Octavius burst through a door, and realized that in the haze and confusion, he'd kicked the wrong one open. It was too late now, though, he was already on deck. Ceres seemed to spot him immediately, and she said something about a rematch. There could be no rematch. He'd lost, [i]in front of people[/i]. He didn't notice any disappointment or disrespect coming from those still up and about, but he assumed they were hiding it for his benefit. She said something about him being at his best. If only she knew. At his best, he would have drank her into the ocean. Now he was not even half the pirate lord he used to be, and that was becoming clearer and clearer each day. The warlord fled to the bow without a word, storming ferociously, with his liquor in tow. When he got there, he climbed into the once-proud mermaid carved into the point furthest forward on the ship. Her left hand was extended upward, probably to hold a lantern, though there was none to be found, and he was pretty sure her right hand held a sword once. But just like him, she was a shadow of her former self, and the captain settled himself on her head, figuring he might as well act like the figuratively drowning man he felt like. To her benefit, he didn't have cleats on, like a fisherman would. Regardless, he was determined to find something to pull him back to the surface. If he could sink the [i]Powder Keg[/i] and put his crew back together, maybe the shattered pieces of his golden age could be temporarily reassembled, just long enough for him to find a treasure worth dying over.

For now, he sat and drank heavily from the bottles he had brought with him, looking out over the dark water, and wondering what would happen if he pushed Ceres overboard. He knew he couldn't afford to, but what if he did? Could she just turn into water, and flow back onto the ship? Would she drown like the rest of them? He couldn't tell, but he wasn't sure it mattered. "You're killing me, Ceres..." he muttered, wondering what he would do without the woman, and how in all the various planes of existence he was going to live with her. Even trying to think those thoughts had him emptying his first bottle faster than he liked. His hangover was gone now, and the world swayed pleasantly as he reached for the second bottle he had brought along. Probably too much for him to handle at this point, but Captain Cuttlam was beyond caring. The only way to get better was to push the limit. He had to show his first mate that he really was worthy of being called a pirate lord. He had earned it once, he would earn it again. He just needed more liquor, and a town to raze and plunder...