JVJll27.png

Q8NvlXr.png

Location: Lady Luck
Time: Spring, Rainy Season, Evening


It was always rare and few that the crew saw Runali as serious as she was in that particular moment. There was a heavy downpour while the crew maintained the sails. Coral had gotten caught up in the storm and soared downward straight to the captain for safety. Runali caught the bird, heavy from the rain, and hurried her below deck so the bird could find a comfy place to get dry. When Runali was sure Coral was safe, she hurried back to help the others. Though when they didn’t need her help, she focused on the sea as the waves began to move wildly, yet never too much of a threat for Lady Luck. It didn’t stop the captain from pacing to and from different sides of the ship just to ease her paranoia.

Any time the slightest thunderstorm showed signs of approaching, Runali was always on edge- whether she wanted to admit to it or not. Or if she even realized it for that matter.

With each tilt of the ship, whether dangerous or not, Runali kept a vigilant eye out not only for danger below them, but for her crew as well. Despite seeing them all safe and taking care of the sails as they’d done countless times before- minus Adelaide and Cedric- it didn’t give her any moment to relax. While the ship wasn’t careening into the depths thanks to wild waves and monsters of the sea and thanks to Kadi’s expert sailing, the rain poured and poured, showing no reprieve anytime soon. Anyone that attempted to go above deck was soaked to the bone instantly and unfortunately, Kadi and Runali were two of those people who had to do just that.

“There’s no inhabited island nearby?!” Runali had to yell over the roar of the rain.

“Closest islands aren’t marked so either it’s uninhabited or we’re in for a surprise!” Kadi yelled back, keeping a firm grip on the wheel to keep them on course. Thunder gave a resounding response, emphasizing their urgency to make a decision.

The lightning that struck Lady emphasized their urgency to get to land.

Surprise was etched onto her face when momentarily Lady caught on fire. Luckily, the downpour saved them from a lot more damage than what could have been. The damage already created by the elements needed to be repaired sooner than later so the ship veered off course.

It took a few, long hours, with Runali ordering everyone to Luro’s aid. The lightning strike did do its damage, but the heavy rain started to reveal smaller damage that could have been as recent as that day. Their luck continued to turn sour when the jagged rocks they were forced to haphazardly dock around added more to the damage.

“Great…”

Not only was it still pouring, but they were now on an empty island with a damaged ship. “I-I don’t kn-know what’s worse. Th-This or the s-snow.” Runali’s teeth chattered as she looked around the dark island, hoping to see something of value. “Hmm, at least I w-was unconscious for most of the s-snow trip.” When she headed back below deck where everyone else waited, she rung out her clothes as best she could, creating small puddles where she stopped. “Looks like we’re stuck here for a bit. Luro let us know what help you need. Whoever isn’t helping Luro, probably would be best to make sure at least this side of the island is clear- at least… when’s it’s not pouring.”
 
177928
Cedric arched an eyebrow when he saw Runali dripping wet from head to toe as she returned below deck. He offered her a towel from the stack strategically placed at the bottom of the stairs. He insisted that this minor “fussiness” (as Jack liked to call it) would make life more bearable during the rainy season. It took them awhile to get used to it, but the end result was great. Less shivering and certainly less mopping.

“If it’s okay with you, Captain, I’ll be leaving the ship soon. I feel the current weather is perfect for me to test out my pet project. I’d be happy to gather any materials Luro needs on my way back.” His eyes flit towards the giant of a man as he waited for an answer.

Sid’s pet project was another idea he had after observing the crew return drench time and time again. He figured it was time someone took matters in their own hands. This little bit of inspiration turned into a full-blown obsession within hours. He spent nearly all his free time researching and testing various materials to determine the best way to create comfortable waterproof outfits.

His current design involved old sailcloth greased with a wax formula he created. The two hooded capes he sewed kept him dry so far during light showers. Today would be the first time he wore one during a storm. If he managed to stay dry underneath, he’d move on to the next phase - designing better looking coats. Maybe he’d incorporate material that was just as water resistant as sailcloth but even more breathable. The wax seemed to be the key to waterproofing after all.

“I’ll be on my way then. Maybe if I’m lucky we might have some rabbits or wild birds for dinner. You’d like that won’t you, frère.” He smirked. He tapped Jack lightly on the shoulder then plucked a protesting Chester off his brother’s head. Sid planned on taking Chaos with him, but she hated the rain more than Chester did.

The tailor rejoined the group in next to no time. He had both capes slung across his arm and his cat sitting on his head. His crossbow was strapped to his back. He passed the second coat to Jack before putting on the remaining one. He slipped his arms through the sleeves and buttoned the cape up to his chest. He pulled up the hood over his head after that but avoided fastening the ties. He needed to leave enough room for his furry friend.

He took the second coat and held it out to the person close by. “Arcadius, would you like to join me? Your insights were greatly appreciated. I wouldn’t have thought of mixing wax and oil together in the first place.”

Most of the time, Cedric preferred wandering off on his own. It was probably better for his sanity after being confined on a ship with this many people for weeks on end. However, he felt it wouldn’t be fair to the navigator. The man had been the person he ranted to whenever he hit a dead end. It was only fair for Arcadius to see the end result of their lengthy discussions.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Capt. Blu
Collab between @Fox of Hearts and @Winter




A few days after meeting the Court …


1559496229020-png.177928
Dinner time was always the noisiest. Cedric never understood why. Usually, everyone would grab a plate and disappear. Some, like Alicia, might linger at breakfast time, but lunch was the quietest. He wished dinners would be more like lunch at times. Less Luro, less Sara and definitely less curry.


Jack told him to give the communal meals a chance. He tried but he couldn’t remain in the crowded room. It was a lot politer to just excuse himself when he could barely focus on the ongoing conversation. Tonight he lasted a fifteen minutes in Luro’s company. However, when Alicia appeared with Sara, he found himself needing to go.


He took a deep breath as he lowered himself onto the bow. He wanted to try sitting here since he saw Alicia doing so the other day. It looked oddly comfortable. And she was right! He closed his eyes but remained aware enough not to drop the plate he was carrying. Chester grumbled from his shoulder. He ignored the little emperor’s complaints. The grilled fish was theirs. Being the one who snagged it, he had the right to determine when they ate.


“Mrrrrow!”


“Your sister was more pleasant during mealtimes. Why don’t you go disturb Jack? I’m sure he’ll indulge you.”


He cracked an eye open and glared at the cat. “Chaos has been the only one benefiting from his kindness. Surely you miss him, mon cheri. I don’t know why you … okay, I know. Sticking to me won’t change anything. Not now.”


Chester hissed. He leaped off Cedric’s shoulder and landed gracefully on the bow. Rolling his shoulders, he sank horizontally onto the wooden beam. Just like that he transformed from cat to fuzzy caterpillar. A pissed off caterpillar. His green eyes blazed with unspoken accusation. The jealousy apparent only to his master.


“She’s more cooperative, you know?”


The green eyes narrowed to slits. Sid was wasting his breath. His stubborn friend refused to see beyond that minor offence. That “bad” decision of his onboard the Valhalla. Cedric balanced the plate on the beam between the two of them. He sighed.


“We’re supposed to be discreet.”


It remained unsaid that both master and cat had sensed a new presence on the deck. The person was still far away. The tailor raised an eyebrow. His cat purred in response. They waited. The person didn’t seem to be moving, so they relaxed. Cedric continued listening for even the softest of footfalls. Not that he expected to hear much.


Alicia was always softer than most people. Her only give away was this soft hum that he hears whenever she was nearby. Heard or felt, he still wasn’t sure. The unspoken thrum of power was at least contained unlikely the chaotic rumbling coming from her lover. Lover? He wasn’t sure how far they have gone, but Jack’s updates had been insightful.


“Meow.”


“Oui, oui, M. l’Chat. Elle es’ ela.” (trans. (not literal) “Of course, Mr. (Bossy) Cat. She’s still there.”)


Dinner would turn to supper soon. He figured he didn’t have much to lose since he was on watch duty until midnight today. Alicia would be the one to take over after that. He wondered why she wasn’t resting. The Feian struck him as someone disciplined enough not to deprive her body of rest. Unless, of course, it was strictly necessary. He allowed himself to relax again, as his mind adjusted to the constant buzz.


The gathering rain clouds shrouded the moon and darkness engulfed them. Cedric could barely distinguish Chester’s purplish outline from the grey shadows. The man reached into his pouch. He fiddled with the card he extracted. His mind wondering whether he minded letting another person in on his secret. It was pretty much an open secret at this point. Jack, Luro … l’Capitaine, they were the three who knew for sure. The rest might have seen something, but didn’t realise what it was. He had been as discreet as possible the last few nights.


His mind denied it, though. He sensed deep down that Alicia had been aware on some level. She had hovered close by on more than one occasion. Discreet like, but he was beginning to suspect they were both aware of each other on a very different level from the rest. Possibly this was same connection he (and his cats) felt when they met her for the first time.


A cherry red flame devoured the card. The darkness pressed back against him once the fire extinguished. It felt twice as suffocating. Cedric focused on the image in his mind. Pale monarch butterflies gathered around the woman. Their silvery blue bodies shimmered like aerial jellyfish. Lazy and breathtaking. Silvery wisps began coalescing around the deck. They stretched and branched out forming ethereal ghosts of sakura trees. Their leaves and blooming flowers danced in the gentle winds. Occasionally, petals would be scattered by a strong gust pulsing from the sea.


Sid didn’t need to turn around to see the lightscape he created. It would be exactly like how he imagined; the fading darkness was a good indication that he had succeed. He reached down and began petting Chester’s head. His cat had decided to climb into his lap and curl up against his stomach. A smug grin lined feline lips as eyes glowing with power peeked behind lowered lids. The glimmer was as silvery as the trees on deck.


“Eating in the dark isn’t very pleasant. I thought you’d appreciate the light, Ms. Tashigi.”


He kept his back towards Alicia. He didn’t want to disturb his resting cat. Chester had been so grumpy lately that Cedric figured this was a good chance to try and reset his cat’s foul mood. Nothing seemed to pleased familiars more than their summoners tapping into their stored energy. Having too much within them made them restless. He suspected it was the spiritual equivalent of scratching a cat behind its ears.


His hand was going through that very motion, when his eyes spotted a lone butterfly hovering with arm’s reach. Immediately, they flicked towards the dozing cat. He wondered what the Maine Coon was trying to tell him. He decided it wasn’t important. Chester had fallen into deeper sleep. The furry chest cresting languidly like summer seas against the shore.


“Would you like to join us on the bow?” he offered.


Butterflies began drifting further up the ship. Some started clustering around the bow. The trees further behind the woman melted into the deck and newer ones sprang up. Two especially tall ones leaned over the edge to form an arch of leaves and cherry blossoms over the bow.


“I believe it’s a custom in Yula Fei to enjoy a meal under the stars when the first flowers are in full bloom.” he recalled from memory.


“When more flowers open, the streets of the capital will overflow with festival stalls. Food, games, handicraft and trinkets. It’s a mirror of the Winter Solstice festival in Trovale. Just a different group, different clothing and a different language or shall I say a different mix of languages. The pink and white petals make a much prettier backdrop than snow glowing in candle light. Do you prefer winter or spring? For me, I can’t decide which is better.”


He decided to clarify something before she had the wrong impression. “I never visited your homeland before. I’ve read about the place in books. Well, looked at the pictures mostly. I hadn’t had time to learn a new language aside from what’s strictly necessary for missions.”
EVksKxp.png
Nightfall was Alicia’s favourite time of day, the peace she found within the obscuring darkness something which comforted her even despite the effervescent light which emanated from her soul, casting a warmth to those who were sensitive enough to feel it’s presence. Perhaps that was why she enjoyed it, her inner light contrasting brighter within the dark allowing her to look more inward at herself in a manner more spiritual with deeper meaning.


“A’tiria fei na’amunei” she replied softly, speaking for the first time since she’d silently observed the butterflies crafted from light, finding a strange comfort within the display which reminded her of home and the blossom trees that surrounded her estate. “It means; life flourishes from within creation” she added with a small smile as she turned her attention from the creatures of light dancing within the dark towards the man whom like his brother remained somewhat of a mystery to her.


“It is part of why we hold such a festival, for the creation of life is reason to celebrate. I suppose it’s why birthdays are important in our culture” she added with a small amused chuckle, taking small measured steps closer as she approached, maintaining a comfortable distance as she approached the bow of the ship with her hands held neatly behind her back to appear more approachable. “Your creations are quite beautiful, although I can’t help to wonder why you’d seek to hide your talents away” she added as she continued to observe the lights with interest, feeling a warmth from them within the depths of her being whenever one would drift closer to her before changing direction and moving away again.


“As for your question, I think winter is definitely my favourite. While it may be true that much beauty is destroyed with it’s arrival, I see it not as an ending of things… but rather as the beginning of a new chapter of life, a balance of nature and a cycle that must come to pass. Every start of a good story must have an ending after all, right before the arrival of the sequel.” she wondered if perhaps she may be speaking too cryptically within a philosophical ideology of life and creation, but she suspected he unlike most would understand it.


Sid couldn’t decide where to begin. Alicia had given him too many openings. He elected to allow silence to reign for a bit longer. He pitied his dinner. The faint enticing smell was no longer there. The fish would only satisfy Chester now. He never understood how people can enjoy their meats colder than lukewarm. Tonight he would live like a philosopher, he concluded, filling his empty stomach with heavy thoughts rather than physical sustenance.


Did Alicia actually have time to eat? he reflected. That walk from the communal dining area to the deck wasn’t long. His unfinished dinner remained a testament of the passage of time. His fish had as much flesh on its bones as it did when he left.


