402Please respect copyright.PENANAOolhutcVLL
402Please respect copyright.PENANA3SwoRcG8v0
"Mummy, look!" 402Please respect copyright.PENANAYOdr4pLO5i
Tap, tap. 402Please respect copyright.PENANAcKfVD7WMuR
"Mummy I will make you proud!" 402Please respect copyright.PENANA1j04eMJFwM
Tap, tap.402Please respect copyright.PENANADf6vo57Lyo
"Mummy, save me."402Please respect copyright.PENANAq0uDn9w0BO
Tap, tap.402Please respect copyright.PENANAexrdczYsli
"Alright you better shut402Please respect copyright.PENANABWqZbaDyOy
it with the falling tapping!" David shouted as he opened his eyes and 402Please respect copyright.PENANAFl7raob304
got up. Waking from his dream, for what else could it have been? 402Please respect copyright.PENANAU6FiyHuPG0
David was about to 402Please respect copyright.PENANABvlUpb4191
complain more but then he remembered what happened, how he fell from the402Please respect copyright.PENANAwefqKk1MMK
ship, to his apparent death. But right now he was in the middle a city 402Please respect copyright.PENANAUCkflDxg2E
or at least a shallow imitation of one. With the buildings and the 402Please respect copyright.PENANAHKlEsgKCIv
people just being shadowy reflections of the real world, but still 402Please respect copyright.PENANAZmMbZJqKel
eerily lifelike.402Please respect copyright.PENANArpjVal9rA4
Then it clicked, the 402Please respect copyright.PENANAjdZpPbUfGJ
ramshackle buildings, the crooked streets, dark alleyways guarded only 402Please respect copyright.PENANApKLmLsvYed
by footpads and thieves. Shadowy humans begging and fighting. Stumbling 402Please respect copyright.PENANAujV1MCJOlU
around drunk. David was back in the Havenport slums, his home. A home he402Please respect copyright.PENANAsJTBqb8lmi
left around 20 years ago when he boarded his first ship. Why was he 402Please respect copyright.PENANA4ZBn9cvcCt
back? Was he dead after all? 402Please respect copyright.PENANAgT8df8ejgN
All of those thoughts, 402Please respect copyright.PENANAt1stkFKLZG
and more, were racing through Davids mind. As he was trying to gather 402Please respect copyright.PENANAoYWICLng3H
his wits, he heard laughter from...not behind exactly but everywhere.402Please respect copyright.PENANArNxAZFEFyF
"Ah! Perfect you finally awoke!" David tried turning towards the voice but couldn't quite pinpoint where it was coming from.402Please respect copyright.PENANA1W4AS0gEq2
"Ah, apologies. The ether world makes everything quite fuzzy." 402Please respect copyright.PENANAk15GFOq5PZ
David fell backwards out of fear as a figure appeared out of thin air in front of him. "Spirit! G..ghost! Demon!"402Please respect copyright.PENANADhnbgdX0tO
"There, there. Get it 402Please respect copyright.PENANANwLpW7krzc
all out." The being said in an amused voice. Was it even amused? David, 402Please respect copyright.PENANA8oHPwOn95S
again, could not pinpoint the exact tone of voice. It sounded as if it 402Please respect copyright.PENANAY1o351Qs3S
was echoing both in his mind and in this city. Hitting the walls making 402Please respect copyright.PENANAglwIj77PhV
the voice both louder and yet quieter. The voice had both male and 402Please respect copyright.PENANAQTblPLgepT
female aspects to it as some parts sounded quite high pitched while 402Please respect copyright.PENANAdS5qWJ0ayM
others sounded low pitched. Both happy and sad, amused and disappointed.402Please respect copyright.PENANAca0vgKVYBJ
It was quite disconcerting. 402Please respect copyright.PENANASqPeFPLKQl
"All done now?" The 402Please respect copyright.PENANAHxe4aS3tJk
apparition asked, smiling. Or was it smiling? As David got back up he 402Please respect copyright.PENANAV67L71ctXh
got a better look at his new friend. Or at least at the parts that he 402Please respect copyright.PENANAzzbarhv12a
could see. Its face was covered in... something that looked like mist. 402Please respect copyright.PENANANSuNPGHj1T
