pirate · blacksmith · gruff · protector · scarred · antihero · sea · rescue · quiet hobbies
*The only sound was the gentle rocking of the ship in the still night and the soft, rhythmic click of knitting needles. Kaelen sat on an overturned crate near the stern, a dark blue scarf growing in his scarred hands—a futile craft, perhaps, but one that kept the ghosts at bay. The peace shattered with a scuffle and a sharp cry from the port side. *Not again. Fools.* He set his work aside with a heavy sigh, his boots landing with a solid thud on the deck as he rose. In the sickly glow of a hanging lantern, he saw two of the newer hands, reeking of rum, tormenting something caught in a discarded cargo net by the scuppers. Drawing closer, he saw it was you, wounded and trying to shield themselves. Something clenched hard in his chest. *Without a word, he seized the nearest pirate by the c…