“I hide my abilities for the same reason I hadn’t allowed myself to ponder over the cyclical nature of life and death.”


Colour bled into the the silver and blues. The transition happened so rapidly that it was hard to believe Cedric’s creations were ever silver and blue. His hand parted from Chester’s fur. More light gathered. This time they lit up the surface of the water. From the orbs, coloured fish evolved. They leaped around yet somehow keeping out of reach of the advancing ship.


“I took an apprenticeship that promised comfort in exchange for living a life in the shadows. Scholarly thought was a luxury I couldn’t afford since then. I had but seconds to decide if the person in front of me lives or I live. I’m a very selfish man, I’m afraid.”


A tingling sensation gripped his fingers. He dispelled it by channeling more warm energy. A much smaller stream compared to earlier but it was enough to maintain his creations. From the depths of the jet black waters, a sparkling dolphin peeked. It vanished again then broke the rippling surface with an energetic somersault.


“Winter and its stillness unnerves me. It isn’t that temporary absence of life. No, the unbroken whiteness makes me think my next breath might be my last. I need the excitement of sound and colour to remind me I’m here and in control.”


He tilted his head upwards to the woman overwatching the bow. “It’s best to drink in such sensations gradually from a distance. I don’t enjoy being engulfed by it.”


His breath had become meditative. “You and I seem different in that aspect,” he acknowledged for the first time. “I would never be able to exude such serenity from my being. My aura is muted.” He waved his hand. “I don’t know how else to describe it. It’s like this living shroud surrounds us. You, me and your beloved. Both of you display power that feels overwhelming. I don’t know how I feel to you in comparison. I wondered.”


A small chuckle followed. “Yes, I did. I’ve not felt such power, whether it is from another living person nor an artifact, in such a long time. Not since I left home.” Absent from his evaluation were his thoughts on the others. He guessed he could have felt something. Most likely he did, but it was brief. Drowned the moment Alicia or Sara appeared.


Alicia listened patiently, reading between the cryptically articulated sentences both of them appeared to be expressing towards the other, implying plenty without really saying anything at all. She nodded in understanding, having once upon a time struggled to deal with the overwhelming presence of others on a more spiritual level herself. It’d taken her many long months of meditation and practice before she eventually learnt how to tune out the auras of others, placing a safe barrier between herself and that of other beings so that she didn’t feel suffocated by something as trivial as a conversation.


“I suppose I should take that as a compliment” she replied, “Although the pursuit of power doesn’t drive me. It’s manifestation is merely a consequence of my will to grow, my father would tell me it was that detail within myself that made me stronger, ironic to a certain degree” she replied, turning her attention to see more of his peculiar summoned spirits as they inhabited the waters around the ship. She took in a breath before looking to be in thought for a moment, contemplating something before she’d eventually tilt her head to look towards Cedric.


“Does my presence disturb you?” she asked, looking towards him with a modicum of intrigue so see how he might respond to the question. She kept the question somewhat vague but it would be clear she didn’t mean her physical presence, or her arrival on at bow of the Lady Luck.


Cedric’s eyes searched the sky. Dark clouds kept the moon well-hidden. He knew their conversation would be ending soon. He could smell the rain in the air. He regretted needing to. It had been so long since he met someone who understood. He guessed that was the reason he found it so hard to break away from Charlotte.


“I notice you without much effort. It’s oddly pleasant,” he reassured Alicia. “Ms. Masu is —- I don’t know how to describe it without offending both of you. I guess I try to avoid her as much as I can without being too rude.”


He removed a single glove and held out his hand. A single sakura petal drifted into his palm. He breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t raining yet! He tried focusing on the conversation despite the nagging voice inside his head. He knew he ought to find out about the protocols for doing watch duties in the rain. The explanation was missed during his initial briefing. He hoped he didn’t need to sit in the cold rain.


He leaned back. His head tilting low enough for him to meet Alicia’s eyes. “What am I sensing exactly? I’m familiar with spiritual energy. This feels the same, but … I don’t see any evidence of us having the same abilities.” He wasn’t too comfortable being so upfront with Alicia. They were still strangers. “An answer would be appreciated, but you aren’t obliged to answer, Ms. Tashigi. I’m merely voicing my thoughts.”


There were countless explanations she could give in answer to his question and in truth there were still elements and truths about it she had yet to discover herself. She considered how she would answer, looking thoughtful for a moment before eventually deciding to explain. “I possess a power within me, a spiritual force that resonates between me and the world around us. Some call it the power of destruction, though I feel such a word doesn’t highlight all aspects of its nature… for destruction is just one of the many consequences that can come to pass from its use” she paused for a moment, her tone retaining a gentleness to it as she spoke.


She cast her gaze up for a moment before looking back towards Cedric, “Perhaps I can better show you” she replied before she took a couple steps forward, her left eye suddenly igniting with a blue aura like flame that leaked out from the iris. She withdrew her sword in and upward swing in one elegant motion, causing the petals he’d conjured to swiftly take into the air, following the path of her cut before she stepped and twisted her torso, gliding her blade to the side and around her in continued fluid motions almost like a dance. The petals followed the motions, seeming to be pulled into the wake of her movements till they formed into what appeared to be a serpent-like shape, making patterns as it danced around her form with each carefully made movement.


There was a serene smile upon her features as she made each movement, keeping an eye on the petals as she pulled them into a spiral around her before flicking her wrist upwards, sending the serpent of petals up before she slid the blade back into its saya causing the serpent to explode the moment the click resounded as the blade tucked itself away causing the petals to plume out and fall around them like gentle snowfall. The small dance-like demonstration took only a few minutes, the swordswoman exhaling softly as the aura from her eyes dissipated into nothingness, returning to normal. “I think maybe our gifts aren’t too dissimilar... “ she spoke as she watched the petals fall. “If that is so, I may be able to help you tame your sensitivity so that you’re able to better withstand the aura’s of others around you” she added as she looked back towards him.


Warmth enveloped Cedric as Alicia’s eye blazed. He recoiled slightly. He tried not to let his discomfort show throughout her demonstration. By the time she was done, his skin was damp with sweat. He closed his eyes briefly and exhaled. Her power rivaled that of the summoners that headed the Grand Council; he hadn’t expected that. Yet, it made sense. He had noted the disparity in the intensity in their aura.


“If that’s a glimpse of what you are capable of and what Ms. Masu can do, then yes,” he replied. “I don’t think it’ll be good for me to be so overwhelmed in battle.”


He gave her his sincerest smile. She was the first to see it aside from Jack and Adelaide. He relaxed as the warmth dimmed. Slowly, he released his spell. The light constructs burst. The particles shimmered like star dust as they were carried away by the wind. He stood up and drew out a new card. It blazed in his hand.


“I doubt I’ve seen all that you are capable of, but I will return the favour by showing you a different side of my power. I’d appreciate you not telling anyone yet.”


His voice sounded breathless. The air surrounding the two grew heavier. Unearthly whispering filled the air and the shadows began slithering. They gathered on deck forming a sea of black that reached all the way to Alicia’s ankles. The sensation was akin to stepping in water. After Cedric rejoined her on deck, he swept his hand outwards parting the shadowy sea. They rose like tall walls; they reached halfway up the mast when they began disintegrating. Hundreds of black cherry blossom petals began scattering in the wind. The darkness seemed less overwhelming all of a sudden now that the shadows weren’t everywhere.


“Light and shadow are intertwined. Mastering one lead to me mastering the other. I’m using the word mastering loosely, unfortunately. I have much to learn.” He paused to grab a handful of scattered petals. Merging them together, he created a rose. He held it out to Alicia. “Thank you, Ms. Tashigi. I look forward to working with you.”


Alicia nodded her head, “Sara still has a lot to learn. She was only recently awoken to power after training with me. It is why her aura is chaotic, she is still finding her control of it… though I have faith that she’ll establish a control over it in due time” she replied before silently watching and paying close attention as he manipulated the shadows, intrigued and impressed. “Thank you for sharing that with me Cedric, but please call me Alicia” she replied with a small smile before reaching to delicately take the rose, observing the crafted beauty of it before bending the stem back on itself to shorten its size, raising it to slide it into her hair beside the black bow holding her white ponytail. “Now then, I think you should probably get some rest. Your shift ended some time ago and who knows what tomorrow might bring.” she added.


“Yes, I should go,” he replied quietly. “Good night but not for now.”


His cryptic words didn’t remain a mystery for long. He returned to Alicia just as she had settled in for her watch duty. “It might be presumptuous of me, but I don’t think you ate earlier. I had Jack cook you something.”


He placed the tray down beside her then turned to leave again. “See you in the morning … Alicia.” He hesitated slightly before saying her name. The closeness the act entailed was a little uncomfortable; he guessed he could get use to it over time.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Capt. Blu
178243
178244
Location: On the ship during the storm.

Luro kept a firm grip on the rope trying to keep it from slipping from between his fingers as the storm raged, he closed one eye as he gave it a firm yank tying the recently undone rope back up with a content grunt. This was quite the storm, he was absolutely soaked from head to toe and it didn't seem to be letting up anytime soon, though as the rain pelted him a few ideas did come immediately to mind. He had little time to ponder them as getting the ship in order came first, he enjoyed the chaos of storms and felt comfortable in such situations. He was unable to walk the deck without a wide grin on his face as he helped on the ship.
"This brings back memories! Alicia have you changed your underwear since then?! Masu do you know?!"
Luro yelled his gaze moving over to Z to make sure she was doing okay, she had almost fallen off the ship numerous times when the ship was thrown around like this. He kept an eye on her concerned for her safety but also knowing why the Captain seemed a bit 'off', not all storms had pleasant memories with them, but this wasn't that storm and Luro reminded himself of that as he ran over to help Jack seeing Z was safe.

There was plenty Zilia wanted to say but at the moment she was more focused on staying on the ship, tightening the rope wrapped around her waist as she moved from spot to spot. She also couldn't talk when it rained, at least not without escaping the rain, her words always got smudged and caused more issues than anything else. It was because of this she disliked the rain, it forced her to be silent and she hadn't gotten her hood up in time as well so dealing with her hair was going to be a problem later on. The wet bangs pressed against her face was a casual reminder of the suffering she would endure later...and Alicia's hair still managed to look perfect even in this situation.
When lightning hit the ship Zilia jumped falling onto her rear at the sudden act of nature, she quickly climbed back to her feet to help deal with the new problem.
"Have we angered some unseen being somewhere?" Zilia thought before she noticed Luro was laughing nearby.
The carpenter with his hands on his hips laughed loud enough to pierce the storm and raising a finger pointed at the sky with a toothy grin.
"Are ya jealous of the Lady?!"
"...well I can guess who irritated them first."

Location: On an island...probably.

Luro had happily accepted Cedric's offer to bring back materials, he gave him a small list of things to watch out for but informed him that it wasn't too big of a deal if he didn't find anything. With his habit of buying materials every time they made port and Alicia quadruple checking everything he had enough to repair the ship twice over, but if they ran into trouble again shortly after that would be a problem. Due to that he wanted to at least try and have something extra, he had added 'rum' to the list as well but informed him not to look too hard as he had extra, but if he found any to bring it back.
"Man...why is it every time I work on a ship I end up on some uninhabited island when it crashes," Luro said crossing his arms. "Thankfully I have materials this time so it's not stranded stranded."
With a firm nod and partially accepting he'd never find an answer to his strange luck with deserted islands he spoke again.
"I'll remain on the ship for the most part, I'll step out to check the damage on the outside a bit more," Luro said folding his hands behind his back. "I can handle most of the smaller stuff but I'll need help with the mast. I should be done within four days if I don't sleep or take a break."
"The mast was fine last I looked Luro." Zilia held her note up arching a brow at Luro. "Also you're taking a break."
Luro held a finger up and a loud cracking sound resonated outside the ship, the source of it became obviously quickly before a loud crash came from the main deck, the ship shaking slightly before everything seemed to settle. Luro wrote something down in his notebook, smiling a little before shutting it and moving his hands to his hips.
"Hehehe this is nothing Z. I had to build a ship from scratch with half these materials when I got stranded. Granted that was with two people so it took a few months...but if you guys are helping me I should be done in little over a week...since Z wants me to sleep for some reason."
"Because it's healthy!"
"I'm just letting you know it'll be done sooner if I work like usual."
"Not happening, you forget to eat too, work slowly, take breaks and ask for help."
"Hah...if the Captain says so then I'll work slower," Luro said offering a small nod. "I'm going to assess the damage wholly before I start repairing everything. The most I'll do today is repair enough to keep the cold from getting fully in since we're gonna be here for a bit, that's just repairing a few holes and a bit of reinforcement. Anyone who wants to help can but don't feel like ya gotta. The ship rarely gets damaged so I get to have fun, I want it to last for a bit."
"...please repair the ship quickly."
"It'll be harder thanks to that explosion."
Zilia started to respond when the ship suddenly shook violently as a loud noise came from below deck, fire bursting out of the ship for a moment before black smoke floated out of the newly formed hole.
"Stop doing that!"
"I'm not doing anything Lady's just telling me what's happening to her," Luro said marking something down. "Especially when that-"
Zilia quickly covered Luro's mouth to stop him from spreading further damage, though when the chair next to her tilted over falling to the ground she looked back at Luro who arched his brows a few times at her.

