Profile
Captain of the Corsair's Cry
"Are we frightened damsels, or are we pirates?"
Amira Haynes is the woman behind the fearsome reputation of the pirate ship called The Corsair's Cry. Many who have the misfortune to cross paths with the ship and her Captain don't initially suspect that the woman who steps off the ship would be the one in command, but any questions about her ability to lead are quickly put to rest with her first few words. Although she was raised the poor daughter of an unremarkable barmaid and mediocre fisherman, Amira had greater ambitions than her parents and she learned early on to take what she wanted with no remorse.
Life on a pirate ship is tumultuous and often short lived, and Amira doesn't intend to find her end on the bow of a ship. She seems to be constantly in search of something, leading her crew to the ends of the earth and back again to investigate myths and legends. She is hungry for power and determined to get it at almost any cost.
Likes
- brandy
- money
- the ocean
- fruit
Dislikes
- pity
- disobedience
- the law
- laziness
Personality
avaricious
Amira always wants 'more'; she is never satisfied by the amount of wealth or power she has and is always chasing the next goalpost. It's not that she doesn't want other people to have it but rather that she wants the most. She's very greedy and while she's very self aware about it, she doesn't consider it to be a bad thing. Wealth and power are security and safety, and she refuses to go another day without either.
dominant
The Captain has a controlling and commanding presence, which is how she likes it. She's fought hard for her position of power and while she's careful not to abuse it, she definitely exercises it. Even as a child she would make sure that she was the one with the most influence in any given situation, and she's never been afraid to throw her weight around if her authority is questioned or undermined.
fair
Amira is tough, domineering, and not easy to get along with for many people. Despite all of these qualities, however, Amira is also extremely fair; she's certainly not a tyrant, and she rules her crew as more of a dictatorship than anything else. She's not needlessly cruel and she's been known to offer women who have few other options a place on the ship, provided they work for it. She rewards good behavior just as much as she punishes the bad, and she doesn't consider herself above anyone else just for her position of authority. Instead she views it as an important responsibility that she takes very seriously.
tough
A life of struggle has thickened Amira's skin considerably; she's withstood starvation, violence, loss, and no other small number of hardships without letting it take her down. Having had to prove herself worthy of the title of Captain, few people ever see a softer side of her. She is quiet in her strength and not at all boastful about it, but she's often the rock for those on the ship that need it.
hedonistic
Work hard, play hard is Amira's life motto; she is contantly engaged in the pursuit of pleasure, which is what motivates her to work so hard. Although it's rare that she allows herself to be fully self-indulgent, she's a fan of gambling, drinking, good food, and a pretty face. She has enough self-control not to overdue it usually, but material comfort and pleasure are the driving force behind what she does.
impassive
Amira is a closed book, and even the few who she lets close to her aren't able to tell what she's thinking or feeling. She isn't easily frightened or intimidated, and she rarely smiles or cracks jokes. Whether they are or positive or negative emotions has no bearing on her stoic demeanor; it takes a LOT to make her break. Her greatest fear is being taken advantage of, and the mask she puts on to appear unfeeling is very deliberate.
Skills
• sailing
• wayfinding
• leadership
• intimidation
• swordsmanship
• dual-wielding
Trivia
• Her primary weapon is a cutlass that has been passed down from Captain to Captain of the Corsair's Cry. She uses a small dirk in her off-hand, but she can also wield two swords.
• She learned to wayfind from her childhood sweetheart who knew how to read maps and the stars. She's not great at it, but she can do it in a pinch.
• Her mother's nickname for her in childhood was 'Meerkat'.
• The Corsair's Cry is and always has been an all female crew. Many pirates look down on them for this, and Amira takes a special pleasure in taking these crews down.
Background
Amira was born in the country of Valwick in the seaside village of Claremont. She was raised by her single mother, as her father worked and lived as a fisherman and was rarely home; his support came in the form of meager payments sent to the poor family and not much else.
With a mother who worked as a tavern maid, Amira's family lacked the safety and security money offered. Her mother was loving but absent as she struggled to make ends meet, and her village was not particularly well off. The economy only got worse when a famine struck and a sickness invaded the sea, depleting the island resources and destroying the livelihood of many on the island. Amira was forced to watch as not only her home life but also her village fell apart around her, and surviving became a struggle.
A a result of a lack of funding for any kind of defense or militia, Claremont and the surrounding coastal villages became a prime target for pirates attacks. Amira grew to admire these pirates -- although they were violent and destroyed their surroundings, they took what they needed and thrived for it. For a girl with so little, seeing the pirates on their huge ships with gold literally spilling out of their pockets was a formative moment. Amira watched from the sidelines, she vowed to become like the pirates. She would take what she needed when she needed it, and nothing would stop her, and those that she loved would never go hungry another night. It was a misguided hope of a young and vulnerable girl, but she held onto this ambition like a security blanket.
When Amira was 16, her village was raided once more. In the chaos she left without saying good-bye to anyone and joined the crew that had raided them, The Corsair's Cry. She started as the lowest of the low on the ship, but worked her way up the ranks -- there was a lot of room for upwards movement considering the crew was often taking casualties. Staying alive and working hard paid off, and when the original captain of the ship retired with her riches after several years, Amira was elected Captain by her fellow crew members.
Although The Corsair's Cry was relatively well-feared before Amira took the helm, it's reputation has grown ten-fold under her command. While they crew does participate in regular pirate activities such as plundering and pillaging, in recent years Amira has been using the ship and crew to search for treasure that may or may not exist. She's known to be merciful towards the villages they rob, offering them work on the ship rather than death but not afraid to cut them down if they get in her way.
Relationships
childhood sweetheart Balthazar and Amira grew up in the same village and were extremely close friends who grew into lovers as they got older. This sweet romance didn't last long, as Amira left for the sea one day without warning and left Balthazar heart-broken and believing that she had died in a pirate raid. They later reconnected on the sea but on opposite sides of the law. Despite their opposing morals and the battles they clash in, the two fell into old habits and have fallen into each other's beds more than incidentally. Amira thinks that Balthazar is foolish for being so self-sacrificing, though she secretly admires his soft heart. Deep inside she still loves Balthazar, but it's not something she'll admit to herself, and certainly never to him.
second-in-command Amira is technically Yucca's boss, though the two are more like sisters. Having joined the crew of The Corsair's Cry relatively close together, the two worked their way up the ranks together and often leaned on each other for support during the (many) rough times. Once Amira was elected as Captain of The Corsair's Cry, she elected Yucca as the Quarter Master. Amira treats Yucca like more of an equal than she's ever experienced before and Amira trusts Yucca more than anyone else.
