A Somber Night On The Spicy Shrimp

[Little__Lady 167]

~~xXx~~
Anne sits alone at her desk in the office of the Shrimp as it sways on the sea; the sounds of the twilight play a somber lullaby in the lasses ears as she scratches out a letter. Salty tears soak into the parchment while the lass wipes away at her runny nose. Finally, her work is done, and with a shaking hand, the lass passes the parchment over to a bronze rat. The critter takes the parchment and scuttles off into the night. As the sunrises, each remaining crew member would find a note resting on top of their chest when they awake. 

 

"To my dear crew,
     I am incredibly sorry for what you all went through. I never foresaw us to come across such a foul beast, and never in a million years would I have expected it to take so many of us. You all did so well, and I will say this before I overlook it; this was none of your fault. You did your jobs, and you made it home. I know we lost many, some of which were my closest friends since childhood, and I have spent the past few days reconsidering if we should even sail the ship once more, but I have come to my conclusion. We will sail once more.
    I know that some of you might not wish to take up arms and storm the sea with me ever again and believe me, I understand and will never hold it against you. If you wish to leave the crew, you have a month until we will travel out to get your things and move on. If you choose to do this now, you will always be welcomed back on the Shrimp, as once you are part of the crew, the crew will always be part of you. Though if you decide to stay ready yourself, we will be sailing the sea once more in a mouths time. We will sail in honor of our friends lost too soon to the sea and her cruel waves."

 
At the bottom of the letter rests the Rat Queen's seal.

 

~~xXx~~

[CopOwl 1668]

Lynette Stewart reads the letter from her home in Karosgrad, perfectly well enough to travel back to her home. She tilts her head a bit in confusion, having seen of course, herself, Sorrel and Monkey after their last encounter with the deep blue seas. Nevertheless, she assumes that Anne must be referring to something she didn't witness and the young woman signs the Lorraine in remembrance of those supposedly fallen. She mutters to herself, "I didn't know you, but I'll remember you. You'll always be in my prayers, yet unnamed martyr. Good luck."