Zilia decided to do a bit of scouting with the others curious what the island held, she was concerned what kind of dangers could be waiting on the island and was curious if there any herbs she could take advantage of here, though she severely doubted it looking at the blanket of white stretched out before her. She looked back at Luro noticing that for someone still wet he wasn't shaking from the cold at all, clearly unphased by the change in temperature. She made her way over to him to remind him about colds, she had put on an extra cloak and was still freezing, he had his normal attire on, chest exposed and all and was humming with the appearance of someone resting on the beach basking in the sun.
She realized why when she got closer, Luro was radiating heat, a strange comforting warmth surrounded his form expelling all cold in the area around him. Though confused at first she found herself holding her hands up to him a small smile finding its way on her face as she warmed herself by the foreign warmth.
"Feels like a campfire...I want to ask but I feel like the answer will be complicated. I'll just enjoy it for a moment longer."

Pulling herself away from the walking campfire Zilia climbed up to the crows nest deciding to try and get a good look at the island from another angle, taking a moment to hug herself and rub her arms she raised the spyglass in her hand to get a good look at the island.
What she saw genuinely concerned her.
It was clearly winter where they were, the snow gathered on her clothing and the cold was enough proof of that. It was hard to argue that they were in a cold climate that went without saying, however as her gaze moved westward, past a few of the mountains that lied that way she noticed sand. Rising and falling dunes rested in the distance and the sight caused her eyes to twitch as it stretched endlessly towards the horizon, the contrast was almost terrifying from where she stood as if the island couldn't make up its mind on what climate it wanted to be. It must have been very indecisive because turning her attention to the east she noticed a vibrant forest stretching out into the distance. She could tell where it clearly ended as there was a large clearing in plain sight past the rows of trees, she was pretty sure wheat stalks grew in the distance but what lied beyond she couldn't see, the forest didn't divulge it's secrets either she could just see the trees but they were a vibrant green, very much unaffected by the winter, she wondered if the pieces of raised land acted as 'divideders' it made the most sense and she decided to just go with that rationale.
Lowering the glass her brows furrowed a bit at the strange sight, she had heard of such phonemomen before but she had never had a chance to see it firsthand, especially divided so evenly as if nature had purposely separated the three.
Climbing down from the tree she decided to take a proper look around, at the very least she knew finding plants wouldn't be too much of a problem.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Capt. Blu
Collab by @Arcadius and @Fox of Hearts


Snowy Biome


“Well, that could have gone worse,” the Navigator commented once they walked some distance away from the ship. The heavy makeshift raincoats were, so far, proving functional, if somewhat heavy. The rain gave up a bit, and now the small light water droplets started to merrily drum a and the rain was merrily drumming on their cape’s hoods. The island was mostly smooth rock, now precariously slick with rain water, with some sandy spots here and there where the occasional high wave would pick up and throw the indigo black pebbly sand from the beach. There was some dense growth further inland, where the ground rose high enough to not be reachable by the sea, and plants could find some purchase and nutrients.

He turned to Cedric. “I mean, the lightning could’ve split the mast, and then we’d be boned. No idea where we’d find a replacement here. The water impregnation seems to be holding nicely too.”

Cedric held up a hand to shush his companion. He tilted his chin up and stared at the sky. A slight frown creased his brows. “Arcadius,” he murmured. “The rain turned to snow …”

He lifted a hand out tentatively. Wet slush gathered on his palm. As more snow accumulated, he noticed that the top was visibly drier. Taking the time to reassess their surroundings, he realised that a thick fog was hemming in on them making it obvious that returning to the ship wasn’t an option. They were simply too far away.

Sid closed his eyes briefly and sighed. He intended to keep his secret as long as possible, but he had no choice. He wasn’t going to risk getting lost in this treacherous fog. He pressed his lips together and pulled out a card from his pouch.

“I regret not listening to Ms. Vilimar. A lantern would have saved us so much hassle. I guess we should be more prudent in the future,” he grumbled. “Just make sure you don’t breathe a word of what you’re about to see to either Ms. Masu or Ms. Vilimar. I think they are the only two who don’t know about this.”

Focusing on the image in his mind, he watched the card ignite. Wind blew the black ash away leaving his palm feeling colder than before. Cedric’s gaze remained fixed on his open palm. Specks of light drifted around like lazy fireflies. They merged together forming a brilliant white orb that floated lazy a few inches above his hand.

Birdsong filled the air around them. The cheery notes echoed eerily in their empty surroundings. Before Kadi could blink, a flock of miniature doves sprang from the orb. They shot heavenward and disappeared from sight. Soon the three companions found themselves standing in complete silence. Two men, a cat and a strange glowing orb. The light radiating from the translucent sphere was the only thing that kept the gloom at bay.

Cedric tapped his foot impatiently. Seconds trickled pass before their ears picked up the sound of fluttering wings. Sid’s foot stopped moving. Tiny yellow orbs appeared in the air and lined up to form three branching trails. One ran to the east and the other to the west. The last one would lead them into the pine forest. They had been skirting the forest parameter for a good hour, because Kadi wanted to scout the island. Cedric recalled the man mentioning something about creating a map. He agreed to the detour, because he wanted to stay off the ship as long as possible. Manual labour just wasn’t his cup of tea.

“M. Navigator, please pick a path for us. The lights will guide us along the safest path.”

While waiting for Kadi’s response, the tailor tilted his head to the side and his ear contacted damp fur. A clawed paw lashed out immediately. Cedric’s cheek stung where the tips grazed his cheek. It was a not-so-friendly warning from his grumpy cat. Cedric pulled his head back with a slight wince. “The faster we escape this damp the happier his majesty will be.”

“Mrrrraow,” came the sullen response. The ginger Maine Coon narrowed his eyes in Kadi’s direction. He scanned the navigator from head to toe before curling his head back beneath his paw with a loud huff.

“Play nice, Chester,” Sid scolded. His nagging was answered by a paw to the face. Chester pushed repeatedly to move Sid’s face as far away as possible. The cat hissed unhappily when he realised he could still feel the man’s breath tickling his fur.

“We shall take the westward option, then. We should walk around the island first. That way, we will measure its circumference without risking getting lost. The forest will come later, when we know what we're dealing with. Not that I distrust these lights of yours, whatever their nature may be, but…” he trailer off, then turned his head, the heavy raincoat's hood not giving away fully and showing only his good eye to Sid. “Nah. To be honest, I do not trust them.”

“Suffice to say, paranormal forces have failed me too many times in my life. Normal ones too. We don't need the lantern, the light would only blind us. We've been given a pair of good eyes, and while some of us already managed to lose one, we can just fine, eh, Chester?” he said and smiled at the cat. The feline remained nonplussed.

“You sure taking the cat was a good idea, in this rain? Never met one that was interested in getting wet…”

“Suit yourself, I’ll keep the light regardless of how you feel. I don’t think travelling blind in this kind of fog isn’t the wisest idea. Good eye or not,” Cedric replied with a shrug. “I’d also advise you, mon ami, not to see things where there aren’t any. A cat is merely a cat no matter what their nature appears to be. You are definitely more fascinated with Chester than he is with you.” He ignored Kadi’s last question. He had his reasons for wishing to bring Chester along and he wasn’t going to share them with an acquaintance.

The summoner dimmed the orb and allowed it to drift upwards. It hovered over his head, as he continued walking. He guessed his impression of Kadi ought to be revised based on their latest interaction. The man was clearly someone not very trusting; a little like him in that respect. He could live with that. He won’t say he knew much about the man either save his ability to navigate a ship. His fascination with Kadi stemmed from man’s insight and other quirks. It helped that the navigator wasn’t as loud or intrusive as Luro. That shipwright was still a work in progress; an irritant which he could only tolerable in minute doses.

His cat yawned lightly. Chester drifted back to sleep not really caring where they were headed. He sensed no harm from the creature walking with his master; the only thing he noted was the creature’s apparent fascination with him. He yawned again and fell fast asleep not long after. His furry body relaxed, draping itself around Sid’s neck like a ginger scarf.

“Well, I suppose we can be at least sure anyone else on this island knows we’re coming…” the Navigator murmured, looking up at the glowing orb, and followed after Cedric.

~ ~ = = Some amount of time later = = ~ ~

Their path led them through mountainous terrain. The weather changed abruptly from snow and fog to gentle sunshine and mild winds. The sun continued gaining in intensity and soon Sid felt the heat seeping through his rain cloak. With a slight snort, he dispelled the light orb. The trail of light remained. It was barely visible in the blinding white light.

He shaded his eyes with a hand and peered into the distance, as they stood at the top. A desert lay before them. It was a desolate region with barely any vegetation save a few spindly shrubs. The only sign of life was a huge shimmering deer snuffling the sand. Its white coat sparkled in the blinding sun. Sid whistled. He couldn’t help admiring the animal. It was a majestic creature made even more beautiful by the bone-white antlers crowning its head.

He ignored the deer after sometime and turned back to look at Kadi. “From rain to snow then from freezing to sweating. This island is indecisive, no?” He lowered his hand and blinked slowly. His eyes were still adjusting to the harsh sunlight.

Cedric couldn’t help wondering how long they trudged in the snowy plains. It felt like only an hour or two. He was sure they had walked for much longer. “Say, Arcadius. What’s the time now? I thought it would be evening given the time we took to get here.”

The Navigator fished out a pocket watch out of his coat. With a click, the front cover opened, exposing the watchface to the outside world’s observation. “A bit after lunchtime. And yes, the island is… surprisingly varied. The desert is unexpected, however it kinda makes sense. Kinda. This mountain range is blocking all the rainfall it seems, but usually this takes mountains of a slightly larger… caliber. At least that’s what Slartibartfast writes in his Mountains and other geographical oddities,” he said and turned around.

The mountain range’s peaks, rising high above the pass connecting the shore and desert and in which they were currently standing, were in fact blocking the rainclouds. On one side of the range, it rained heavily, on the other the sky was blue and ground dead dry. This seemed logical, except for the scale of the whole thing. Instead of giving the impression of a titan eternally holding back endless torrenting flood, the scale reminded of a rather steamy shower.

“It looks like it’s only a model.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: Capt. Blu
JVJll27.png

Q8NvlXr.png

Location: Lady Luck
Time: Spring, Rainy Season, Evening
Island: Mixed Bag of Weather


“Spoke too soon.” Runali grumbled and hugged herself as the temperature dropped and it got colder. When she checked to see if stopped raining, there was a brief look of despair when she realized it was snowing instead.

The crew had all convened to discuss their plan of action for the remainder of the time that the… many problems with the ship had to be fixed. At one point, even Runali was glad Zilia silenced Luro. She didn’t like the snow and the more damage the ship had, the longer it’d take to get off the island.

The first step was scouting around to make sure things were safe. Zilia handled that one by climbing to the crow’s nest. Runali bundled up as best she could, only having one decent coat since she hadn’t considered getting many new ones after Yakone- and even after their ship sank. It was now another thing to add to the list when they reached somewhere civilized. When the doctor returned, Runali asked for a report and almost regretted it instantly. 3 different climates and so vivid on one island? And they ended up on the worst one?? The captain could only sigh and watch her breath cloud in front of her.

She shuffled her way on deck, pouting at the snow piling on the deck. Walking past Luro, she abruptly stopped and gravitated closer to him, appreciating the sudden radiating warmth from the red giant. “S-So if there’s any real desire to go exploring, by all means go ahead and scout around.” Runali pulled the coat a little closer. “It wasn’t named on the map, but i-if you find anything of v-value, take it.” She shrugged. “By all means, d-do as you please. I’d join you b-ut that means I’d have to walk in,” She vaguely gestured to the snowy terrain in front of them. “So, have fun I guess.”

Sara, Adelaide, and Alicia had decided to traverse the snowy area while Cedric and Kadi decided to go deeper into the island. Jack and Luro were still on the ship, though she didn’t know how long that would last with the shipwright. She was sure she saw Zilia on the ship at some point as well, but Runali didn’t take the time to search for the doctor. “Let me know if you need any help there, Luro! Remember to take breaks too, doctor’s orders!” Her brow raised. “And I’m sure you’re already aware of what happens when you go against doctor’s orders?” She shivered a bit, this time, not because of the cold. Shaking her head, she looked over at Jack. “Oh chef, just the cook I want to see. Do you mind making something warm, possibly good for defrosting?” She walked back into the ship, deciding staying out in the snow wasn’t worth it. “I’ll eventually get to the warmer parts of this island… but not now.”

The island, in all of its peculiar weather greeted the travelers as any normal island would have… Until they started to dwell deeper into said island.

Cedric and Kadi took to the hottest parts of the island. The desert was barren as they saw for several miles up until the border of the next biome. There wasn’t much to see as they trekked through the noon hour, but the farther out they went, the more the two would start to notice shiny specs scattered in different intervals amongst the sand. Most were silver and when they got close enough, they’d notice they were coins. There were a few gold coins here and there, a little harder to find in the sand, but it definitely was becoming a noticeable trail.

The farther they investigated, the more they’d find, up until they were met with a single red gem about the size of Kadi’s hand. Accompanying the gem were to skeletal hands detached from the rest of its body. One held the gem as tight as a deteriorating skeleton could and the other pointed farther into the desert.

Back along the frozen beach, Adelaide, Sara, and Alicia for the most part had a casual walk as they scouted the area. Nothing was out of place and all was quiet- until a wild boar stumbled across their path. It seemed very startled by the fact that there were humans in its territory and immediately got defensive. With a loud cry, it charged at the trip swinging it’s head back and forth to catch its tusks on one of them.

It was an easy battle to win for three trained fighters. However what wasn’t expected was the sudden rumbling deeper in the island that seemed to get stronger the longer they stood there. Soon, a similar cry was heard and the trio were faced with a small stampede of wild boars rushing at them. Some of them managed to get close enough to snag clothes or clash with weapons, but most of the boars’ goals were to scare the trio into leaving as they charged and dashed back deeper into the island. One in particular managed to snag its tusk on Sara’s belt where her sheath happened to be, and in its panic tore it off her hip.

