such grim circumstances Luigi knew that Christos would be up for anything. So he began to devise a plan. If it worked they would both be free and hopefully Luigi could land steady work as a member of Captain Dunhills ship. If it didn't, well Christos would be dead anyway, but now so would Luigi.
"Aye mate, ya sure ya wanna risk ya neck like this? I mean you could just keep diggin'. It's a pretty big gamble if ya ask me." Christos said.
"Christos, there is one thing I have learned in all my days of thievery, piracy, and nobility." Luigi responded.
"What's that?" Christos asked.
"Life is a gamble. Always live it like you have an ace up your sleeve, even if you don't".
**NEXT TIME**
The Adventures of Luigi Vampa - EPISODE 3: "Luigi's Escape" OR "Pirates Gone Wild: Spring Break Buc's Den"
The sun had not yet entirely broken over the horizon when Luigi began his walk. The only others who were awake seemed to be the bakers, healers and recovering drunks still wallowing in the gutters. Britain is a city of great contrast and that is what Luigi Vampa loved about it. One minute he could be drinking and fighting with sea rat sailors and miners in flea ridden bars, and after a brisk walk be in the company of the rich nobility that made their living off the backs of those same lower class companions he had earlier.
None of them knew every side of him, and in fact not many knew anything about him at all. Those that made his company most often either found themselves at the end of his blade or with their riches in his pocket. It was a lonely life but it was what Luigi was good at, as long as he had a few people he could trust around, such as Aramir, he could handle it.
He continued his walk to the Britain library in hopes of seeing the latest works that were available. He loved reading but the last six months spent in the Yew Prison had kept him out of the literary circles. That and there wasn't a library in Buc's Den, which came as no surprise to him or anyone else. Pirate's were not known for their passion for art and literature.
Luigi strolled in the library and asked for a stack of the newest works and and a cup of tea. The librarians were always pleased to see him unlike most others. Perhaps it's because he had not robbed them or maybe it was because even less people read in Britain than in Buc's Den. He couldn't be sure.
While reading through the lines his thoughts kept drifting. He could only think about the money he was about to make with the help of Aramir. It was a risky job but the payoff would be worth it and there was no immediate risk of being stabbed, which is always a bonus in Luigi's eyes. It would only take a little hard work and a little luck. His only concern was that luck had been running short lately.
Almost a month earlier Luigi Vampa had been a prisoner in Yew. He was caught during a jewel theft and do to an arrow being shot into his thigh he was unable to escape. The guards grabbed Luigi and threw him in a cell. What they did not realize however was that they had forgotten to remove the arrowhead from his leg. So for six months he used it to dig out the rock around his cell door. To the guards they saw no difference, especially since the only time they checked on him was to bring a cup of chicken broth or to delivery one of his weekly beatings.
Luigi worked hard day in and day out. He was not a man suited for regular employment little lone a prison cell. Most opted for suicide in his position but Luigi knew he had some fight still left in himself. Hours upon hours of scraping produced an massive amount of chipped rock and dirt. Luckily for him the straw matress concealed the product of his work quite well. Three months into his excape project he realized that it would take him around eight years of digging, if his arrowhead held up, and it was already beginning to show much wear. Luigi had to think of another plan.
A month of watching the guards and trying to learn their routines showed no signs of hope. They watched their keys closely, even too closely for a master pickpocket like himself to grab. When they opened his door to beat him there were always far too many for him to fight alone, maybe if he had a sword, but as it was he had nothing. He was starting to lose hope, which was very much unlike him, when suddenly things changed.
One day the guards brought in a new prisoner and placed him in the cell directly next to Luigi. He was a tall dark man with a very slender build. The sun had scorched his face and by the look of his hands Luigi knew he was a sailor. Having spent much of his time as a pirate Luigi waited until the guards were gone and struck up conversation with the fellow. As it turned out he was a member of a crew of pirates on board a ship called The Slow Forward. Luigi had heard of this and of its Captain, but he did not let this be known. Apparently their ship had some technical problems off the shore of Yew so they sailed in to attempt and fix them. The Captain and crew were however, totally unaware of the fact that a ship they had robbed three weeks earlier near the city of Jhelom had sent word of it and now every guard member in every city was on the lookout for Captain Dunhill and his crew.
The details were sketchy but the pirate, whose name turned out to be Christos, said that most of the crew including Captain Dunhill had made it back out to sea. Him along with a few others were too drunk to know what was going on and before they could figure it out were being carted off to the prison to wait for their execution.
Faced with such grim circumstances Luigi knew that Christos would be up for anything. So he began to devise a plan. If it worked they would both be free and hopefully Luigi could land steady work as a member of Captain Dunhills ship. If it didn't, well Christos would be dead anyway, but now so would Luigi.
"Aye mate, ya sure ya wanna risk ya neck like this? I mean you could just keep diggin'. It's a pretty big gamble if ya ask me." Christos said.
"Christos, there is one thing I have learned in all my days of thievery, piracy, and nobility." Luigi responded.
"What's that?" Christos asked.
"Life is a gamble. Always live it like you have an ace up your sleeve, even if you don't".
**NEXT TIME**
The Adventures of Luigi Vampa - EPISODE 3: "Luigi's Escape" OR "Pirates Gone Wild: Spring Break Buc's Den"