The ragged group of sailors watched the imperial shipyard from a nearby road along the bay’s shore. On the “first mate” Wallace’s word they followed a goat to the yard, he was convinced it was a genius and most of the others were just having a laugh. The goat, however entered the yard without any issue, just a few sideways glances, he slowly plodded up a nearby ramp and onto one of the recently constructed ships. He meandered about on the deck while the workers cleared off to take their lunch at a nearby pavilion. He casually chewed at the railing, then a bit at the ships wheel, then at the particularly tasty hemp ropes he found near the railing and along the deck. The ship listed to the side slightly as it was now free to drift with the light current and slowly drifted out into the bay. The crew spotted the goat as he strode about the deck, somewhat confused, Wallace exclaimed, “By the Gods, he’s done it.”

The rest of the sailors just stared, not sure what to make of this as Wallace started swimming for the ship, and they followed, by now a horn was sounded in the shipyard and some guards, who had noticed the sailors, shouted and ran at them. Within a short time the sailors had mad the ship and started setting her up to sail off. Wallace noticed that one of the younger men, whom he had dubbed a cabin boy, Rory had been taken by the guard. He turned to the goat and asked, “Captain, should we leave him?”

The goat stared blankly and replied, “Baaa.”
“Of course, we can’t leave a man behind, what should we do?” Wallace asked, as the rest of the crew once again wondered why they were following a drunkard and a goat.

The goat stared at the shore, at a lovely patch of grass, just outside the yard, and hopped the rail, into the water, followed by Wallace. When he reached the shore, he chewed at the grass for a while until Wallace asked, “What now sir?”

The goat sniffed, he smelled some nice hay nearby and started plodding off toward it, he walked into the yard’s simple holding area, a three-celled jail of wrought iron bars, doors, and each with a small hay pile for prisoners to sleep on. The guard jumped up and shouted something that scared the goat, who jumped and caught him on the jaw with his head, knocking the poor fellow out. Rory gasped in shock as he was rescued, the goat ate a mouthful of hay. Wallace asked, “What now captain?”

The goat spun a bit. very confused by the two men staring at him and bumped into the guard’s table, knocking his lantern off and breaking it onto one of the hay piles. “Brilliant,” shouted Wallace who led the young man and confused goat back outside and down the docks.

By the time the had almost made it out the entire yard was ablaze as the jail had been near the oil shed. They ran down one of the empty slips when they heard a shout behind them, “You think you can take my ship, burn the Queen’s finest shipyard, and just swim away?”

The man looked like he was a half giant, both Wallace and Rory recognized him to be the empire’s meanest, and one of their greatest sailors, he was known as the Azure Dervish, they watched, dumbfounded as he drew his twin scimitars and pointed the end of one toward them. “Baa,” said the goat.

Wallace looked at the goat, “Are you sure sir?”

The goat replied, “Baa.”

Wallace jumped into the water, followed by Rory who looked back, saluted the goat and said, “It’s been an honor, sir,” as they stared swimming for the ship in the bay.

The huge man just stared, not sure what was happening as he was left on a dock, with a goat, as the yard burned around them. His thoughts were interrupted by a loud crack behind him, he turned in time to watch the falling pulley tower come crashing down on top of him.

The crew watched from the ship, a few stray tears here and there, most now fully believed that goat was the genius Wallace thought it was. They all watched as towers and buildings fell, and the yard burned, Rory pointed and shouted as a lone figure swam out of the wreckage, toward the ship.

And that’s how Goatbeard became the most respected, wanted, and feared, pirate in the imperial seas.