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Description

The sun shone brightly overhead as the waves rocked The Reaper’s Revenge gently. The gentle rocking of the ship was comforting for many of the dogs aboard the vessel. The air was fresh and salty, and though the weather was not always pleasant...today seemed to be perfect. With a subtle breeze blowing through, it was neither too hot nor too cold. Despite the tranquil weather, Esther felt anything but serene. After all… today would be the day she would be assessed by none other than the Master Gunner himself, Chester CopperFoam.

Esther wanted to quickly ascend the ranks and she sure as hell was not planning on being the whole ship’s whipping boy. When she expressed her interest in becoming a Gunner to Captain Sorrow he gave her a smirk and shrug before telling her that she would be training under Chester if that was the course she truly wanted to go. Esther readily agreed, shocked that the captain would agree to such a role for her with little protest. Most of the men she encountered over the course of her life severely underestimated her and her abilities. The sexism she dealt with from both men and women alike was frustrating, so to have societal norms thrown out the window by her fellow pirates was refreshing to say the least.

A couple of her shipmates were scattered across the deck, their eyes followed her and Chester as he explained what she would be doing today to rank up to become an Apprentice. At the mention of targets being scattered throughout the ship, Esther’s gaze traveled up and down as she spotted several targets in odd places throughout the ship. Once she nodded in understanding of the task at hand, Chester handed her a flintlock pistol and told her to go to town. Blinking as she held the heavy handgun in her paws she wasn’t used to pistols. Her only experiences with guns were the musket style firearms she and Luke used for their robberies, and even then she never fired them directly at something- just up in the air to intimidate people or through windows for general mayhem. Firing this pistol would be something else as she wasn’t used to a single handed weapon.

Her gaze shifted to one of the lower targets hanging off of the side railing of the ship. Her eyes narrowed as she held the pistol in her dominant paw and took aim. Steeling herself and preparing for the recoil she squinted as the gunpowder made the air smoky. She just silently hoped that she at least landed on the target… As the air cleared her hopes were dashed, she had missed the target. Chester didn’t seem impressed as he simply called out “Miss!” The crew members who watched seemed bored and unimpressed as well. "Damn it...!" Esther growled in frustration as she curled her paws into a fist angrily.

Inhaling deeply to try and keep herself level, Esther’s brows furrowed in frustration as she reloaded the pistol. She had to try harder! Moving onto the next target, which was about the same distance away she took more time to aim and get a feel for the gun. With a loud pop the pistol went off again, after the smoke cleared the target was hit! The second ring right before the outer ring was shot. Chester still seemed to be on the fence about her, but less bored in expression as he called out, “Five.” At least she was hitting the target...right?

The kickback was nothing like the muskets she used, she was quickly getting used to the feel of the flintlock pistol. In fact, she liked it a bit more than any musket she had held before. It was lighter and easier to carry. She followed Chester as he pointed out a more difficult target that was hung on the other side of the ship. “Aye.” She muttered. Narrowing her gaze at the target in the distance she was growing a bit more confident as she once again pulled the trigger. After the smoke cleared Esther waited with baited breath as she listened for Chester’s score. “Six! Guess you needed to warm up first, eh?” Chester said as he held up the target with a bullet hole through the third ring from the outside. With every shot she was getting better! “Now let’s get to the good stuff.” Said the Master Gunner with a grin. Esther rolled up the sleeves of her shirt and smirked. She wasn’t about to give up now!

The next target was one a good distance away pinned onto a long rope on the ground. Chester beckoned one of the Cabin Boys over to help hold the other end of the rope. Slowly the two dogs started pulling the rope left and right to mimic the movements of an enemy breaching the ship. Esther focused as she knew Chester was timing her reaction in his head and she pulled the trigger once she was sure of her timing. Both Chester and the Cabin Boy turned to look at the target. Chester called out, “Six!” and seemed impressed that she was even able to hit the moving target.