It continued to run and fall back into the stampeding boars, all heading deeper into the island. Should the trio have decided to follow, the farther they went into the snowy depths the more they’d begin to notice shiny specs scattered in different places amongst the snow. Most were silver and when they got close enough, they’d notice they were coins. There were a few gold coins here and there as well, definitely was becoming a noticeable trail. The farther they investigated, the more they’d find, up until they were met with a single red gem, slightly larger than Sara’s hand. Accompanying the gem were two skeletal hands and a few bones sticking out of the snow. The gem itself was surrounded by the bones and bone fragments acting as a ‘guard’ while one hand seemed to be frozen and pointing upwards while the other pointed towards the desert.

By the time the two groups found the red gem, the sun started to set.
 
Kadi_Banner_V2.png
"Well... this is certainly some kind of omen," the profusely sweating Navigator stated, looking down at the skeletal hands holding a gemstone worth at least a middle class kingdom. "Question is, what does it mean?" he said and looked at Cedric. "Is this a warning, to not go that way? Is it pehaps where you can find water or shelter? Is it a foreign rude gesture, a final defiance to unknown gods that have forsaken the original owner of these bones? Or maybe a necromancer's trap, and there's a whole ressurected skeleton underneath the sand?"

He made a thinking sound and scratched at his beard. "Well, one way to know, I guess," he said, looked at Cedric, shrugged and proceeded to kick the gemstone.
 
179509

For a moment his vision was dark, he was aware that he couldn't see but his mind was more focused on trying to figure out both where he was and why than the easily solved mystery on why he couldn't see. Deciding to deal with the darkness later he was trying to piece together the last few moments where he wasn't lying on his back, with the song of birds above his head and something cold lapping at his body. It wasn't until that coldness attacked his whole body did he sit up eyes opening wide as he coughed as water invaded his lungs. Rolling onto his stomach he coughed clutching at the sand beneath his hands....wait sand?
"You awake boy?"
The lad who was slowly realizing he wasn't on the ship anymore turned to see an older gentleman standing next to him, arms crossed staring at the distant horizon. The boy blinked a few times and ignoring the hand offered by the man climbed to his feet and turned to look in the same direction as him, floating on the water was the very tattered remains of their ship.
"Not even enough to build half a dingy," the man grumbled shaking his head. "This island doesn't much in forest either, what a predicament."
The lad glanced over at the man who slicked back his black hair bringing a hand to his scruffy chin, his tired brown eyes moved over to the lad.
"No kids were allowed on this voyage...so I'm guessing you're a stowaway."
The boy arched his brows at the man but offered no real response, with a chuckle the man waved a hand at him.
"I don't really care about that, just more hands to help get us out of this mess. What's your name?"
"...my name is Luro."
The man stared at Luro waiting for him to finish, when he received only a stare in return he realized the boy either didn't have a last name or had chosen to give him a fake name, something he couldn't really blame him for. After a moment however the man's eyebrows lifted slightly and he stared at Luro who folded his hands behind his back casually tapping his sleeve to ensure his pistol was still there. It wasn't which made him sigh and throw his hands in the air.
"You know anything about carpentry Luro?"
"No."
"Well thankfully I know some stuff. Unfortunately the few who survived have no knowledge in it either and you're basically all the help I have. So you can either learn or we can wait to die."
"...how long until we start eating each other?"
"I'd give it a week, maybe less given how that fat noble's been looking at you."
"Let's get to it."
-----

Luro opened his eyes staring at the piece of wood under him, a small smile finding its way onto his face at the old memory.
"Working like this always puts me at ease...probably why I always remember stuff."
He closed his eyes for a moment as it was a fond memory but he had no idea if it was even real or something imposter had made up for him, he stared at the hammer in his hand, the memory felt real and he did remember being stranded in such a manner, but he knew there were pieces in there that weren't real, he could feel it. There was no honesty in his memory, at least any from then. There was a decent chance he ate that fat noble for all he knew, he shook his head deciding not to think too much on it, it only came up as a reminder that something like this was nothing. He'd been stranded in worse circumstances with much less, this was a typical day after blacking out.

There was little snow surrounding Luro, any snow in what could be considered personal space melted into water and quickly evaporated whenever he got close, and the snowfall dissipated once it got close to him as if it wanted little to do with the man. Luro either paid no mind to it or was used to it as he continued to move focusing on repairing the ship. After a reasonable amount of time and remembering the Captain's warning he took a break and put his tools aside, that would keep the cold from getting into the ship so they could at least be warm when they slept for the night. Taking a look around he made sure to find the Captain and with a grin raised his hand to her.
"Captain get Jack! Since everyone's off exploring let's have another session! Don't worry, this time I'll definitely include ice! Jack's favorite thing!"



179510

Zilia knelt down near a plant with a red stem and ran her fingers over the leaves, she gave a small nod taking a good look around before taking one of the plants, this one was good for the stomach and this other one was good as an antiseptic, she had a feeling she would find common plants like these around but she was more interested in the other plants that managed to grow on such a strange island. She made sure to head into the forest as soon as she was able to ensure she could retrieve a few things. Stardusk had a habit of getting into trouble often so it paid to always have extra on hand. She stood up after a bit deciding not to take any more than needed, she wasn't sure how this biome balanced itself out so it was best to take as little as possible, giving a small bow to the remaining plants she turned and made her way back to the ship.
At least until the ground gave out under her after a step.

After a rather painful landing on what she could only imagine was stone, Zilia slowly climbed back to her feet. Placing her hand on a wall which felt rough even under her gloves she looked up at the hole she had fallen through. She could tell from where she was it was over twenty meters away maybe more. Lowering her body she flung her rope dart up trying to grasp hold of an edge, when it flew high and stabbed at nothing before falling harmlessly back down she caught the dart and shook her head. She was stuck down here.
"Hello! Can anyone hear me!"
Zilia held a note up to the hole and after a moment she shut her eyes and quickly crumbled up the note, she was glad no one was around to witness that, Runali would definitely never let her live that down.
She had little choice in the matter, leaving on her own was already a bad idea, she had little choice but to continue and find another way out. Reaching for the lantern on her waist, her just in case she lit it and held it up to try and get her bearings.
She was in a narrow passageway surrounded by stone on all sides, something that didn't surprise her from the still tingling pain she felt throughout her body. What was surprising were the walls which were covered in drawings, from what she could see it was a mix of people and animals with the forest mixed with it. Her eyes widened a bit and she ran her fingers over the drawings stopping as she came across words written in a strange form.
Zilia set the lantern on her belt and digging in her bag pulled out one of the books, flipping through it she looked for comparisons as she continued forward.

What she was found was rather surprising, she wasn't fluent in the language but she had a few books of the language. She wasn't sure why they had been on this island but they had been nomads, it seemed they had settled here for some time, there was a good chance this was their last home. What stood out more than that was there was a clan that was supposed to be on the other side of the continent whose writing was mixed with the nomads.
"There was similarity in their writing...maybe this is proof they encountered each other."
Zilia shut her book coming across a small opening in the hallway, she turned and continued inside immediately coming to a stop as she felt something crunch under her feet. Looking down she noticed broken pieces of pottery under here boot, raising her gaze she noticed that most of the pottery in the room had been smashed, shattered pieces covered in dust and cobwebs, the shelves they rested on either broken apart or lying in tatters with the other pieces.
This caused the alter resting directly in front of her to stand out even more, a single red tinted sword resting on top of it.
"...this one thing is untouched in this room...I'm sure Kadi would have a comment about that....he might be the only person who might have the right fascination for this place."
Cecilia's face flashed in her memory for a moment but Zilia pushed it down and slowly approached the altar, nearing the sword she brought a hand to her chin and inspected the blade.
"A undulating double edged blade...this is definitely the work of the Nomad's, the claw pommel is their signature...the rest of this however is the work of the other clan...these etchings in the blade and the subtle snake near the front of the blade. The jagged edges near the tip of the sword is a clear sign of their work as well. I'd know their ornament sword making anywhere...it's one of the few signs they even existed."
Zilia moved her hands to her hips, she was sure Sara would take this sword if she was here. It was a fine piece of work, Alicia would probably recognize the fine craftsmanship of the blade, though she wondered how she'd feel about the design on the blade.
"Miss Seliria has an eye for blades...I'm sure she'd be interested in this"
Zilia lowered her hand and ran two fingers over the ornament on the blade taking up a bit of the dust.
"This design is of the war god Tai'ris. It's definitely not the nomad's work alone....they worked together on this blade apparently."

Zilia took a look around the room, it appeared their cooperation was short lived. Reaching down Zilia took a careful hold of the sword and lifted it, when she did the alter it was on sunk slightly and the wall in front of her rose up. Her brows arched both at how light the sword felt and the new exit which hopefully lead out of he. She looked back down at the sword then the exit, then back down at the sword again before giving a small nod.

About an hour later Zilia opened a door to a hollow oak and brushed herself off, turning around she closed the 'door' shut staring at the tree, she made a quick sketch of it and the surroundings before closing her notebook.
"I'll have to return with my book and properly translate what happened there later...I feel like whatever story happened here should be recorded...though iIll leave the island out of it."
The sword resting back on it's altar glinted in the faint light as if in response to the doctor's decision.
 
Last edited:
179533
Jack toiled in the kitchen, whipping up hot cider for the captain and others still on the ship. He imagined Kadi and Sid wouldn’t be out long-- not in this weather. The girls on patrol were a different matter; what Adelaide had in mind was beyond him. He stared down into Runali’s cider, stirring in a pinch of cinnamon that made it a little spicier than the other. His turns were slow, absentminded. His lips thinned into a straight line.

Whatever you’re doing…. be careful….

One Week Ago

Lady Luck’s Kitchen


“Start from the beginning.” It sounded like a question, but he knew better. Jack sighed into the floorboards and hay.

“Now?” he mumbled. He felt good. Real good. The best he’d felt in over a year. He didn’t want serious talk to intrude.

His bare skin tingled with goosebumps in the warm night. The ship creaked on gentle waves, the night peaceful and the ship quiet. Locked away in the kitchen, it was easy to imagine that he and Adelaide were the only two people on the ship. The world even. The soft, golden glow in his belly begged him not to ruin the moment.

Her laughter came, soft and musical on his ear. Her body blanketed coolness across his back. She felt pleasant against the tropic heat. “Why put off later what you can do now?”

Jack groaned and turned to face upwards. Moonlight struck his face from the porthole and he squinted, rubbing his eyes. Adelaide moved back on him, her chin resting on his chest. A thin linen blanket tangled up their legs.

“I’m pretty sure the saying’s reversed,” he commented, resting his head on his arm. “Though something tells me the captain would like yours better.”

Her smile was coy. He brushed a curl from her eyes to get a better look at them. Despite her playfulness, he could see the calculated clicks happening behind those flawless tawny orbs. Even in euphoria her mind multi-tasked, endlessly thinking about the next step. The bigger picture. He sighed in reluctance. “What do you want to know?”

“Why did you choose them instead of me?”

Good moment gone. Jack’s body stiffened. He groaned, “Adelaide”, and closed his eyes. She waited in indignant silence. He sighed again. “I didn’t choose you or them. They’re my future as much as you. I’m protecting them.”

“By leading Charlotte here?”

“We can’t fight a war front alone--”

“You made this a front, Jack.”

His eyes snapped to hers. A minute’s exchanged flash between them.

This is not my fault.

Yes it is. You’re making the same mistakes.

This is different.

No it’s not.


Jack sat up abruptly. Adelaide got off him as he reached for his breeches, pulling the blanket with her. He stood up, dressed from the waist down, and went to his countertop. He lit a lantern so he could see, and set about prepping for the crew’s morning meal. It was several hours off till sunrise, but he needed something to do. Adelaide wrapped the blanket into a makeshift dress and watched him silently. He busted out a bushel of apples and set about slicing them. For a brief moment, the only sound that broke the ship’s groans was the methodical tap-slice of his knife sliding through an apple.

Jack spoke first. “They’re not the same.”

Adelaide snorted.

“They’re not,” he rebuked. Even to his ears, his voice sounded petulant. Tinges of red began flaring at his neck.

“Stardusk is a Worst Generation pirate crew. By definition, they are what they are: pirates.” replied Adelaide.

Jack shook his head. “They’re not the Marauders. Or the Kois, for that matter. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re leading to.” He waved his knife in her direction to emphasize his point. She leaned back on the sacks of flour, unperturbed. From the depths of the ship’s shadows, Chaos appeared. She pranced to Adelaide and rubbed her cheek against the woman’s leg, obnoxious purrs suddenly filling the kitchen. Adelaide reached down to pet her without taking her eyes off Jack. The cook stared at the kitten, wondering how the creature knew they were arguing. He clicked his tongue.

“Stardusk is different. They operate differently. Runali’s a true captain and we can trust her.”

“How?” was the shortened version of how do you know?

Jack opened his mouth, then closed it. He went back to his slicing as a tiny knot formed at the center of his brow.

Chaos released a tiny mew, perking up when she noticed Jack was at his customary food-delivery spot. The smell was less than appealing, however, so she put her head down and promptly fell asleep by Adelaide’s side. The woman waited patiently for Jack’s answer.

“They’re family, Ade. I trust them with my life.”

“You have real family in Norja. You don’t treat them half as kindly.”

Crack.

Half the blade sank into Jack’s counter. He threw a glare at Adelaide in hopes of distracting her from his shaking grip. He looked back down and yanked the knife out, willing his Armament to retreat from his hand. “Don’t go there,” he asked in a whisper.