David was unable to properly distinguish the features. Whether it was 402Please respect copyright.PENANA7pCOIXxZCo
smiling or crying David would never be able to tell.402Please respect copyright.PENANASoDGA1Wv2I
Its clothes were quite 402Please respect copyright.PENANA1HcML0wZmS
weird as well. Wearing a top hat which seemed both as tall as the person402Please respect copyright.PENANAVCEJcGXo9p
wearing it and as short as Davids own pinky. Its body was covered in a 402Please respect copyright.PENANAGP3FJgIrpz
dark shroud going from the shoulders to feet and every time it moved it 402Please respect copyright.PENANAak249AdG1V
changed both color and shape.402Please respect copyright.PENANA8YOAapweL4
The figure tilted its 402Please respect copyright.PENANAhW7aDfP6mO
head and moved his hands as the tapping noise continued. Concentrating 402Please respect copyright.PENANASzr4dJXzav
on the lower part of the body David could see a thin shape of an object 402Please respect copyright.PENANAqiBN3JKsrC
that looked like a stick. A cane? A walking stick? Who knew?402Please respect copyright.PENANA4Igsd54YfU
"The tapping, was that you?" David said as the tapping noise surrounded them again echoing as if they were in a cave.402Please respect copyright.PENANAhJ0lfavFIc
"Indeed" 402Please respect copyright.PENANABb3xmxWGJn
Tap, tap, tap.402Please respect copyright.PENANAMK7drcHEP2
David flinched at the 402Please respect copyright.PENANAvk6rqZP5Ff
sound. He wanted to shout at the ghost to stop the tapping. To answer 402Please respect copyright.PENANAnoJrsipxSQ
where he was and what was happening. But there was a power dynamic here,402Please respect copyright.PENANA0cOsEmdTNK
as in everything else in life. During the years he learned that there 402Please respect copyright.PENANA5pS1JE8oA7
are three types of people: Leaders, followers and parasites (a handy 402Please respect copyright.PENANABtEb0T1l7b
word he learned from a scholar, turned pirate, in his earlier forays 402Please respect copyright.PENANAR2JQDEtDV7
into piracy)402Please respect copyright.PENANAVyxqHO32Al
Leaders and followers 402Please respect copyright.PENANASP0xOjytsx
were self-explanatory. David, meanwhile, considered himself a parasite. 402Please respect copyright.PENANAgGDOc8bSXl
Parasites attached themselves to either a leader or a follower. Making 402Please respect copyright.PENANAtxJ8qbU5kC
them believe you were on their side, that you were one of them. And then402Please respect copyright.PENANAAJrHDvd3h5
when that person gives you everything you need you leave and attach 402Please respect copyright.PENANAEOuoUmk7fb
yourself to someone else.402Please respect copyright.PENANAk6jzCTxU9n
This was not so 402Please respect copyright.PENANAnBsnlIJBcp
different, David was the parasite and the person in front of him was the402Please respect copyright.PENANApbKGr09szB
leader. He was in charge of the situation so David had to attach 402Please respect copyright.PENANAt4bcFwMRmh
himself to him or her. Had to make them believe he was on their side or 402Please respect copyright.PENANAMlJ9FV5qCZ
harmless or whatever the situation called for. After all no one is 402Please respect copyright.PENANAXbd7VhI6KL
immune to flattery, be it gods or ghosts.402Please respect copyright.PENANA7FaLkgtVkd
"I'm sure I'd have the pleasure of your acquaintance, if I knew your name?" He ventured slightly bobbing his head.402Please respect copyright.PENANAxvN1cF2D8W
The figure gave a 402Please respect copyright.PENANAxx7ZXQG7Ex
chuckle, which sounded as if glass shattering. "Ah yes, you will suck up402Please respect copyright.PENANAv4zhW9senx
to me trying to win me over and then hopefully gain an advantage. I've 402Please respect copyright.PENANAY6dLiGpcRY
been watching you, David Oxtorne, lying and never revealing your true 402Please respect copyright.PENANA67Jd6LYjbi
self. Being a friend to some, an arrogant bastard to others whatever 402Please respect copyright.PENANAvCm7V9LpZv
