The Phantom of the Sea
“Let me go! Let me go you filthy pirates!” Christine shouted, kicking her legs and swinging her arms in a futile attempt to free herself from her captor.
No one saw it coming that night. The pirates attacked Port Richie while everyone was at the ball. Governor Gustave Daae was holding a ball in honor of the newly promoted Commodore in the Governor’s Hall. He himself was directing the orchestra that was playing the music. In spite of being a Governor, he never gave up on music. Commodore Raoul De Chagny was in charge of the Navy base in Port Richie. He was also a very close to the Daae family and had been introduced to Christine when they were children and since then, they had been really good friends. Now that Christine turned 19 years old and that Raoul had become a Commodore, he decided to seek her hand and proposed to her. Christine cared about him very much and always looked forward to spending time with him every time he visited but she had realized she did not love him enough to marry him. Christine had promised to give him an answer the next morning, after the ball but now she was not going to be able to do so.
A pirate ship had come into the port and the pirates had raided and attacked the city while everyone was at the ball. When the Commodore realized the city was under attack, he ordered his men to take Christine and her father to safety. The carriage was attacked as it got away from the Governor’s hall where the ball was taking place. The pirates robbed everyone in the carriage of their possessions and also killed the Commodore’s men since they were the only ones that had weapons with them. One of the pirates decided that Christine would be a nice offering for their Captain. They stunned the driver of the carriage and the Governor. The pirate swung Christine over his shoulder and with the help of the others, brought her back to the Captain’s ship.
“What is the meaning of this?!” The Captain barked as the pirate put Christine down before him. His voice was intimidating and powerful “I didn’t tell you to bring any prisoners!”
“But captain! We thought she would be a nice companion for you! Look at what a lively and pretty thing she is! Maybe when you’re done with her you could hand her over to us…” The pirate said, smirking. Christine cowered before them, trembling in fear.
The Captain backhanded the man on the side of his face and he fell on the floor, the force of the blow slamming him hard against the floor.
“You disobeyed my orders! I should have you hanged for your disobedience!” The Captain said looming over him, his anger slowly escalating to higher levels.
“I demand you release me now! My father will send the whole Navy to rescue me and kill you all if you don’t take me back to land!” Christine shouted, gaining some courage “You murderers! You killed innocent men today! You deserve to be hanged!”
The Captain faced the pirate that brought Christine and said to him “Did you kill anyone?”
“Why Captain! The carriage she was riding in had soldier escorts and we had to dispose of them…” The pirate said, flinching with fear for he knew the Captain was very angry.
“My orders were to raid the city and not kill anyone! I will NOT tolerate more disobedience in my ship!” The Captain replied furious. He took a pistol and shot the three pirates that had brought her. The three men laid dead. “Riggs! Barrett! Carlo! Clean up this mess...” he shouted, pointing at the three dead men. As he moved, Christine noticed for the first time she could not see his face completely and that something white was covering one side of it.
“You cruel murderer! How could you!?” Christine screamed horrified “Take me back home! The Commodore will have your head along with your men! “
“I do not take orders from a wench!” The Captain said angrily, he grabbed her by the wrists and dragged her to his cabin as she struggled and shouted. Before he closed the door behind him, he said “Mr. Smith! You’re in charge for a few minutes; lead the ship south….and all of you get busy! You know your duties!” Then he slammed the door behind him.
Christine stood, facing him, staring at him silently. Her eyes were wide with surprise and her mouth was wide open, unable to utter a word. The Captain stood facing her, looking at her with an amused look and a smirk. Christine was having a better view of the Captain now that he was in the light. He wore a white loose shirt, black tight pants and black boots. He was wearing black gloves. He was tall, had dark hair and a very strong body. He was very attractive…but what stunned her was the white mask he wore on his left side of the face.
“Is there something wrong, Miss?” The captain said with amusement in his voice, he grinned at her mockingly. He knew it was his mask that made her look at him like that.
She glared at him in contempt for she did not like the tone he was using when speaking to her. She said very coldly "I'm just thinking of the satisfaction I'll feel when Commodore De Chagny comes after you and sinks your precious ship..."
“Oh, really? ” The Captain retorted, coming closer to her “And did you know "The Phantom" is a better ship than "The Intrepid"? And I know of uncharted places where I could hide and he would never find us...". He smirked again as she saw her shocked expression of indignation. She could not believe he was talking to her like that.
She frowned but then regained some of her courage and said as calmly as she could “Nothing will stop him to rescue me...He will come for me and have you hanged..."
“Oh, and why would he do that? If you don't mind me asking” The Captain said “Are you that important to him?” cocking his head to the side and smiling at her mockingly.