Once they put down the target that Esther had shot, Chester strolled back up to her before pointing at the final target far above them, dangling right off the crows nest in the breeze. Between the movement of the wind and how high up it was, Esther could see why they saved this one for the last target. Still, Esther was fearless and confident. She wanted this shot to be the best one yet! Taking aim carefully, Esther steeled herself once more before pulling the trigger. With the smoke still in the air Chester hoisted himself up to the target and pulled it down. Esther waited anxiously below as she watched the husky mix swing down. It was hard to judge his expression at first, but he soon gave her a big grin before showing her the target. “Nine- good job lassie!” He said, pointing to the bullet hole that was right next to the bullseye.

Staring at the target, Esther grinned excitedly back at the Master Gunner as he put a paw on her shoulder. “Well… with only one miss and the rest being pretty good shots I suppose you can call yourself a Gunner.” Esther had to use all her willpower to keep her tail from wagging in a frenzy as he declared her test a success. Once Chester and the other crew members went back to their posts, Esther was left to her own devices with her newfound rank sinking in. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief and found herself leaning against one of the ship’s masts as she inspected the pistol. Admiring the craftsmanship and finer details of the weapon, she was pleased that she had managed to not totally make a fool of herself today. This was the start of her new life, something she could dedicate herself to and try to grow into. It already seemed as if she had a bit of knack for it, but she would definitely have to practice in order to get even better. For now though, she was satisfied and that was a feeling she had not felt in a long time...

Word Count: 1223

Finally got around to doing Esther's rank up prompt! She is now a Gunner Apprentice!

Prompt

EARNINGS
Halfbody: 4 Coins
Lined: 3 Coins
Colored: 3 Coins
Shaded: 3 Coins
Detailed BG: 5 Coins
Literature: 24 Coins
Prompt Bonus: 2 Coins
-----
TOTAL: 44 Coins

Esther, art, and writing (C) Weasele .
Chester (C) Acrylic-blood12 .

Description

The sun shone brightly overhead as the waves rocked The Reaper’s Revenge gently. The gentle rocking of the ship was comforting for many of the dogs aboard the vessel. The air was fresh and salty, and though the weather was not always pleasant...today seemed to be perfect. With a subtle breeze blowing through, it was neither too hot nor too cold. Despite the tranquil weather, Esther felt anything but serene. After all… today would be the day she would be assessed by none other than the Master Gunner himself, Chester CopperFoam.

Esther wanted to quickly ascend the ranks and she sure as hell was not planning on being the whole ship’s whipping boy. When she expressed her interest in becoming a Gunner to Captain Sorrow he gave her a smirk and shrug before telling her that she would be training under Chester if that was the course she truly wanted to go. Esther readily agreed, shocked that the captain would agree to such a role for her with little protest. Most of the men she encountered over the course of her life severely underestimated her and her abilities. The sexism she dealt with from both men and women alike was frustrating, so to have societal norms thrown out the window by her fellow pirates was refreshing to say the least.

A couple of her shipmates were scattered across the deck, their eyes followed her and Chester as he explained what she would be doing today to rank up to become an Apprentice. At the mention of targets being scattered throughout the ship, Esther’s gaze traveled up and down as she spotted several targets in odd places throughout the ship. Once she nodded in understanding of the task at hand, Chester handed her a flintlock pistol and told her to go to town. Blinking as she held the heavy handgun in her paws she wasn’t used to pistols. Her only experiences with guns were the musket style firearms she and Luke used for their robberies, and even then she never fired them directly at something- just up in the air to intimidate people or through windows for general mayhem. Firing this pistol would be something else as she wasn’t used to a single handed weapon.