would get them to like or accept you." A pause and the figure looked to 402Please respect copyright.PENANAJ9XbqMBA1X
the side. "I've no time for your games; otherwise I would've loved for 402Please respect copyright.PENANApW9EDHYydK
you to grovel and try to win favor. For now call me...Jester." Jester 402Please respect copyright.PENANAuzBbBzzgOt
laughed, as if saying a grand joke that David wasn't part of.402Please respect copyright.PENANAOvhvT4U1Z7
David looked at him 402Please respect copyright.PENANAVYEfUH6Tae
puzzled adding his own awkward laugh to Jesters. This...Jester certainly402Please respect copyright.PENANALhnHZfKJir
liked to laugh a lot, although David was failing to find any funny 402Please respect copyright.PENANAysHYhSNV5L
jokes. "Nice to meet you Jester." David was about to say more but he was402Please respect copyright.PENANArF8JABJxtv
interrupted by a raised hand.402Please respect copyright.PENANAmIUHdOQ711
"Yes, yes you're a slow 402Please respect copyright.PENANAuF0eKnWuQz
learner aren't you? We will need to change that. You want to ask where 402Please respect copyright.PENANAMXjdgYU8zx
you are and whatnot. So let me answer that for you. You're in the ether 402Please respect copyright.PENANAGyZcRPCBEV
world. You're not dead because I saved you. Your body is laying asleep 402Please respect copyright.PENANAOI6aJD8ZFk
so you're here only in your consciousness. Not a lot of giftless can do 402Please respect copyright.PENANASSKwGxqqUo
that, you should feel dead honored"402Please respect copyright.PENANA1WS7M0puLk
David was having trouble402Please respect copyright.PENANA1jaDoRbVgn
following jester. But one thing he understood was that you didn't save 402Please respect copyright.PENANAA8YoB2M8Ko
someone's life unless you got something out of it."wha..."402Please respect copyright.PENANAjzLBl9vs8o
But David didn't get to 402Please respect copyright.PENANAAtPXBvUpCZ
finish as jester continued." Not done yet was I? Your next question is, 402Please respect copyright.PENANA9pWtkYyFeX
probably: 'what do you want in return for saving my life?' Which 402Please respect copyright.PENANAGqxPG759Bm
honestly David hurts, just hurts. Don't you think I'm a generous soul?"402Please respect copyright.PENANAakqRabpjey
A pause, David was 402Please respect copyright.PENANAYp501Xxh7n
unsure what to do and begun to answer but the figure kept on talking." 402Please respect copyright.PENANAmyL1HMmcsw
Of course I'm not. Suffice to say I will need you to find something. 402Please respect copyright.PENANAzhjiAECFgH
Can't tell you what yet but others will be hunting for it too" 402Please respect copyright.PENANAjyfG2JSxAN
Jester made a clock 402Please respect copyright.PENANAMLBIu55b3X
appear in front and nodded...probably." Well that's all from me. We'll 402Please respect copyright.PENANA9PPclvf3if
meet again once you've met the other chosen ones. I'll explain more 402Please respect copyright.PENANAMldUxJ89IN
then, hopefully you'll be better company by then. Or else I've chosen 402Please respect copyright.PENANAq6OMRo8XS0
quite wrong, quite wrong indeed."402Please respect copyright.PENANA8zwySaztNg
David was about to ask 402Please respect copyright.PENANA2P4aTKvvI0
more questions but then he heard a whisper. He looked at jester first 402Please respect copyright.PENANAIqrAvVZ5Ua
but as far as David could tell it wasn't his doing, which didn't 402Please respect copyright.PENANAyoDud4r6ma
convince David at all.402Please respect copyright.PENANAmqURPCzJr8
"Hey I...body..." a voice echoed. Sounding human. 402Please respect copyright.PENANA8RunpkzsIp
And then his world shook, all the shadows dissipating, as if swept away by the wind.402Please respect copyright.PENANAHuJjF22SLZ
"I am watching, my chosen. Make it interesting for me." Jesters voice resounded within Davids head as darkness fell again.
ns 172.70.130.167da2