“Because he’s my fiancé and I’m Governor Daae’s daughter! THAT’S WHY!” She shouted angrily
The Captain came in front of her and put his arm around her waist, pulling her against him. As she struggled to pull away from him (which was not working very well because she was small compared to him) , with his free hand he pulled up her chin and looked into her eyes. She met his gaze defiantly but the Captain only smirked and said “You’re a horrible liar…he’s not your fiancé…However, I don’t doubt your word that he’ll come for you and that’s the only reason why I have decided to keep you here…I will not let him have you…”
He pulled away from her and said “My name is Captain Erik Dessler…Welcome to my ship, Miss Daae. I hope you enjoy your stay…”
She was flustered for the close encounter she just had with him. She could not believe he had been so bold as to hold her so intimately like that! She gasped with relief as he released her, for a split second she had thought he would force himself upon her. But her relief did not last for long for it infuriated her that he would talk to her mockingly.
"You filthy pirate!...I will not tolerate you treating me so intimately! Commodore De Chagny is ten times a better gentleman than you are! " She shouted
"Of course he would be! What pretty boy shouldn't be a charmer? it's second nature to his kind..." He growled, angry at her insult.
"Oh how would you know that?! " she retorted
"Because I know your precious Commodore very well... He was my best friend, almost like a brother…my traitorous best friend...the one who gave me this!” Erik said, pointing at his mask. His deep green eyes darkened with painful memories and anger. Almost growling he said “We were both officers in the Navy. We were both 15 years old when we had our first assignment. Our Captain had decided to give me higher responsibilities in the ship and Raoul was very upset about it. Pirates raided our ship and while I was trying to help some of my comrades escape from a fire in the lower part of the ship, a beam fell on top of me and I was trapped. Raoul saw me and I shouted for his help but he looked at me coldly and left me for dead. A piece of burning wood fell on my face and it scarred me for life... I was able to escape the ship as it sank in the water…Since we were not far from land, I was able to swim back to port with the help of a piece of floating wood. Once I reached land, I found that he had gone back to our superiors and told them I had helped the pirates raid our ship and had betrayed them. They believed him and I had to escape arrest. I turned to piracy since it was the only place I felt I fit in…now I’m Captain of this ship ‘The Phantom’ and raid the richest cities to help the poor…Raoul turned to ambition and his heart longed for riches and glory…You rich people don’t deserve what you have. You are all greedy and heartless…”
Erik was not able to finish his speech because Christine cut him off “Raoul would never do such thing! You make excuses for your cruel behavior! What you’re all doing is wrong…you murderers!”
Erik was furious, he did not like it when someone interrupted him so he shouted “Miss Daae the world is cruel…get that in your head…I have no reason to lie to you…”. He then came to her and brusquely forced her into his arms and kissed her lips hard. Christine muffled a scream and was not able to push herself off from him so she bit his lip. Erik pushed her away immediately and turned his back towards her as he touched his bleeding lip gently, then he said "I...I apologize for that Miss Daee...That won't happen again...I promise no harm will come to you in my ship..."
Christine was puzzled at his reaction. She had expected him to lunge at her or do something violent to her but he simply apologized in a very calm manner. But her curiosity about what he had said about Raoul was eating at her and intrigued her more than the kiss he had forced on her. Erik was heading towards the door when she followed after him and pulling his arm, she said "Is it true what you said about Raoul?" Erik turned to meet her eyes and did not say anything, letting his eyes answer her question. Then he said softly "I have no reason to lie to you..."
Christine looked into his eyes and she knew all he told her about Raoul was true. She crumpled on her knees and started to cry, this was all a nightmare. She felt scared and alone, she did not belong here. She wanted to return to the world she belonged to.
Erik looked at her feeling a bit of guilt for making her cry but then said to her firmly “I don’t want you making a racket in my room. It will distract my men. I promise I won’t harm you but you have to behave. Be grateful I’m allowing you to stay in my cabin…another captain would have thrown you in the cells below the deck…” and with that he turned around, putting a black cape over his shoulders and left the room.
Christine knelt there, staring at the closed door, blinking with tears rolling down her cheeks. ‘How can he be so cruel and keep me here for a mere vendetta? Is he going to harm me?’ she wondered 'Oh Raoul please come to take me home!'
Captain Dessler stood at the wheel, keeping the ship on course. As he stared ahead in the horizon, he thought of his traitorous friend and the beautiful girl he now had in his power. 'why in the world did I have the urge to kiss her?' and why did I succumb to it?' he wondered, he had never lost control of himself before..but seeing her standing up to him had stirred up a warm feeling in his heart. Every time he thought of her, his heart felt a tinge of warmth and that confused him for he had never felt such thing before. ‘Is it really a good idea to keep this girl in here? She has not been here for even a day and she’s already intruding my thoughts like no one ever has…’ he thought as he watched the moon and the night sky reflecting on the calm and beautiful ocean waters.
(This rp of course is to favor Erik...he is afraid of affection because he fears he'll be hurt and his mask makes him insecure...but he still tries to seduce Christine now and then after he realizes he actually loves her...Basically, Christine and Erik don't like each other at first but start realizing they are perfect for each other...)
Jade_NightWarrior Community Member 
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