Her gaze shifted to one of the lower targets hanging off of the side railing of the ship. Her eyes narrowed as she held the pistol in her dominant paw and took aim. Steeling herself and preparing for the recoil she squinted as the gunpowder made the air smoky. She just silently hoped that she at least landed on the target… As the air cleared her hopes were dashed, she had missed the target. Chester didn’t seem impressed as he simply called out “Miss!” The crew members who watched seemed bored and unimpressed as well. "Damn it...!" Esther growled in frustration as she curled her paws into a fist angrily.

Inhaling deeply to try and keep herself level, Esther’s brows furrowed in frustration as she reloaded the pistol. She had to try harder! Moving onto the next target, which was about the same distance away she took more time to aim and get a feel for the gun. With a loud pop the pistol went off again, after the smoke cleared the target was hit! The second ring right before the outer ring was shot. Chester still seemed to be on the fence about her, but less bored in expression as he called out, “Five.” At least she was hitting the target...right?

The kickback was nothing like the muskets she used, she was quickly getting used to the feel of the flintlock pistol. In fact, she liked it a bit more than any musket she had held before. It was lighter and easier to carry. She followed Chester as he pointed out a more difficult target that was hung on the other side of the ship. “Aye.” She muttered. Narrowing her gaze at the target in the distance she was growing a bit more confident as she once again pulled the trigger. After the smoke cleared Esther waited with baited breath as she listened for Chester’s score. “Six! Guess you needed to warm up first, eh?” Chester said as he held up the target with a bullet hole through the third ring from the outside. With every shot she was getting better! “Now let’s get to the good stuff.” Said the Master Gunner with a grin. Esther rolled up the sleeves of her shirt and smirked. She wasn’t about to give up now!

The next target was one a good distance away pinned onto a long rope on the ground. Chester beckoned one of the Cabin Boys over to help hold the other end of the rope. Slowly the two dogs started pulling the rope left and right to mimic the movements of an enemy breaching the ship. Esther focused as she knew Chester was timing her reaction in his head and she pulled the trigger once she was sure of her timing. Both Chester and the Cabin Boy turned to look at the target. Chester called out, “Six!” and seemed impressed that she was even able to hit the moving target.

Once they put down the target that Esther had shot, Chester strolled back up to her before pointing at the final target far above them, dangling right off the crows nest in the breeze. Between the movement of the wind and how high up it was, Esther could see why they saved this one for the last target. Still, Esther was fearless and confident. She wanted this shot to be the best one yet! Taking aim carefully, Esther steeled herself once more before pulling the trigger. With the smoke still in the air Chester hoisted himself up to the target and pulled it down. Esther waited anxiously below as she watched the husky mix swing down. It was hard to judge his expression at first, but he soon gave her a big grin before showing her the target. “Nine- good job lassie!” He said, pointing to the bullet hole that was right next to the bullseye.

Staring at the target, Esther grinned excitedly back at the Master Gunner as he put a paw on her shoulder. “Well… with only one miss and the rest being pretty good shots I suppose you can call yourself a Gunner.” Esther had to use all her willpower to keep her tail from wagging in a frenzy as he declared her test a success. Once Chester and the other crew members went back to their posts, Esther was left to her own devices with her newfound rank sinking in. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief and found herself leaning against one of the ship’s masts as she inspected the pistol. Admiring the craftsmanship and finer details of the weapon, she was pleased that she had managed to not totally make a fool of herself today. This was the start of her new life, something she could dedicate herself to and try to grow into. It already seemed as if she had a bit of knack for it, but she would definitely have to practice in order to get even better. For now though, she was satisfied and that was a feeling she had not felt in a long time...

Word Count: 1223

Finally got around to doing Esther's rank up prompt! She is now a Gunner Apprentice!

Prompt

EARNINGS
Halfbody: 4 Coins
Lined: 3 Coins
Colored: 3 Coins
Shaded: 3 Coins
Detailed BG: 5 Coins
Literature: 24 Coins
Prompt Bonus: 2 Coins
-----
TOTAL: 44 Coins

Esther, art, and writing (C) Weasele .
Chester (C) Acrylic-blood12 .