Ching Shih started her career as a Chinese prostitute called Shih Yang. She married in 1801, to one Cheng I who commanded a pirate fleet and fought in a Vietnamese rebellion on the side of the Tay-son. They adopted a son named Chang Pao. By the time her husband died in a gale in 1807, he had united a pirate coalition numbering 400 ships and over 70,000 sailors.

A master of... ]]> feeds@yuku.com (JustSmith) http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1602 Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:29:50 GMT http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1570/t/Blackbeard.html - It is said that he had around 14 wives; weddings aboard ship were common.
- He once had himself and several crewmembers locked in the hold with burning pots of brimstone to see who could withstand the fumes the longest, and he won.

t is truly ironic that very little is known with certainty about the most famous, most notorious pirate ever. Eyewitness accounts... ]]> feeds@yuku.com (Jiggysam) http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1570 Thu, 28 Jun 2007 14:03:24 GMT http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1556/t/Honor-Among-Thieves.html Honor Among Thieves
(Originally Titled "Beyond The Inn - Adventures on the High Seas")
by Captain Dorianne Valora Waverider & Captain Henri Tuvalier
The setting: The port at Krys, the nearest ocean port to Adventurers' Inn.

feeds@yuku.com (angus macinnes) http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1556 Thu, 07 Jun 2007 18:53:22 GMT http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1555/t/Memories.html Memories

She wakes in the wee hours of the morning, the world outside still dark. Glancing to the sleeping form beside her, she slides from beneath the covers, taking care not to wake him. A loose shirt of silk is slipped on, and buttoned to keep the chill from her bare skin. Her feet carry her to the window, and the... ]]> feeds@yuku.com (angus macinnes) http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1555 Thu, 07 Jun 2007 18:50:07 GMT http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1547/t/Lost-Shipmates-Return.html

"Dorianne!"

A voice calling her name startles her from her thoughts as she walks through the crowded streets toward town. She raises her head and searches the crowd for the one who calls.

"Captain!", the call comes again, and this time she spots the source, a smiling woman, waving her arms in the air.

"Calla?", her whisper does not carry, but the girl reads the movement of her Captain's mouth... ]]> feeds@yuku.com (angus macinnes) http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1547 Thu, 31 May 2007 21:07:13 GMT http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1544/t/The-Captain-s-Bath.html

All is silent and motionless in the Captain's cabin, save the widening rings of ripples in the soapy water filling the wooden tub set to one side of the large desk. With a sudden burst, the water's surface is broken by the crown of a drenched head. Water streams over closed lids and regal cheeks, and moisture darkened red brown tresses cling to curving shoulders. Hazel eyes flecked with gold and green snap open as she continues to rise, sudsy... ]]> feeds@yuku.com (angus macinnes) http://thegrouchyscotsman.yuku.com/topic/1544 Tue, 29 May 2007 17:32:04 GMT