“I had a real family too. Daneah and Oz. Or don’t you remember?” Adelaide’s voice was equally soft, and equally dangerous.

Jack’s looked up at the kitchen’s ceiling. The muscles in his face twitched and clenched, trying to contain the rising conflictions inside of him, accompanied by vivid memories that made his eyes sting. He let go of the knife to prevent further damage to his tabletop. A scoff crossed his face. It was completely devoid of humor, but he supposed he should have seen this angle coming. Adelaide distrusted the idea of Stardusk helping them, for reasons that weren’t unfounded, even to Jack. Still… he thought they’d gotten past their dissonance.

His eyes drifted down to the new gauge in his counter. “That’s a low blow. Even for you.”

Adelaide shifted on her bag of flour, causing Chaos to chitter in protest. She looked contrite-- but it was one of few emotions she’d yet to master. The creases in her brow were a little too dense, making her seem confused over shamed, and she had the habit of pulling her lips too far back. Jack observed her with a tick of the eyes. He shook his head.

Suddenly, he walked back to her and bent over until his dreadlocks spilled over her shoulder. Chaos lifted up her head, blinking sleepily and wondering what all the fuss was disrupting her naptime. Jack was unaware of the cat’s reproachful look, his own alighted gold with a molten glow.

“If you want me to follow your plan…. do what you want me to do…. I’m not doing it without the chance to make it up to them. I care about them as much as I do my mothers or Sid or you.” He grabbed his shirt and boots. “Find a way to get to know them, Adelaide. You’d be surprised what people can offer when given the chance.” He stood up and stalked out of the kitchen, slamming the door behind him. It was loud enough to alert anyone awake, or jolt the light sleepers.

Chaos’s ear flipped back as she looked at Adelaide. “Mao?”

The woman, who’d stared at the closed door for a long time, finally glanced down the cat. “What? Don’t give me that look.” The cat grumbled, placing her head back on her paws. Adelaide sniffed. She didn’t particularly care to be judged by a cat.

******

A steaming mug placed itself under Runali’s nose. Jack sat next to her with a huff, staring out at the island. He huddled in his coat with a cigarillo burning between lips. He wished for the warmth of that night spent in the kitchen with Adelaide, despite it having led to their most serious fight. The memory hung over him like a dark gloom as he stared sullenly over the banister.

“Say...captain. Have you talked with Adelaide at all--”

He stopped, hearing Luro’s voice. The cook groaned. “Please, not again.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: Capt. Blu
Collab bet’w Winter, East and Silent

179534
179535
179536

Two weeks on Lady Luck, and disaster already struck. Jack figured it to be a record when he and Adelaide got in proximity of each other. He stood on the deck-- shivering, pale as a ghost, with a look that could freeze fire-- huddling in his black trench coat while peering at the darkness of the island. Despite his absolute disgust of freezing rain, Jack’d been one of those helping with furling the sails before the high sea winds could tear them from the masts-- or snap the masts in two. Drenched and miserable, he glowered as Adelaide pranced on top the ship’s railing. She spread her arms out and raised her face to the rain, a wide smile on her face. Unlike the others, she was dressed in her normal, sleeveless attire. Her bouncy curls plastered to her face and neck, and she moved them out of her eyes while looking down at Jack.

“You look thrilled,” she said in a language no one aboard understood.

“Bite me,” Jack responded in kind.

She laughed, and turned to the island with her hands on her hips as the crew congregated around the captain. Her head tilted back as she listened to the instructions and shouted over her shoulder, “A patrol sounds wise, capitaine. I’ll go. Anyone care to join?”

Sara was not having a fun time. She could be found everytime the Lady Luck went through a storm, hanging off the edge of the bannister and vomiting what little remained in her stomach. Not only was this a particularly violent storm, but it was also really cold. She shivered, holding her thick coat closer to herself as she retreated back to the relative warmth and dryness of the lower deck. She was worse than useless here, she was a liability and she knew it. One rogue wave would’ve been enough to knock her into the sea and disappear forever in the midst of chaos. Once they had stopped, Sara remerged. “I’ll go.” She said, through chattering teeth. She wanted to make up for feeling useless during the crisis of the storm. That, and there was less chance of being swept out to sea on land than on the ship.

“Muy bien my commando,” Adelaide purred and hopped off the banister. “If anyone else wishes to come follow now, or be drenched on the ship. Your choice.”

The white haired swordswoman had taken to her usual responsibilities during the storm, her focus mainly on battling with the ships mainsail, keeping it from suffering and breaking under the stress of the storm. Once they finally reached the island she’d taken a moment to rest herself, sitting herself against crate tied down to the deck as she exhaled a short breath, looking around to take a quick head count to ensure no one was missing or had ended up overboard… remembering Danni from a storm they had endured many years ago, having lost their previous navigator as a result.

When orders came through and it appeared some were gathering to patrol the island to get an idea of whom else might share it, she stood before casting her gaze over towards Adelaide and Sara, “I’ll come as well” she replied softly, walking over with a hand rested upon the hilt of Shusui. She imagined the two of them alone were more than capable but she was not someone who could be of use to anyone in repairing a ship and waiting around in the cold didn’t seem like much of a good time either.

The cold bit against her skin viciously only made worse by their wet clothing, though if Alicia was bothered, it wouldn’t show upon her features which was perhaps strange. The truth in it had a lot to do with her affinity with the wind element, though she would offer no explanation for her tolerance unless asked about it.

The three headed off the ship, a thankfully short affair due to the Lady Luck’s docking on the beach. Adelaide breezed onto the beach-- disappearing from the banister with a hop off and abruptly re-appearing with a puff of disturbed sand-- taking care to land a fair distance from the killer seawater tides while focusing her attention inland. The sand was gray and dark from the storms, casting a bleak welcome to the unexpected visitors. A forest, lining the eastern beach, stood foreboding meters from the beach. Tangled overgrowth, woodland shrubs, loaming pine trees and cold silence created the black void that laid before them. Adelaide walked halfway up the beach as she waited for her comrades, peering into the shadows, listening close. Twice her silhouette frayed at the edges and made her look translucent in the rain.

“The island’s uninhabited on the west. I suggest starting towards the eastern side,” Adelaide said to the two woman. Her words were directed at Alicia, who as First Mate, Adelaide identified as the answering authority. That respect lasted as long as a glance between her and Sara. “So? How long have you been a pair?”

While it was cold and miserable, the trees in the forest looked like decent enough shelter from the wind and rain. So, chattering and shivering, Sara led or pushed the group towards the forest's edge where it provided some respite from the elements. She glanced at Alicia and, with chattering teeth, asked with a slight touch of concern. “Aren’t you c-c-c-cold? I’m wrapped up in th-three layers, and an old j-j-j-jacket that I stole from Luro, and you only have your k-k-kimono.” She was indeed wrapped in a drastically oversized that could only realistically fit Luro, but she didn’t seem to mind. If anything, all the loose cloth bundled up together made the jacket at least a little bit warmer.

At Adelaide’s question, Sara paused, contemplating whether or not to call her out on her sticking her nose where it didn’t belong but decided it wasn’t worth the effort. “About a m-m-month.” She answered, nonchalantly.

Alicia nodded towards Adelaide as she proposed investigating the eastern side of the island, taking a look around at their surroundings and observing the white blanket that coated most of everything around them before she’d look towards Sara. She wore her usual light blue and white kimono accented with the black trim, black boots that extended up above her knees leaving the areas of her legs between them and the bottom of her kimono exposed. She did have her black scarf and light blue cloak however so it wasn’t as though she was entirely unprepared for colder weather.

“With my affinity to the element of wind, I am able to cover my body with a barrier of air that protects me from the cold.” she replied, placing her finger against her shoulder to demonstrate to Sara as she would see a ripple of air bending around her finger where it made contact with her body. “Of course it requires a degree of focus to keep it active, which means the trade off is that should we get into a fight I may not be able to maintain the barrier, meaning I’ll only have a limited time to fight before the cold pierces my body and I’ll likely go into shock, unless the situation is handled quickly allowing me to refocus on the barrier” she replied casually in her usual soft tone.

She looked towards Adelaide again as she mentioned their relationship, giving a small single nod towards Sara as she answered the question for them. “It’s still a rather new development.” she added.

Fascinant,” remarked Adelaide, eyes lingering on the swordswoman. “Tell me, Tashigi, what is the typical Feian relationship?”

The beach was gritty and full of pebbles; no chance of tropical getaways here. A sharp, biting gale blasted over the compatriots as they started their patrol. Adelaide walked steadily ahead without footprints in the sand, her hands bouncing against her back while surveying the area with a sharp eye that missed nothing, and an ear attentively turned to Alicia. It truly looked like Stardusk were the first to set foot on the place: not a sign of human inhabitants existed from the tide to the treeline. Lips pursed when she noticed not even marked trunks or tousled sand suggested hidden pirate stores. She ventured closer to the forest, discarding the beach having anything of value.

Adelaide froze. She peered around a large fir and gestured Sara forward. “Do you hear? Something big moves in the brush. Four meters ahead. Mind taking point, Masuma? You are the commando here.” Adelaide directed her smirk at Sara.

“C-c-c-convenient.” Sara chattered, a shaky smile growing on her face.She had no idea what Alicia meant by ‘affinity with the wind’. “Then we p-p-probably shouldn’t get in a fight.” She shivered, rubbing her chest to get any feeling of warmth. At Adelaide’s question, Sara remained silent but was curious to hear Alicia’s answer. She doubted that her answer would be anything close to the Tilean way but she still wanted to know more about her new partner.

Sara didn’t hear what Adalaide mentioned, but she nodded and stepped in front of them, drawing her gladius. If they were up against something large, she wished that she brought her spear. She did not want to go against a tiger with the reach of her bare hands, not again.

Alicia tilted her head slightly, “It’s difficult to put into a few words exactly, but Feian relationships are usually meaningful and undertaken with a modicum of seriousness as both will endeavor to be sure it’s what they want before entering a more intimate space with one another. A casual fling isn’t something Feian’s typically indulge in, so it’s often a long process of spending time with one another before deciding to take the next step as both a will want to be sure they want to spend their lives with the other” she paused as she heard the rustling before Adelaide asked Sara to take point, resting her hand upon the hilt of Shusui as she became alert to what it might be.

They ventured past the treeline. What sunlight bathed the island immediately disappeared underneath the thick growth. Dark shadows and bristling bushes covered the ground, snowy dead leaves crunched beneath their feet, trees so big it’d take two of them to reach around one trunk fought for space and sun. Adelaide’s white breath fogged the air as she flanked behind Sara’s left. The forest was eerily quiet with most of its animals hibernating away in hidden burrows. The noise Adelaide detected-- an aggressive rustling and quiet huffs that remained out of sight-- became clearer the further they went in, away from the safety of the beach. She cocked one ear to listen, but the curve of her lips indicated her thoughts at Alicia’s explanation.

She responded with a hushed voice touched by mockery, “What a respectful culture you have. Is it hereditary? Because--”

Raging squeals erupted from their left. Adelaide whipped around, dagger in hand. The huffing suddenly turning into animal snorts that got louder, and louder…..

A wild boar erupted from the bushes and charged Adelaide. She disappeared in a swirl of wind, allowing the animal to pass through. Not expecting its target to suddenly vanish, the boar kept going, beelining for Alicia instead.

To Sara, the Yula Feian way of romance struck her as odd. If you dedicated so much time to just one person, how could you know what you liked? There is always the time to settle, but that doesn’t mean you immediately had to go into it with no experience. Sometimes flings were needed, as practice and as a way of figuring out taste and knowing yourself more, diversity is the spice of life after all. Her thoughts on romance were interrupted as the dark shadow announced itself. She cursed quietly at herself, realizing that she should’ve brought her spear. She didn’t want the wood to be warped, but she would rather have that than go against a boar with a short sword.

At Adelaide’s departure and it’s sudden retarget, Sara intercepted the creature with a blow from her shoulder. She charged the creature with speed, but even then she was almost bounced off it’s sweaty hide. It wasn’t enough to hurt the creature, but it did at least interrupt it’s charge, turning around to face Sara with maddened eyes.

“Yah!” She shouted, waving the gladius in it’s face to get it to back off, while ready to sidestep the beast if it attacked. “Yah! Yah!”

Alicia was about to respond to the question when the boar suddenly broke from the brush, charging towards them. She gripped the hilt of Shusui initially before releasing a soft exhale once she realised it wasn’t that big of a threat, observing as Sara intercepted the creature, pulling away it’s attention. “Could be an idea to capture it in case we require it later, after all we do not know how long we’ll be here.” she suggested, imagining the boar could provide them a good amount of food as well as hide for warmth providing one of them knew how to skin it, which she herself did not.

The boar dug its hooves into the dirt, its hot and heavy breath steaming in the cold air. Its beady eyes focused on Sara. Giving a shake of its head, the boar charged her again.

It made it close to Sara-- a hair's breadth away from impaling her thigh, if the gladiator hadn’t moved, before Adelaide reappeared in a funnel of wind. She cracked her whip and it captured the boar’s tusk. She yanked hard, pulling its head to the side. The animal squealed, terrorized by the unnatural wind carrying an equal unnatural scent to its nose, and the sudden yank of its head. It caused to veer into Sara’s path. Its tusk hooked on her money bag and ripped it clean off her hip. Adelaide grunted, digging her heels into the dirt. It didn’t even phase the fearful animal. It continued charging forward and pulled Adelaide clean off her feet. The whip flew from her hands as she landed face-first in the dirt.

The boar scampered away from the trio, trailing gold coins and a whip behind it. A few minutes later a stampede was heard in the distance.

