Riley MacAllister, the River Rat

Among all the nefarious captains to set their hands to a ship’s wheel, none are more feared than the captain of the Dancing Lady: Riley MacAllister.
MacAllister pilots the Lady along the inland rivers of Tjiramor. No ocean-going sailor is he! He’d had enough tales of the sea from his father and grandfather, both loyal Royal Navy men. 
MacAllister didn’t understand his father’s love of the sea nor his love of the Navy. After all, Grandfather Rory perished in the Battle of Northmost Island when his ship bravely rammed the pride of the North Fleet. Rory MacAllister fought off his own crew as he steered the Tor’s Summit into the Northern flagship, sending both ships, their captains, and the crown prince of the Island to the bottom of the ocean.
Riley’s father, Ramsay MacAllister, had risen in the officer ranks, partly on merit and partly to honor his father’s legacy. Ramsay would have led the entire fleet as Vice Admiral were it not for the slanderous campaign of his chief underling Marietta Waldorf. Waldorf placed her lies well, and, soon the King and his Council believed Ramsay was plotting with the last remnants of the North Island’s royal family. 
Riley MacAllister watched his father’s shameful walk from the Admiralty office as his fellow officers, those who once cheered Ramsay, hissed at him and turned their backs on the once-admired man.
As many fallen heroes do, Ramsay took to drink, holding court at whatever tavern would serve him. He sang the Admiralty’s praises and refused to admit that he had been done wrong. Young Riley accompanied his father and grew up on tales of how wonderful was the Royal Navy and how brilliant her men. The tales sat at odds with what Riley observed.
He swore to never serve the Crown and never take to the sea like his ancestors. Instead, Riley worked on the docks, first as a member of the Barnacle Combine and then as a stevedore. He saved his money and eventually bought a small barge to sail the Mangus and Dove Rivers, toting goods through Tjiramor.
Riley soon discovered his barge was an easy target for river pirates, and he couldn’t compete with established captains. After one fight with an established pirate crew, Riley was amazed to discover himself the victor. He took over the pirate’s barge and some of its crew.
With better weapons and a ruthless crew, Riley MacAllister gave up toting legitimate goods and took to smuggling. He learned the river currents and depths and how to hide his barge along the banks.
He learned to fight and to fight dirty. MacAllister knew that to rule the rivers, he’d need a larger vessel. So he fought every pirate and merchant he encountered with a better ship. He developed a taste for killing. Few of those he fought were even offered the chance to join his crew.
When MacAllister saw the Dancing Lady, he knew the streamlined boat had to be his. He doubted he could take the crew, so he disguised himself as a escaped prisoner and signed on with the Lady.
Within days, a mysterious illness sidelined most of the crew, thanks to some well-placed poison in the ship’s water supply. MacAllister earned the trust of the Dancing Lady’s captain by tending to him as he fell ill from the poison. That trust let MacAllister get close enough to slit the captain’s throat one night.
The Lady wasn’t owned by her freshly deceased captain. He was merely an employee of Lord Wainright. MacAllister disguised himself yet again, this time as the Lady’s former captain, and gained entrance to Wainright’s manor. More throats were slit. 
The Dancing Lady now belonged to Riley MacAllister, now known as the River Rat for his sneaky ways of success. The Lady and her captain still sail the Rivers, sinking vessels as they please and stealing cargos.