The Dread Captain Riggz, a name both feared and respected by many. No ship he captained ever sank, no fleet he commanded ever faltered. He took what he wanted and gave nothing back. Kindness was only ever shown towards his own. From pirate ships to modern navies, there was no battle at sea that Roland, a.k.a. Riggz, would lose. If there was a multiplayer game with decent naval combat, then the name Riggz would appear in its forums. Until, one day, in the middle of battle, Riggz’s cannons went silent, and for the first time since anyone could remember, Riggz sank.

 As I watched my enemies’ armada approach my lone ship of the line, I smiled. I smiled a cruel smile which stretched from ear to ear. If anyone could see me, they would probably call that smile disgusting, or maybe disturbing. Certainly nothing positive. But as I watched my lone ship of the line weave through the enemy armada as it blasted their ships apart with lead, I couldn’t care less. But that cruel smile disappeared when I saw the letter on my desk. It was an invitation to my little sister’s wedding. A wedding I was missing because I was too selfish. When the doctor told me I was dying, I had cut myself off from everyone I cared about. I didn’t want them to watch me wither away.

I looked back to my screen, then to the letter again. I stood up from my desk and rushed to my closet. I picked out clothes that felt nice enough before hurriedly putting them on. The venue was only a half hour away from where I’d moved to after the news. I would miss the actual wedding, but I could still make the party. I wanted to see her one last time. I opened the door as my prized Dreadnaught sank below the waves. The light of day flowed over my face for the first time in weeks. I took one, triumphant step out my door, only for the floor to move from under my feet. My face met the floor a moment later. The wet floor. Why was the floor wet? It hadn’t rained recently. It also didn’t feel like concrete. I felt a gentle rocking, like I was floating in a tube in a pool.

I pushed myself off the floor to see that it was made of dark brown wood. A few yards away, the floor ended with railings, past which was a calm blue sea.

      “What the hell? Where am I? Is this a boat?”

YES! IT IS A GIFT FROM THE GOD FREYR

WELCOME TO AESIRVALE! SYNCING SOULS INTO BODIES COMPATIBLE WITH THE REALM IN 00:59:40

“Le what” 

SEPARATION FROM SUMMON GROUP DETECTED. SYSTEM CALLING ALLIES TO RESTORE BALANCE.

“Allies sound nice, but what’s this about a System?” and as I said that a screen popped up in front of me.

“Shit, I knew I didn’t have much time left, but 4 vitality doesn’t seem good, let alone my con, strength, and endurance. Fuck.” Before my worrying low physical stats had a chance to sink in, I felt the boat rock strangely.

 Soon a gray-ish blue hand grasped the deck as webs seemed to shrink in between its fingers. Not long after more hands appeared as I got a look at the owner of the first hand. It was a gray-ish blue humanoid creature with long limbs. It had dark navy blue hair, woven into dreads, with a black headband. It was roughly 6’6”. It wore what I would imagine a pirate would wear. A black poet shirt with frilled cuffs and an open front that closed just above his abdomen, tucked and secured into his black breaches with a maroon sash. His breaches were decorated with embroidered waves of a color similar to teal (see #20B2AA html color code) running down the outside of the pants. They were sealed tight around black socks, just above his similarly black boots. The menacing ensemble was completed with a light gray oval mask depicting battles against various sea monsters, and glowing green circles for eyes. The last thing I noticed were its pointed ears.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit. When are those allies arriving?!”

ALLIES HAVE ARRIVED. AREA DEEMED SAFE. BEGINNING SYNCHRONIZATION EARLY.

My world faded to dark as I accepted my fate.

“Sorry I missed your wedding, Sammy”