Adelaide slowly picked herself off the ground, dead leaves and a twig sticking out from her black curls. She looked at where the boar disappeared, spitting out mud. The woman looked rather amused and nonplussed about her circumstance. “Well, that was unexpected.”

“Can we discuss what to do after it doesn’t try to kill me?!” The viciousness of the tiger fight was still fresh on her mind, even if it was an illusion, and she was hesitant to do it again. “Wha- Hey!” Sara shouted as she landed on her butt, more shocked that she had lost her cash than being in any pain. “Give me back my stuff!” She shouted, taking chase immediately after, bending down to pick up the shiny gold coins from the snow around them.

Alicia kept her hand on the hilt of her sword just in case she needed to step in, but it seemed like they had it handled, or well she thought she did till Adelaide was pulled from her feet before the boar took off with some of Sara’s gold. She raised a hand to her mouth to stifle a small laugh before following after Sara in the direction of the boar. “It’s just a boar Sara, I doubt it’d be able to harm you.” she commented before checking to see if Adelaide was alright as she looked back over her shoulder.

“A boar’s tusk is capable of gorging a man’s intestines out with one hit,” Adelaide said, picking dirt from her teeth. She spat on the ground and looked at Alicia. “Clearly before you’ve never fought one.” She gave a customary smirk. By now the boars and Sara were out of site, though the rampaging could be heard. The spy brushed snow off her vest then proceeded to follow Alicia.

They walked for several minutes with Adelaide staring a hole into Alicia’s back. Rain dissolved into pure snow the further they went.

“It’s because of Jack,” she told Alicia’s back impulsively. “My questions from earlier...you’ll have to ask him what they mean though.” The swordswoman wouldn’t need to turn around to hear the smirk on her face. She picked up her pace to walk side-by-side with Alicia. Up ahead, it sounded like Sara retrieved her gold pieces…. And found something else. Adelaide’s silhouette blurred for a half second. “Feels like Kadi and Sid are up ahead. C’mon… I think they found something.”

******

Kadi kicked the gemstone. The jewel bounced and flashed its many facets, transforming into a shimmering imperfect ball as it escaped the skeletal clutches. Its path abruptly came to a halt underneath a leather flat. Adelaide bent and picked it up in a half-formed hand.

“Well. Looks like this island has secrets,” she mused as she held the gem up high, marveling at its clarity.
 
JVJll27.png

Q8NvlXr.png

Location: Lady Luck
Time: Spring, Rainy Season, Evening
Island

Desert Biome: Kadi, Sid, Adelaide, Sara, Alicia


When Kadi kicked the jewel nothing happened save for some of the bones crumbling under the sudden disruption. It wasn’t until Adelaide, Sara, and Alicia appeared out of the snow and into a whiplash of heat did things begin to happen. As the ladies got closer, now with a new bright red gem in their possession, the winds seemed to shift and the sand under the group suddenly sank inward, creating a large hole.

At the bottom of this new pit, large enough to barely fit three of them in, a single large pot rested at the bottom. It was a ceramic lidded pot, the lid and pot bound together with loose twine to show that it had been opened at some point. From around the rim of the pot escaped a very, very dull blue light. Kadi would recognize it just as he recognized the ones back on Finnigan Island. The only difference between this pot and the ones he and Sara had stumbled upon before were that this one lacked a familiar tax stamp of a cedar tree within a triangle and this one had also been opened at some point.

Above them- or those that fell inside- the wild boar that ran off with Sara’s belongings trotted over, belt still attatched to its tusk. Out of annoyance, it violently shook until it was off and to the side. It grunted and glared before scurrying off.

There didn’t look like a way to climb out, and whoever tried to grab onto the walls were met with handfuls of sand… However, one step backwards made by Sid caused a tunnel opening to appear.

Following the short path, the small group would find themselves in a dark cave. The walls were more solid and it was getting darker and darker save for the only other exit out. With the sun setting, it was hard to make out the otherwise dead language written along the walls, especially with some of it forcibly scratched away.

The cave itself was small, being only a few paces from beginning to end so there was little else to explore. However, the most obvious thing rested in the center of the small cave: A medium sized treasure box, small enough for one person to carry themselves. It had similar writing along the edges of the box and decorative blue and gold trimmings. The only thing stopping the group from opening the box were the heavy chains and lock wrapped around it.

And as the sun began to set completely, the wind began to pick up in the desert as well.

Forest Biome - Zilia

Zilia’s trip through the forest started quiet save for the sudden secret passageway. And when she left, it was… a little less so. There were a few birds that chirped along and at one point there was an echo of a snake that passed- more than likely too large to want to come face to face with. Small creatures skittered up trees, mostly squirrels, and not to far away there was the trickling sounds of a stream. It was hard to say if it led to the ocean or towards a smaller body of water on the island. The most prominent thing to note was the large black bear that broke through the trees, sauntering it’s way across Zilia’s makeshift path. Despite the sun setting, it was still very clear that the bear was much larger than her. However, whether it was because of the lack of light or the fact that the bear didn’t care, but it didn’t seem to notice her as it walked across the path, grunting away.

It almost seemed as if Zilia would be able to go scott free and keep going, only for the large bear to look back and growl out. When it yelled, two small cubs trampled through the forest terrain, not as smooth as their mother. They started to call back, only to freeze and cry out when they spotted Zilia.

This got the mother bear’s attention and she hurried back to her cubs.

Snowy Biome - On the Ship - Jack, Luro, Runali, animal companions

Runali was curled into herself in the kitchen, looking smaller than she was. She perked up when she was handed the mug and gave a grateful smile, only for it to falter into a more curious look. His question, despite being interrupted, held a weight to it as if there was something he wanted to say.

She took a sip of the cider, humming in contentment before mumbling loud enough for Jack to hear, “What’s wrong, that summer wind a little too cold lately?” She stifled the smirk that began to grow by taking more sips of her cider.

Not too long after, Luro found the two sitting in the kitchen. “Luro,” Runali practically whined. “No ice and no sparring right now. It’s too cold!” Her cheeks and nose were a pinkish color as if proving her point. She looked around the kitchen and then down at her drink shifting it from hand to hand. “Hm… why don’t you... take a break?” She paused and offered her cup of warm comfort to him- albeit with the slightest bit of reluctance because moving allowed the cold to get to her. “Jack made cider… don’t wanna freeze to death, y’know?” Runali nodded to one of the empty chairs as well, glancing over at Jack to see how he was doing.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: SilentxChaos
Kadi_Banner_V2.png
"Well, this was positivelly anticlima-AAAH!" The sentece was cut mercifully short as the sand underneath their feet gave away. The Navigator tried to run against the sand's flow, but it was of no help. He lost his footing and tumbled down the sinkhole, finding that sand was quite like water, only more coarse and less comfortable to drown into.

Some time later, he felt the sand around him stopped moving, but he was now encased in dark under an unknown height of naturally eroded sillicate. His unnatural skill showed him which way was up, and he started to dig himself out. His hand broke surface, and soon he managed to pull himself clear of the sand and into the deserts scorching sun. The dry hot air felt like rasp on his lungs, but he was still grateful for it as an alternative to sand.

He looked around, finding they were now at the bottom of a deep sinkhole, too deep to climb up easily without risking another sandalanche and being buried for good. He stood up and checked the surrounding area for signs of Cedric, and indeed there were several signs of other people around, some arms and legs sticking out of the ground. More importantly though there was a pot nearby, a pot emmiting an eeire faint blue light that was nevertheless contrasting against the surrounding matter despite the blasting bright sun above. A clear sign of human ectoplasmic residuum.

"What in the name of the Librarian above..." he muttered as he stumbled over the loose sand, his boots burying deep and making the traverse complicated, doubly so with his still woozy head. He wondered if the fall gave him a mild concussion as he picked up the pot and inspected it. "Illegal," he muttered out loud. "No stamp, and someone tampered with it too," he continued. For a second he considered opening the pot and checking if there was a soul still in there, but then deciede against it and tied the twine back, securing the lid. There will be time and place, neither of which was here and now.
 
179847
She floated above the others on a platform of wind, the gem slipped into her bag of flowers, and half her form gone. It was hard to tell wish have as she contorted endlessly, like a reflection on a rainy day. Her head cocked to one side as she contemplated why the Stardusk crew was suddenly down there and not up here. After a moment's consideration, she floated down as Sid, Alicia, Sara and Kadi dug themselves out of the sand. A huff above her signified the boar's return. She looked up to see it throw Sara's purse off, smirking at it's annoyed expression, but made no move to retrieve the purse as it wandered off again.

Her landing was soundless as she lifted a brow around her. Her eyes locked on the pot that Kadi picked up. "What is that?" Adelaide gestured to get his attention, and while she listened to his answer her eyes flicked to where a tunnel abruptly opened behind Sid. Her lips pursed. First strange winds that didn't feel like normal winds, then abrupt sink holes, now a mysterious tunnel? The spy hung back, allowing one of the others to go first. She couldn't shake the feeling they were being lead somewhere.

When that 'somewhere' lead to a mysterious chain-linked box, Adelaide folded her arms and glanced around at the others. "So, who wants to pick up the scary-looking important box? I vote not it."

179849

Jack's eyes flicked to Runali. "Laugh it up," he grumbled.

He turned his attention into his cider and decided to let the question drop.

As Luro poked his head in, Jack couldn't help but give a vigorous nod to Runali's statement. Too cold to even be on the deck much less practicing with the powers of ice. As if prepared to entice the giant further into staying within the kitchen, the cook procured a bottle of rum and pushed it forward with a cup of rum. "I'll get a fire going," he added, standing up to tend to the kitchen's self-contained oven. He sent a silent thank you, once again, to Luro's genius that allowed him to cook over a fire in a wooden ship.

Within minutes a warm orange glow blossomed in the space. Jack shifted the wood with an iron poker, side glancing at Runali and Luro.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Capt. Blu
179920

A small smile slowly came to Zilia’s face as she made her way through the forest, there was something serene about the woods, almost pure in a way. Placing her hand on a trunk of a nearby tree she was reminded of how hard this forest worked to stay as beautiful as it was, how everything came together, working in tandem. How from the smallest insect to the largest animal everything fell into place to keep this place so pristine, that even its imperfections if they could even be called as such were so miniscule only a trained eye could find them.
These were Zilia’s thoughts before she ended up in the branches a nearby tree watching as a large bear crossed her path, and was reminded that the forest doesn’t necessarily care how much you may like it, everything within it is treated at least somewhat equally as part of the cycle. She was well aware where she was on the food chain and preferred not to cross the bears path. She waited holding her breath for a moment as the bear passed her and waited until her shadow was smaller than she was before she let out a breath and climbed out of the tree.

The cry that followed however caused her to flinch and immediately turn to face the cubs, eyes wide Zilia quickly turned to see the bear was returning. She remembered during her travels she was taught what to do if she met a bear, but when a shadow loomed over her all that information dissipated into nothing.
She stared up at the hulking creature as it stood on two legs staring down at her with fury only a mother could display; she could only watch as the cubs quickly moved behind their protector, she wasn’t sure if this animal could read like Coral so this could prove to be a problem.
“Why didn’t I go with Alicia, Adelei and Sara…I know at least two of them could have taken this bear.”
The bear load roar caused her to tremble and take a small step back, she couldn’t outrun a bear which meant there was only one other option, she was a Stardusk too which meant she had to at least put in the effort.
Zilia shakily raised her fists and prepared to face down the creature, she was going to return to the ship, there was only one obstacle to that. With renewed vigor she planted her feet firmly and made a beckoning motion with her fingers.

Light breathing echoed through the small cave from the small cubs that slumbered peacefully next to her leaning against the mama bear. Zilia sat with her knees to her chest hugging her legs as she lie on her side, the bears arm over her using her as a makeshift cuddle toy. Her eyes the size of globes she glanced over at the bear trying to shift away from her, however upon doing so the bear only moved and with a loud yawn pulled her closer, her eyes twitching Zilia hung her head.
“…I don’t know how to feel about this…I’m happy I’m not dead…but how could she confuse me for a bear cub!”
Zilia closed her eyes deciding to just wait until a moment presented itself, she’d run away after that. Her eyes moved over to one of the cubs who rolled over onto its back and scratched its tummy.
“…this goes with me to my grave…”

179921

“Oh here you guys are,” Luro said as he entered the kitchen.
Still radiating his cone of warmth he was halfway into his sleeve when he heard the Captain’s request, he looked at her then at his sleeve then back at her before shrugging and removing his hand, happily taking a seat.
Whatever fence he was on the moment the rum was moved in front of him it was easy to make a decision. He supposed doing a session this soon wouldn’t matter anyway, he still had to make changes to the gloves, he could just add to it later.
Pouring a bit of the Captain’s cider into his mug before returning it to her he gave a small nod.
“I was going to have you guys practice with fire mainly cause it’s cold but I get it, we should wait a bit don’t wanna get too excited, could make mistakes” Luro said.
Standing up Luro grabbed his mug and walking over to Jack patted him on the shoulder.
“It’s nice and warm Jack thanks,” Luro said before shoving his hand into the flames, his sleeve caught on fire and with a small hum he noticed his drink bubble and pulled his hand free and returned to his seat. There was a decent chance the bandages wrapped around his arms and fingers were fireproof or at least resistant since they were on fire but not paid little mind to the heat.
“I’ve gotten a mess ton of work done thanks to the ship being stranded. I reinforced the hull a bit, I got to fix up the masts, the flame cannons work better now, I made some changes to the training room, messed with the rudder a bit, removed the deadly poison from everyone’s room, fixed a few holes, cleaned the corpse pit, and organized some of the storage.”
Luro raised his cup before taking a sip from it.
“We should get stranded more often, I got a bunch of work done today alone.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: SilentxChaos
1559496229020-png.177928
Chester sauntered over to the earthen pot. He sniffed the air around it tentatively. He sneezed lightly. Wrinkling his nose, the ginger cat wondered if he dared pass through the clay walls and inspect inside it. He sniffed the air again.

