by Joachim Heijndermans

We be a happy crew once. There was rum, spoils, and women. So many women, all who stopped struggling once the cutlass touched their necks.

We shouldn’t have taken her. If we’d known what she’d truly been. Not a lass, but—

Now we sail. We sail on this demon of a ship. She claws at us as we hoist the sails. Teeth that rip our souls apart.

We sail on this ship, a black freighter. We raid, but there be no joy. Only the pain we inflict, tripled on ourselves.

Lord have mercy. But He can’t see us no longer.

Joachim Heijndermans

Joachim Heijndermans writes, draws, and paints nearly every waking hour. Originally from the Netherlands, he’s been all over the world, boring people by spouting random trivia. His work has been featured in a number of anthologies and publications, such as Mad Scientist Journal, Asymmetry Fiction, Hinnom Magazine, Ahoy Comics’ Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Terror, Metaphorosis, and The Gallery of Curiosities, and he’s currently in the midst of completing his first children’s book. You can check out his other works at www.joachimheijndermans.com or follow him on Twitter: @jheijndermans.