Times change. Having witnessed the near end of the world, people change. Lugus is gone, Naeathisar is gone, Thora and Blodhim are gone. As Captain of  the Black Rat, I hereby make the following dispensations:

Promoted to First Lieutenant: Midshipman Styker Byle.

Promoted to Second Lieutenant: Steward Shara, Boatswain Scrippy.

Promoted to Midshipman: Boatswain’s Mate Sparrow.

Appointed ship’s Security Officer: Crew-orc Moronkorg.

I shall make further appointments and promotions in due course.

Having spoken with the crew, I took the Black Rat from port under darkness at Two Bells of the Middle Watch. The strong Nor-Easter was the ideal wind for us, and we made landfall in a hidden bay I know of on a deserted island, and there I beached the Rat. The Black Rat shall not leave this beach.

I have seen much death in my time, and received my fair share of wounds. The sheer scale of the slaughter in the Cataclysm Battle – and nearly having the life literally crushed out of me by demons – has made me think that there are better ways than privateering to make a living, and the crew agree with me. We have had our fill of being sought by the authorities and bounty hunters, and have decided to go legit.

The Black Rat shall not leave this beach. The Astral Silver – a humble though well-armed freighter – will. As I write, the old name is being erased from the stern, scraped off with the rest of the black paintwork. The hull will be re-caulked and repainted. I have ordered some of the catapults and ballistae to be dismounted, disassembled and put in store to make us look less aggressive. The forecastle is to be lowered, so the vessel looks less like a floating battleworks. It is hoped that the new name and appearance will avoid any ‘misunderstandings’ with those who may bear us ill-will in our former incarnation. All phylacteries, flags and pennants have been collected in and burned, tattoos remade.

The Black Rat is gone – except in memory. None shall know her true fate. Her name will still be spoken in hushed whispers in dark corners of quayside taverns, in fear that her crew may yet be in earshot, looking for their next prey. Tales will still be told of the heroic mutiny when the oppressed stood up for themselves, and the Renown became the Black Rat. Even mad old Rovalan shall be rehabilitated in the rose-tinted spyglass of time. The cunning and recklessness of Lugus shall still have lookouts in the tops searching the horizon for the blood-and-black flag announcing doom’s arrival.

All that remains for me to do is to place this log and the Captain’s Ring in a locked chest, seal it in burlap, and secrete it somewhere below – the only surviving evidence of the Black Rat’s existence. Tomorrow I start a new log for a new vessel for, save in story and song, the days of the Black Rat are done.

Signed this day Wednesday, 30th August 1106

Captain