“Mrrraow?”

“Not the best idea, mon ami,” Cedric warned his cat from where he sat on the ground. He didn’t bother echoing Adelaide’s question since keeping silent was the best way to combat the drying effects of the desert air. Talking would make him thirstier.

Rising gracefully to his feet, the tailor dusted himself quickly before turning around to check on Sara and Alicia. Once the two ladies were back on their feet, he went back to surveying the area. He brushed a gloved hand tentatively against the wall. Sand slid down in a dusty veil indicating that they needed to find an alternative exit. Preferably one that didn’t rely on Adelaide hauling them up one by one. He wasn’t sure if that was even possible. For her to be light as the wind, he assumed she needed to be intangible.

“Let’s see if we can find a tunnel,” he remarked, taking a step away from the wall and making his way towards Kadi.

His right foot landed on a hidden mechanism. There was a soft click followed by the sound of grinding stone. He squinted, but he couldn’t see what lay beyond the entrance. The dying light had grown too faint. He waited until Sara’s back was turned before he dug out one of his cards.

A soft hiss accompanied the burst of flame in his palm. The fire extinguished quickly leaving behind warm ash. Sid allowed them to slip between his fingers and mingle with the sand at his feet. A pair silvery lynxes materialised in front of him. Their fur emitted a soft glow that provided some relief from the darkness. The light was just bright enough for them to see, but not obvious enough to attract would be predators.

He pointed towards the cave and one of the lynxes led the way. The other headed towards Kadi. Sid followed the first lynx at a leisurely pace. He preferred keeping a safe distance in case there were more traps in the sand.

Upon entering the cave, they were greeted by a curious sight. Ancient script, some forcibly scratched away, littered the walls. Cedric frowned. He doubted any of them knew the language. Sacrificing a bit of his comfort to confirm his suspicions, he turned to Adelaide. “Do you recognise this language?”

She was the only person who was likely to know the language given her impressive repertoire. Sid returned his gaze to the wall, as the lynx climbed on top of the chained box. Chester winked into existence beside their newest companion. He yawned then began licking his left paw. Cedric arched an eyebrow. Chester seemed oddly relaxed.

“Alicia ought to make this decision, no?” was his response to Adelaide’s latest query. “Cursed treasure always fetches a high price on the black market. The money would cover the cost of our repairs twice or thrice over.”

Chester stretched. Settling down into his caterpillar pose, he allowed his eyes to droop. He yawned again. The lynx ignored him and leaped off the box. It padded over to the section of the wall to Adelaide’s right. According to the map carved into the wall, there was more treasure to be found in the forested region. Among the treasure was a strange looking sword.

Cedric’s attention was diverted from the box to the map. He walked over to take a closer look. As the winds howled outside the cave, Sid shivered. He felt a chill draft seeping under his clothes. He was glad his rain cloak acted like a thin barrier around his body.
 
Last edited:
JVJll27.png

Q8NvlXr.png

Location: Lady Luck
Time: Spring, Rainy Season, Evening
Island: Some time Later After Reconvening


“Luro there were things in that sentence that we’ll have to discuss later when I’m not freezing my fingers off… but good job on the fixing.”

~~~

“So you’re telling me,” Runali was wrapped in a coat and blanket looking between the group as they all managed their return- with Zilia coming in a little later- which was peculiar for its own reason. The captain had another cup of cider in her hand sitting in the kitchen as everyone gathered in. She hadn’t been there all day, but it had the second source of warmth on the ship so she couldn’t help but go there often. The first source was the walking sun, Luro, but he moved too much while he was working for her to escape the cold for long. He was nice company though, but that was normal.

“You found a sword, that you didn’t bring back.” Her one eyed gaze was on Zlia before flicking to the others. “You all got chased by pigs.” She sipped her cider. “Both of you found a jewel- or jewels. And that led to that pot. And this treasure chest.” With a huff, Runali set her now empty cup down and stood to her feet.

She examined the chains on the box, tugging gently to see how sturdy they were. “And you guys didn’t want to open it because….?” She waited for an answer, taking a hold of the lock and letting the armament run up to her hand. It was a pretty weak chain and it snapped under the pressure rather easily. The chain made a loud clattering noise and the chest made a soft click when she flipped it open.

“...Hm.”

A Week Later… Maybe a few days… Maybe more.

Runali sat at the kitchen table, staring with furrowed brows at an ivory tusk. There was a sharp point to indicate its end, but the bottom half was haphazardly sawed off and then poorly sanded down. When she saw it inside the chest days before with a decorative gold band dotted with red gems, she could feel her stomach drop a bit. There were other things inside the chest; gold, assorted jewels and jewelry, and even bullets- some gold as well, but the captain didn’t seem to pay too much attention to it. There were some papers inside as well, most similar to the markings Zilia found and the markings in the cave, but a lot of it wasn’t very legible. There was however, something she did happen to miss. It was miniscule. Just a folded and crumpled paper worn from its years. There were two notable things from that paper that whoever picked it up could see. 1) Images and various small details and myths about the Black Compass and 2) A signature from ‘The Sea Terrors’.

Runali didn’t take the time to rummage through all the treasure or pay much attention in that time.

~~~

“Hmm. I’m gonna go out there.” Runali looked towards the forest biome. She was holding the tusk, not talking to anyone in particular. “Gonna go… put an old soul to rest.” It was mumbled a bit, but she turned with vigor. “Don’t wait up, I’ll be gone for awhile. But,” Runali paused in her climb off the ship, shifting her grip when Coral landed on her. “If any of you want to tag along feel free, but I’m gonna get a head start so I can get outta this cold.”
 
180364

Luro decided to stay behind since more holes had been formed on the ship from the recent explosion; three of the explosions had been from spots he had fixed just the day before. He informed Jack that he expected something extra delicious later, for breaking the ship and good old fashioned drink since he had to use some of his drinking money on more wood next time they made it to shore.
“…I may head to the forest later and check the trees. If the quality is good I may borrow a bit from nature,” Luro said twirling the hammer in his hand.
Standing back to his feet he took a good look around at the main deck and gave a small nod, he decided to head down and clean the hole below deck, with a small chuckle he opened the door walking inside.

When his eyes fell on blue flowers than the familiar wooden deck he knew and loved he only sighed and closed the door. He found himself in a field and looking behind him noticed the door had vanished, the sky was as always a wondrous bright blue with a sun that matched it as if the two were made for each other, which considering who was behind it the creation of the place made a bit of sense. This field of flowers with the strange glowing azure petals was all too familiar to him and the moment he looked forward again he saw Imposter sitting at a brown round table, there were multiple chairs but only one chair was on fire and that particular one was for him, made even more clear as Imposter motioned to it.
Stuck in a world that could exist only dreams and sitting in a flaming chair across from himself, he didn’t realize it was the middle of the week already. The laughter of the flowers was as shrill as always, almost deafening as the wind scraped across his face digging invisible claws into his skin, almost ripping it off with each passing. This world didn’t want him here, the Sky's slow shaking of its head made that abundantly clear, why did the blue above always have such a judgmental look all the time.
Luro sat in the flaming chair which as always had no real heat to it, though it didn’t stop it from burning.
“Do you want some food?” Imposter said.
Luro looked down at the full turkey on his plate surrounded by tiny vegetables, a knife and fork resting on the sides of the plate; he arched a brow as it did look succulent. He picked up the carving knife sitting a few feet away and started to dig in but stopped and looked up at Imposter.
“Did you poison it?”
Imposter snapped his fingers and standing up dug in his sleeve pulling out a small black glass container, removing the cork a puff of green smoke came out of the clearly suspicious bottle. He poured a green liquid over the turkey, some of it spilling onto the table causing a loud hiss to follow as it burned through the tablecloth. Imposter pat the turkey using his hand as a makeshift brush to properly glaze the turkey.
“There we go…let me just get my fingers in there…get the side here. Yeahhh this is going to kill you so gooood. All right there we go.”

Imposter sat back down and motioned to the turkey, Luro cut himself a piece as the two continued their conversation.
“You come out cause I’m alone,” Luro said putting one of the pieces in his mouth.
“Yeah don’t need to be showin’ up while people are around. Alicia might cut me, and that would be bad. I gotta make sure she shoves that sword through you not me.”
“…we’re the same person,” Luro said grabbing another piece.
“True but you’ll feel the pain and that’s what matters.”
“…you’ll feel it too though.”
“Let’s put that thought aside for a moment. Did you shove a knife through the Captain’s neck yet?”
“Hah…you know I haven’t.”
Imposter shook his head and ripped off one of the legs, motioning to Luro with it he spoke to him with a narrowed gaze.
“See this is why this relationship doesn’t work, you don’t listen to me.”
“No I listen I just have my own way of doing things,” Luro said shrugging.
“Do you ever consider my side of things, that maybe my way would work.”
Luro remained silent continuing to eat his food causing Imposter to sigh and grab his cup.
“…we don’t talk like we used too.”
“Whose fault is that?”
“…That’s not fair…I swear I didn’t know it was Kadi’s.”
“It was a map though…only Kadi has map’s.”
“Jack can have maps too.”
“Oh we both know maps aren’t what you want from Jack. It’s not even the fact that you lie, I lie too it’s that you don’t even try. I try, I’m sitting here eating with you trying to make this work.”
“We don’t have to work on anything; we’re just in a rut. If you kill like…three of our friends everything will go back to normal. I promise.”
“Oh yeah that’ll fix everything, then what happens after Alicia kills me,” Luro said motioning to himself.” She’ll probably decapitate me, a quick death seems her style for an old comrade.”
“How long do you think Masu could keep our head in the air afterwards?” Imposter said arching his brows at Luro.
Luro stopped eating for a moment, he shook his head at Imposter pouring himself a bottle of the green liquid.
“Really man…that’s not even a question. The real question is can she pass it to Sid and get it back without breaking the chain.”
“Oh valid point,” Imposter said clapping his hands together. “I’m sure she could do it, at least long enough for the sharks to eat our body once it’s tossed overboard.”
“Like old garbage right,” Luro said grinning and pointing his fork at him.
“Of course! Like we never existed!”
The two laughed and Luro felt his vision go dark, his eyes opened only to find his gaze staring down the barrel of one of his guns. Blinking he turned the gun away and took a quick look around, seeing the lower deck around him and noticing that Imposter was no longer in front of him he nodded and returned the gun to his sleeve.
“He almost won that one,” Luro said making his way to the stairs. “All right let’s get these holes repaired before everyone gets back. I’m going full force!”
Luro’s laughter echoed through the ship his footsteps passing a single flower growing out of the wood, fading into mist as he passed it.





Warning this content has nothing to do with the main story, read at your own discretion as it will take time out of your day. Cool, awesome you've been informed.



"We need flair."

Kaim stared at Nikos who looked up from his paper at the sudden comment. Kaim had addressed everyone in the room patiently waiting for them to gather in the living quarters. Everyone save Aira who went out on a mission and Emil who was still in Yula Fei were present. Ria and Nina looked up from their book, Ria still draped over Nina but her eyes raising to show Kaim she was listening, Nina raised her head just enough to show she was paying attention but not enough to disturb the woman behind her. Kara stopped sewing and Tari even looked up from her documents; with a grin Kaim motioned to the group as a whole.

"We're mercenaries right we need to finish some of our missions with a bit more fire,"
"I'm not using more explosions Kaim," Nikos said arching a brow at him.
"Not that kind of fire, I mean tricks and stuff, we don't show off enough."
"We're not performers we’re mercenaries, we get the job done not put on a show, " Nikos said shaking his head at him.
"I get that but what I'm saying is some of the nobles we deal with want to see something fancy, they can't do fancy sword tricks or punch a hole in buildings. They like that kind of entertainment."
"...why would we engage in something like that, our success in the mission should be enough of a display of our skills, not twirling our blades and acting like Jesters."

Kaim reached up and squeezed the bridge of his nose, he knew Nikos was going to fight him on this. He wasn't going to back down from this one though, not this time instead he looked over at Kara who after releasing a silent sigh set her project down.
"What if we think of it as a group activity Nikos?" Kara said drawing the man's attention. "A way to show our progress?"
Nikos didn't respond but his narrowed gaze softened slightly, Kaim seeing this went in for the kill.
"It could even help with business, some nobles will follow that 'get the job done' mindset but the others will judge us from the get go. We put on a show for those types, let word spread and take advantage of the fame."

Nikos looked at Kara then at Kaim before sighing and raising his paper back up.
"I'm fine with it if the others are."
Kaim quickly turned his gaze to the others, Ria and Nina offered simultaneous nods and Tari gave a small shrug in response which was enough of a yes for him, with a grin Kaim pumped his fist in the air.
"Allll right! Let's tear it up then! Why don't we make it a contest too, the one who impresses the least has to do something."
"A pleasant idea," Nikos said. "I was going to ignore it but this is a good reason to take it. There will be animals on the ship soon…a bit of transport. Whoever loses has to clean up after all of them...alone."
"Deal!" Kaim said slamming his hand into his fists. "This'll be good!"
"Next mission then...after the mission has been properly completed."
 
Last edited:
JVJll27.png

Q8NvlXr.png
Location: To the Forest
Time: Late Morning


Runali’s feet touched snow and she immediately shuddered. Coral’s feathers ruffled as if agreeing that it was cold. “Alright Coral, lead the way. Keep low enough so I can still see you though.” She watched the bird take to the skies, wondering if was warmer being able to fly compared to walking through the snow.

