Bane

The excellent jewelry and fur products of the people of the Northern Vale not only gave rise to their booming maritime trade economy, but also brought about many illegal dealings, such as with the notorious pirates of the Northern Vale. For a long time, the pirates of the Frozen Sea and other sea regions existed as bands. They divided territory between themselves, and held to a principle of non-interference, plundering only merchant ships that passed through their own territories to enrich themselves. This became the de facto rule of the pirate community.

This widely respected order lasted until the arrival of Bane and his men. Cruel, cunning, violent, and tyrannical... No list of adjectives commonly given to pirates would be enough to describe Bane's terrible reputation. Born into a family of pirates, Bane was raised and trained in the strictest manner from childhood. By the time he became an adult, Bane was already the most feared pirate of his time.

But young Bane's ambition was far greater than this. Not long after, Bane murdered his uncle, and assumed control of the Behemoth, a seaborne fortress with an enormous battering ram and dozens of cannons, hence truly becoming Captain Bane. Bane then broke the ancient rule of the pirates, and started to encroach upon other pirates' territories.

Facing Bane's incredible firepower and terrible cruelty, the other pirates had only two options: submit, or be annihilated. More and more fugitives and opportunists gathered under Bane's flag, earning him enough funds to establish a huge pirate fleet he called the Black Sharks. Bane dominated all of the Frozen Sea's sea routes, ruling the people on the Northern Vale’s coast with an iron fist, and naming himself the Lord of the Frozen Sea. Some people of the Northern Vale who could no longer bear Bane's despotic rule armed themselves and gathered under the banner of his nemesis Franco to wage a war of resistance against Bane.

The desperate Bane ordered his men to risk everything to sink Franco's fleet, but after several battles, he was still unable to gain an advantage. At this time, Bane learned of a secret: the Ionic Heart, one of the fragments of the mysterious and powerful Twilight Orb, lay somewhere in the depths the Frozen Sea, and it contained a powerful regenerative power that could help him to conquer the world.

Bane came up with a cunning plan to kill two birds with one stone. First, he would let the information out, to attract the attention of the Moniyan Empire's navy. Then, he would pretend to sue for peace with Franco, revealing the location of the Ionic Heart to him, and falsely expressing an intention for them to jointly rule the Frozen Sea. The goal was to use Franco's forces and the Moniyan Empire to help him locate the Ionic Heart, while provoking a battle between them, so the Empire would destroy his hated nemesis. He would then swoop in amidst the chaos to seize the Ionic Heart for himself.

Everything went just as Bane had planned. The Moniyan Empire's massive navy departed from Castle Grandrock's harbor. Meanwhile, Franco seemed to believe him, and led his fleet to search for the Ionic Heart. Both parties finally ran into each other in a narrow region on the eastern edge of the Frozen Sea. As each had been unaware of the other's existence, the Moniyan fleet and Franco's fleet were caught in a tense face-off. Bane's opportunity had arrived. He ordered his men to sneak into both fleets with fast and stealthy boats and suddenly open fire, thus igniting a massive naval battle.

After both sides had been heavily decimated in the ensuing battle, the mastermind Bane arrived aboard the enormous Behemoth. He looked upon the terrible aftermath of his plan with glee, while commanding his men to destroy the surviving ships and seize the Ionic Heart. Bain smiled contemptuously as he appreciated the "beautiful" scene before him, and savored the hateful curses of the Moniyans. With almost no effort at all, he had manipulated the Moniyans, and eradicated Franco. All he needed now was to find the Ionic Heart, and he would have power enough to conquer the world. Then, neither the Moniyan Empire nor the demons of the Abyss would be able to stand against him...

Just as Bane was exalting in his victory, a huge cannon fired from the fleet behind the Behemoth, making a direct hit on the flagship. The battle-hardened Behemoth and its owner were blown up to pieces that sank to the bottom of the sea and were never seen again.

Bane was dead, or so those who witnessed the explosion and sinking of the Behemoth believed. His enormous pirate fleet disintegrated and scattered, and peace was restored to the Frozen Sea. The man who had fired the cannon was none other than Bane's nemesis, Franco. Franco had never trusted Bane, and was suspicious of his sudden peaceful overtures. Hence, he ordered his men to pretend to take the bait and search the seas, while he led a small contingent of sailors to infiltrate and seize one of Bane's ships during the night. When Bane was at his most complacent, Franco gave the order to fire upon his flagship, dealing Bane a fatal blow.

Bane's age of piracy was over, and would gradually be forgotten, while Franco would become the new ruler of the Northern Vale's coastline. But in the depths of the ocean, the shattered Captain Bane suddenly opened his eyes amidst an ancient and abandoned ruin, awakened by a bright light. The strange object before him radiated a mesmerizing power. As if possessed, his broken body regained consciousness. It was the Ionic Heart that Bane had spent so much effort searching for. Having been in despair at his complete defeat, Bane smiled grimly as he approached the Ionic Heart. Upon touching it, a tremendous power surged through him, repairing his shattered body.

What Bane could not imagine was that a giant octopus had just then picked him out as its prey, reaching out and touching him as he laid hands on the Ionic Heart. As he fought the octopus, Bane was forced to release his grip on the Ionic Heart, letting it fly from his hands and sink into the sea. However, its residual energy enveloped Bane and the octopus, and started fusing them into one.

On the Northern Vale's shores, the coming and going merchant ships were busily loading and unloading cargo. In the distant waters, the resurrected Captain Bane was no longer bemoaned his repeated failures. Looking at his new body and the familiar seas, he smiled once again.

The game was only just beginning.

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