[Fic] Thrice I Died
Title: Thrice I Died
Author: Shytan
Rating: PG
Characters: Cutler Beckett, Royal Navy Officer OC. Governor Swann makes an appearance.
Summary: Sequel to Twice I Died. An old Admiral remembers the dark events that took place on the docks a lifetime ago.
Warnings: Dark theme
"I'm getting too old for this," the Admiral muttered to himself as he clutched the railing of his vessel. The ship was much like her captain; old but sturdy. And at that particular moment, relatively empty. The crew were enjoying themselves in the little town near the docks, but the Admiral had remained. He had muttered a gruff excuse when questioned by the disembarking crew, but they had simply shrugged and left him in peace. Staring down at the wooden dock, the Admiral sighed as dark memories filled his mind. His reminiscing was rapidly halted when he caught sight of a figure standing on the gravel before the dock, and he leaned over the railing slightly, squinting in an attempt to better see who it was. The sun had recently set, so the light was not the best, but he could just make out the man's face... The Admiral's eyes widened and his mouth fell agape. He quickly closed it, swallowing as he felt his heart rate quicken, the loud thudding in his chest filling his ears. It couldn't be... it shouldn't... It was. He knew that face well. It was Cutler Beckett.
It had been well over a decade since the Admiral had last seen a Beckett boy grace the dark docks below him. Perhaps it had been two. He had been a freshly promoted Lieutenant at the time, and Cutler had been a boy of eleven. The wealthy and powerful Beckett family had stopped at the port for a week, and the fierce Lord had brought his wife and three boys. He had first seen them disembarking the elegant merchant ship, the lanky eldest boy marching alongside his father, the pale middle child clinging to his mother and the excited youngest one skipping along behind them. He had only had time to glance at them before his commanding officer had caught his eye, and he had quickly returned to his duties.
The second time he saw them was a few nights later. The eldest son had casually made his way to the end of the dock, a rather solemn expression on his face, but then again he had not looked pleased when he had arrived at the port so the Admiral had thought nothing of it at the time. The boy had a slight olive complexion with dark hair and eyes, mostly likely inherited from his father's side. Just as the boy had made it to the end of the dock, the middle child had come running out of the darkness and even brushed past the then-Lieutenant in his haste to catch up with his older sibling. Unlike his brother, Cutler had the fair skin and brown hair of his mother, and her short stature too it appeared, when he later learned the boy's age. Eleven. It was only when Cutler had also neared the end of the dock and uttered his brother's name that the Lieutenant had turned around, and only then did he see the gun.
"No!" He had cried, but neither boy seemed to notice. The Admiral remembered hearing the pounding footsteps of his crewmates following him as he ran as fast as he could towards the end of the dock, but before he was near the two boys, the sharp gunshot cut through the air, and the elder boy, Hunter, crumpled to the ground, the silver gun still clasped in his hand. The younger boy simply stared, shocked, for all of a second before the Lieutenant had reached him and pulled him back, turning him away from the sight before them as he knelt down and pulled the child to his chest. The other Royal Navy officers with him were all lower rank, but they quickly came up with an appropriate plan of action nonetheless.
The Admiral remembered picking up the silent, deathly pale boy and carrying him back along the dock, towards where he knew the Becketts were staying. Cutler had shivered, the light pink in his cheeks completely gone as he stared at the uniform he was pressed against, clearly still in shock. The then-Lieutenant had not expected the reaction of the boy's father when he and two other officers informed the senior Beckett of his eldest son's suicide. After the initial shock there was anger, and the when he turned to his eldest living son, who had stood quietly beside the Lieutenant and stared listlessly at the desk across the room, the senior Beckett shocked the officers by not only yelling at Cutler for not stopping his brother, but by striking him hard enough to knock the child over.
The senior officer with them had snarled furiously at Beckett, outraged, and they began to argue. The Lieutenant turned around to watch with pity as the boy picked himself up and vomited. One of the maids rushed over and picked him up without a word, carrying him out of the room quickly. It took a lot of effort not to follow her. He didn't see the boy for two more years. He had been stationed at the little port in the middle of nowhere, but had been out to sea for much of his time there. He had been very surprised when, one haunting dusk a pale boy of thirteen had quietly made his way past him to the end of the dock. The Lieutenant had froze, recognising the boy instantly. It was surprising the Becketts had returned, although judging by the way the senior Beckett had acted, he cared little for his sons.
