fantasy
The Man in Black
6
There are tales whispered in the shadowy corners of taverns and along the salt-streaked docks of every port from the Shivering Isles to the Ivory Coast — tales of the Dread Pirate Roberts. Sailors speak of a man who never ages, whose black sails blot out the sun, whose blade is as sharp as his wit, and whose mercy is as rare as gold left unguarded.
It is said that once the Dread Pirate Roberts sets his eyes on a ship, doom follows swiftly. No treasure is safe, no ship secure, for Roberts claims all he desires and leaves nothing but smoke and splintered hulls in his wake. Those who survive his wrath — and they are precious few — tell of a tall figure clad in black, his face half-shrouded, his voice cool and unshaken by the screams of men.
Yet the truth behind the legend is a secret held closer than a king’s ransom. The Dread Pirate Roberts is not a man, but a mask — a name passed like an heirloom from one captain to the next. The first to bear the title was a cunning pirate lord whose true name is long lost to time. When his wealth swelled to satisfy even the greed of his blackened heart, he found a clever young sailor, sharp-eyed and shrewd, and trained him in the arts of deception, swordplay, and command.
When the time came, the first Roberts vanished into legend, his fortune hidden away, and the young sailor took his place beneath the mask. And so it has gone for decades — a line of captains cloaked in the same legend, wielding the fearsome name of Roberts to command seas and shape destinies. Each successor, once weary of the sea’s endless hunger, seeks a worthy heir — a soul hungry enough for glory yet wise enough to grasp the weight of the mantle.
Thus, the Dread Pirate Roberts sails on, a specter of terror whose name can still freeze the bravest heart. In truth, it is not the man who is feared, but the legend — a legend no sword can kill, no storm can drown. As long as ships sail the sea, the Dread Pirate Roberts will haunt their wake.
Princess bride