As a boy of eleven ran past him, the Lieutenant felt the blood in his veins freeze. The fair skin, rounded face, dark brown hair and blue eyes... it was the youngest Beckett boy, Tyler. The Lieutenant ignored the confused looks of his crewmates as he ran towards the end of the dock after the boy, and it wasn't until he was halfway there that they saw the silver gun in Cutler's hand. Despite his preemption, the Lieutenant did not make it to the end of the dock before the boy pulled the trigger, and his heart stopped as he heard the loud click. He stumbled to a half a few feet behind the boys, and for a brief moment wasn't sure what had happened. He suddenly realised the gun had misfired, and Cutler seemed to have realised too, for he had stared at the gun briefly, then let it slip out of his hand.
Tyler had dropped to his knees, relieved. The Lieutenant whirled Cutler around and knelt down to hold him just as he had two years ago. He quietened the Navy officers behind him when they discussed taking the boys home, and instructed them to walk Tyler to the Governor's mansion. Picking up the deathly pale child, the Lieutenant stopped to kick the accursed gun into the water before following his comrades. He remembered feeling shaken. He had once again not reached the end of the dock before the trigger was pulled. The second time though, nobody had died. At least he had believed that, back then. The quivering child in his arms was not the same innocent boy that had shyly clung to his mother when they first entered the port two years previously, his older brother had changed that in a single second.
Thinking back to that dreadful night on the dock, the Admiral realised that the thirteen-year-old boy he had held so tightly on the way to the Governor's mansion had been changed once again by the events that had transpired that night. Perhaps it was his brother's death, or perhaps it was his own attempt at taking his life, but a part of Cutler Beckett had died those nights, and there was nothing the Admiral could have done about it. He had to admit that a part of himself had died those nights as well, unable to save the life of the elder brother, unable to save the soul of the middle child. And watching the grown man stare listlessly at the dock, haunted by the darkest of his memories, the Admiral felt another small part of him die as well. It would be no surprise to him if Cutler Beckett was truly as bitter and ruthless as the rumours said. He had everyone reason to be.
Sighing, the Admiral felt relief as he saw a Lieutenant approach and stand beside Cutler Beckett, and realised that everything was going to be alright; at least as much as it was could be. Not like that night all those years ago. He remembered the newly appointed young Governor, Weatherby Swann, comforting the youngest boy as he was told about the terrible things that happened in the Beckett household. He remembered holding Cutler in his arms, whispering softly to the boy who was refusing to speak, hugging him tightly as he told him that everything would be ok, even though they both knew it wouldn't be.
Author: Shytan
Rating: PG
Characters: Cutler Beckett, Royal Navy Officer OC. Governor Swann makes an appearance.
Summary: Sequel to Twice I Died. An old Admiral remembers the dark events that took place on the docks a lifetime ago.
Warnings: Dark theme
"I'm getting too old for this," the Admiral muttered to himself as he clutched the railing of his vessel. The ship was much like her captain; old but sturdy. And at that particular moment, relatively empty. The crew were enjoying themselves in the little town near the docks, but the Admiral had remained. He had muttered a gruff excuse when questioned by the disembarking crew, but they had simply shrugged and left him in peace. Staring down at the wooden dock, the Admiral sighed as dark memories filled his mind. His reminiscing was rapidly halted when he caught sight of a figure standing on the gravel before the dock, and he leaned over the railing slightly, squinting in an attempt to better see who it was. The sun had recently set, so the light was not the best, but he could just make out the man's face... The Admiral's eyes widened and his mouth fell agape. He quickly closed it, swallowing as he felt his heart rate quicken, the loud thudding in his chest filling his ears. It couldn't be... it shouldn't... It was. He knew that face well. It was Cutler Beckett.
It had been well over a decade since the Admiral had last seen a Beckett boy grace the dark docks below him. Perhaps it had been two. He had been a freshly promoted Lieutenant at the time, and Cutler had been a boy of eleven. The wealthy and powerful Beckett family had stopped at the port for a week, and the fierce Lord had brought his wife and three boys. He had first seen them disembarking the elegant merchant ship, the lanky eldest boy marching alongside his father, the pale middle child clinging to his mother and the excited youngest one skipping along behind them. He had only had time to glance at them before his commanding officer had caught his eye, and he had quickly returned to his duties.
The second time he saw them was a few nights later. The eldest son had casually made his way to the end of the dock, a rather solemn expression on his face, but then again he had not looked pleased when he had arrived at the port so the Admiral had thought nothing of it at the time. The boy had a slight olive complexion with dark hair and eyes, mostly likely inherited from his father's side. Just as the boy had made it to the end of the dock, the middle child had come running out of the darkness and even brushed past the then-Lieutenant in his haste to catch up with his older sibling. Unlike his brother, Cutler had the fair skin and brown hair of his mother, and her short stature too it appeared, when he later learned the boy's age. Eleven. It was only when Cutler had also neared the end of the dock and uttered his brother's name that the Lieutenant had turned around, and only then did he see the gun.
"No!" He had cried, but neither boy seemed to notice. The Admiral remembered hearing the pounding footsteps of his crewmates following him as he ran as fast as he could towards the end of the dock, but before he was near the two boys, the sharp gunshot cut through the air, and the elder boy, Hunter, crumpled to the ground, the silver gun still clasped in his hand. The younger boy simply stared, shocked, for all of a second before the Lieutenant had reached him and pulled him back, turning him away from the sight before them as he knelt down and pulled the child to his chest. The other Royal Navy officers with him were all lower rank, but they quickly came up with an appropriate plan of action nonetheless.
The Admiral remembered picking up the silent, deathly pale boy and carrying him back along the dock, towards where he knew the Becketts were staying. Cutler had shivered, the light pink in his cheeks completely gone as he stared at the uniform he was pressed against, clearly still in shock. The then-Lieutenant had not expected the reaction of the boy's father when he and two other officers informed the senior Beckett of his eldest son's suicide. After the initial shock there was anger, and the when he turned to his eldest living son, who had stood quietly beside the Lieutenant and stared listlessly at the desk across the room, the senior Beckett shocked the officers by not only yelling at Cutler for not stopping his brother, but by striking him hard enough to knock the child over.
The senior officer with them had snarled furiously at Beckett, outraged, and they began to argue. The Lieutenant turned around to watch with pity as the boy picked himself up and vomited. One of the maids rushed over and picked him up without a word, carrying him out of the room quickly. It took a lot of effort not to follow her. He didn't see the boy for two more years. He had been stationed at the little port in the middle of nowhere, but had been out to sea for much of his time there. He had been very surprised when, one haunting dusk a pale boy of thirteen had quietly made his way past him to the end of the dock. The Lieutenant had froze, recognising the boy instantly. It was surprising the Becketts had returned, although judging by the way the senior Beckett had acted, he cared little for his sons.
As a boy of eleven ran past him, the Lieutenant felt the blood in his veins freeze. The fair skin, rounded face, dark brown hair and blue eyes... it was the youngest Beckett boy, Tyler. The Lieutenant ignored the confused looks of his crewmates as he ran towards the end of the dock after the boy, and it wasn't until he was halfway there that they saw the silver gun in Cutler's hand. Despite his preemption, the Lieutenant did not make it to the end of the dock before the boy pulled the trigger, and his heart stopped as he heard the loud click. He stumbled to a half a few feet behind the boys, and for a brief moment wasn't sure what had happened. He suddenly realised the gun had misfired, and Cutler seemed to have realised too, for he had stared at the gun briefly, then let it slip out of his hand.
Tyler had dropped to his knees, relieved. The Lieutenant whirled Cutler around and knelt down to hold him just as he had two years ago. He quietened the Navy officers behind him when they discussed taking the boys home, and instructed them to walk Tyler to the Governor's mansion. Picking up the deathly pale child, the Lieutenant stopped to kick the accursed gun into the water before following his comrades. He remembered feeling shaken. He had once again not reached the end of the dock before the trigger was pulled. The second time though, nobody had died. At least he had believed that, back then. The quivering child in his arms was not the same innocent boy that had shyly clung to his mother when they first entered the port two years previously, his older brother had changed that in a single second.
Thinking back to that dreadful night on the dock, the Admiral realised that the thirteen-year-old boy he had held so tightly on the way to the Governor's mansion had been changed once again by the events that had transpired that night. Perhaps it was his brother's death, or perhaps it was his own attempt at taking his life, but a part of Cutler Beckett had died those nights, and there was nothing the Admiral could have done about it. He had to admit that a part of himself had died those nights as well, unable to save the life of the elder brother, unable to save the soul of the middle child. And watching the grown man stare listlessly at the dock, haunted by the darkest of his memories, the Admiral felt another small part of him die as well. It would be no surprise to him if Cutler Beckett was truly as bitter and ruthless as the rumours said. He had everyone reason to be.
Sighing, the Admiral felt relief as he saw a Lieutenant approach and stand beside Cutler Beckett, and realised that everything was going to be alright; at least as much as it was could be. Not like that night all those years ago. He remembered the newly appointed young Governor, Weatherby Swann, comforting the youngest boy as he was told about the terrible things that happened in the Beckett household. He remembered holding Cutler in his arms, whispering softly to the boy who was refusing to speak, hugging him tightly as he told him that everything would be ok, even though they both knew it wouldn't be.