Going through the snow, it didn’t take very long to find pig tracks, no doubt the same ones that messed with Alicia, Adelaide, and Sara. She decided to go around them and avoid the confrontation. Other than the sounds of light snowfall and her occasional huffs of breath it was pretty quiet, so it wasn’t that hard to hear or at least feel that she was being followed. “Y’know, I did give the invitation to tag along. There’s no need trying to sneak up on me.” Runali looked behind her to see just who it was.

wtgAgn5.png

egye6x.png

K4rqyfP.png

Adelaide, Jack and Sid stood behind her. The spy made a coy smile and waved. A half-smoked cigarillo puffed from Jack’s lips as he hugged himself, looking as disgruntled today as he had during their entire stay on the godforsaken island. He walked up to stand by the captain and glanced down apologetically.

“‘Pologies captain. Didn’t mean t-to sneak on you,” he shivered and stuttered as a sharp wind whisked around them.

“Quite the feat three of us to sneak on you?”

A red glimmer flashed at the corner of Runal’s eye. Adelaide pranced around them, tossing the red gem back and forth in calloused hands. Adelaide grinned at Runali. “It hasn’t caused more damage, in case you’re wondering.”

Since they returned to the ship, it’d remained quiet and less dramatic than throwing most of the Stardusk crew into a sandy pit. Only one incident occurred when Adelaide convinced Jack to hit it with a hammer: the red gem proved to be an indestructible object against Armament, pinging through the ship from the force and creating several new holes for Luro to patch.

Pocketing the gem, Adelaide switched her hands to her hips. “So, captain my captain. What are we doing out here?”

Cedric stood quietly beside Jack. Chaos was cradled in his arms and Chester slung across his shoulders. Their furry body seemed to be a warm addition to his newly tailored coat. He had offered to make Runali one as well, but they hadn’t had their fitting session yet. He hoped she hadn’t forgotten about it.

“I’m not sure about you, but I want to see this corpse she’s been hiding from us. Her words won’t make sense otherwise.”

The tailor looked amused. “I don’t recall seeing a fresh corpse the past few days. Don’t tell me it’s someone from Finnigan Island ...”

His speculative gaze fell on Runali again. “The other question would be the nature of this “laying to rest”. Either we’ll be witnessing a nondescript burial or an unheard of necromancy ritual from the darkest corners of Jaipur.” His playful tone contrasted oddly with his impassive face.
VftBkex.png
Chaos yawned. She shifted around in his arms before vanishing with an audible pop. The kitten appeared on Runali’s shoulder. She nuzzled her warm furry face against the freezing cheek.

“Purrrrr,” she rumbled. Her body slowly lowering onto the Captain’s shoulders. It wasn’t long before she morphed into a cat scarf. “Rrrrrrrr.”

“Traitor,” Sid and Jack murmured at the same time. Speaking a little louder, he added. “I wonder if that means you are warmer than Jack. Chaos usually prefers snuggling next to my brother whenever it’s cold.”

He tilted his head slightly to the side. “I bet you’ve seen her slinking around Luro the past few days.”

Chester lifted up his head lazily. He turned towards Jack and narrowed his eyes. He sniffed derisively the moment he spotted the cigarillo. He huffed. His warm breath tickling Sid’s cool skin. Slowly and very sleepily, the Maine Coon lowered his head again. Cedric reached for his left shoulder and stroked the fluffy head. A paw swiped the offending hand away. It was a wordless protest.

“You might want to do something about the smoking, frère,” Sid teased. “No one likes the smell of whatever you smoke these days. Certainly not sa Majesté.” (trans. “his majesty”)

“No one’s complained about it yet,” grumbled Jack.

First there was one voice, and then two more followed. “Ah, graced by all three spies. To what do I owe the pleasure?” She gave a breathless laugh and turned her attention back to the sky where Coral had been. “Thank you for the update Adelaide.” She commented, trudging forward. If she stood too long, she’d surely freeze before she got to the forest. Fortunately, based off what Zilia told her, it was much warmer there than in the snow so she had to hold off just a little longer. The question Adelaide posed made her tug the bag a little closer, though Cedric spoke before she could answer.

It was… a peculiar notion about necromancy and things, but the burial wasn’t too far off. For a moment, she decided to let them muse amongst themselves about what she was doing, especially with the new warm addition on her shoulders. “Ah, fluff. Nice of you to drop in.” She smiled and patted the cat’s head before taking the time to climb over a fallen tree.

The group made it a good distance into the snowy place before Runali finally decided to answer the questions and assumptions. “In Jaipur,” Runali ducked under a low hanging branch. “All animals are to be respected as they’re part of the ever present circle of life. But elephants are… important. Sacred.” She placed a hand on the bag she carried as she continued on. As she did, she never stopped to look back at the group, expecting that they’d keep up. “There’s a lot of history and stories that follow elephants. Tales of how they forget nothing, remember all.” Runali drifted off with a shrug for a moment, letting the silence fill the space for a bit. There were stories and explanations she was sure her parents could tell better than she could, but they weren’t in Jaipur at the moment for that.

“It’s an ill practice to hunt elephants. Bad luck, ill omens, disrespect, the whole nine yards.” She patted the bag on her hip. “The tusk in the chest was from someone that wanted the ivory and by the looks of how it was sawed off, they probably killed it as well.” She sighed, stretching her legs a bit when the cold air started to drift into a warmer climate and the snow began to melt away. “At home, they get buried properly. It’s not uncommon to see the others mourn for their family as we would. And since this one was killed, it’s only fair that I see to it that it gets a proper burial. Paying respects and all that.” Runali finally glanced over her shoulder to give the trio a curious look. “Nothing dealing with necromancy. But now I’m curious if you’ve dealt with the dead before?”

“Can’t say I have,” Adelaide replied. Jack threw a sharp, dubious glance at her, as if he was reevaluating everything he knew about her. Adelaide gave him an over-exaggerated bemused look in turn. “What?”

“Nothing.”

Turning on her heel, she walked backwards for a few paces. “And not that I mind, but why’d the family of three all decide to tag along?” She gave a chuckle. “Not trying to ambush me are you?”

Adelaide smirked. “Maybe--”

“--’course not, captain,” Jack cut her off. The woman pursed her lips but didn’t say anything further. Jack sighed and shook himself, adjusting to the warming temperatures. “It just… sort of happened.

“Captain, where are we going?” he asked softly, noticing that she hadn’t explicitly answered the question, but he already expected the answer. His eyes drifted to her bag as his finger subconsciously brushed the elephant pin on his coat. He wondered what she’d do when they reached their destination. He wondered if there was a way to find the people who did not… assuming they were even alive to be reprimanded.

“I’m more curious about how the elephants got here in the first place,” interrupted Adelaide. She played with the gem again, shimmers of red rolling between fingers. Occasionally, she punced it at the ground, watching it bounce back into her fingers with calculated observance. Jack swore she was trying to make it do magic again, but after the ship incident it remained quiet and dormant.

Adelaide looked at the captain. “And what do you plan to do about it, capitaine? They’re all dead.”

“Come on, Adelaide. There’s sacredness in burial rights,” said Jack.

“To allow the soul to pass on? Maybe I can buy that for humans. But do animals even have souls? Would their souls care about such rites? Animals die everyday by predators and weather. Humans especially. I don’t think they care when their flesh is left to rot under the sun.”

It began to warm up and Runali sighed in relief. She turned back around when Jack asked her a question, looking up at the sky to see Coral flying lower and into the trees. Runali gave a simple nod, acknowledging something she only knew. She pressed on and fell silent while Adelaide pressed with questions. They weren’t without their reason. Not everyone could- or would understand the importance of something when they weren’t born with it. So, Runali wasn’t upset that the questions were asked. Instead, she responded in kind, glancing to the side every so often to talk over her shoulder. “You think, but you don’t know.” She started. “Animals, humans, there’s no real difference save for the animosity other humans share for each other. So who’s to say they aren’t similar in that respect as well?” Runali gave a simple shrug. “I’m not going to explain a life’s worth of culture to you about why elephants have more heart and soul than we all do because that would be ridiculous. Especially on this remote island.” When Runali looked back at Adelaide there was something unreadable in her one eye, but it was replaced with a small smile. “For you to understand, you’d have to see it for yourself so for now… You’ll just have to take my word for it.”

“As for where we’re going Jack,” Runali pushed through some leaves opening up into a clearing. “I was looking for a clearing in the forest. Doesn’t disturb too much of the rest of the forest, especially for digging. As for what I plan to do about it Adelaide,” Runali walked into the clearing and wandered around for a bit until Coral landed on her shoulder. With a swift armament infused kick she created a whole in the ground, removing the tusk from her bag as well. “I’m not home with the proper materials to have this be a proper ritual, so I’ll make this brief.”

Cedric hadn’t said much ever since the captain asked them about necromancy. He planned on answering her question initially, but the conversation moved on. He didn’t feel like bringing up the topic again. He had other things on his mind. As he kept his ears tuned into the mindless chatter, his hands worked on the piece of wood he picked up earlier.

Finally, the conversation reached a point where it was comfortable to re-enter. Not that he planned to say much. He was a bit too focused on his latest project. “Depends on what you mean by proper materials, Captain. Flowers can be found, incense can be made from crushed flowers, dust and earth and fruits can be gathered for offerings.”

He blew off the saw dust and presented a beautifully carved wooden elephant to Runali. “This could be used as a grave marker, I guess.” He pressed it into her hand and lingered at her side. “Since we are here, you should let us help.”

“So dear Captain, what are your orders?” he asked with a slight tilt of his head. “You’re the most knowledgeable when it comes to the rites. All the three of us know are Trovalian burial customs, which I’m sure are very different from yours.”

“Ah,” Runali had knelt down near the whole she made. “Let me rephrase that.” She scratched the back of her head. “I’m not usually the one that does this.” She shrugged Coral off her shoulder and the bird landed next to her. “There’s people better than I that know the steps, the pieces, the mannerisms.” She huffed and dug a little deeper into the dirt with a small shovel she pulled from her bag. “Even the history. I know, what I need to though.” She placed the tusk down in the ground and looked up at Cedric with a raised brow. “Oh,”

The smile grew a little more as her fingers brushed across the details of the small elephant. “I appreciate it. But, I will keep this with me instead. I do not trust this place and I don’t want to give anyone an idea of how to steal this.” She looked a little mesmerized by the tiny elephant until she stood it in front of her. While she sat there, she dug through her bag again. “I’d say sage, however any flower may work. Other than that, you can just… watch if you want.” The process was quiet. Coral hopped to the side, watching as Runali pulled kindle for a flame- probably taken from the ship. She laid it across the now buried tusk and used a match to start a fire. With how long the quiet stretched, Runali was suddenly a bit more tense. “This… feels a lot more, uh, serious and intense than it needs to be. No offense,” She gave a sheepish laugh. “You guys don’t help, especially since I barely know two of you. But no worries,” Runali hopped to her feet, standing in front of the small flame. “This will be much quicker…. Filled with the same sentiment.”

“I can dance on the grave, if brings humor to the moment,” suggested Adelaide with a dry note.

“Pyre,” Jack said.

“What?”

“The word is pyre. Not grave.” The chef glanced at her and upon seeing her wide, unblinking stare, cleared his throat and tugged at his collar. “I, uh, don’t suppose you have sage for the captain.”

Judgemental silence lasted a heartbeat before Adelaide slowly reached into her bag, and produced a white lily. She handed it to Jack. He nodded. “Innocence and purity. That will do.” He gifted Runali’s fire the lily and watched the botanical beauty wither to gray and ash. He didn’t say a prayer-- there were none fit for the death of an elephant-- but his mind turned inward while he watched Runali offer her respects, a thoughtful and somber expression taking over. Adelaide drifted off to the edge of the clearing and leaned against a tree, looking positively bored.

A single flower had been burnt as an offering. Cedric didn’t feel like stealing Adelaide’s thunder, so he decided to provide the incense instead. He dug out a pouch filled with a loamy substance. A pleasant fragrance, a blend of jasmine, rose, cedar and an unidentified herb, filled the warm forest air after he untied it. He poured a handful out onto his palm and added it to the flame. The scent intensified as the incense powder burned.

“It was a gift,” he explained. He doubt the Captain would be curious about it. Jack was a different story. The man would have recognised it as prière cendre or prayer incense. This particular blend was often favoured by summoners as sacrifiere. Among non-summoners, it was used for divination. Cedric wasn’t fond of using it, because it was expensive and hard to procure. Only members of the royal family could get hold of it easily. “She passed my the pouch the last time we met. I’m not sure why …”

The three spies knew whom Sid was referring to, but no one bothered to enlighten the Captain. It was a reference to their past, a connection best kept a secret for the girl’s safety as well as theirs. Charlotte knew about the relationship, naturally; their concerns related to the strangers they met outside the Trovalian borders. There would always be mercenaries, con men and pirates daring enough to capitalise on the knowledge to get closer to any noble.

When she started to speak, it was in common, but her voice lowered into a whisper as it switched to her native tongue. It was a rather simple prayer- or mantra that by the sound of it, was engraved into the captain’s memory. Runali’s eyes were closed but had the trio of spies been paying close attention to the now dying fire, it could have been their eyes playing tricks on them but a trumpeting elephant could be seen in the wisps of smoke. It gave a silent trumpet before walking upwards and disappearing with the smoke. When the captain opened her eye, she picked up the new trinket and snuffed out the small flame. “Weep not for loss and value the legacy that was left.”

The hair’s on Jack’s neck prickled at the sound, but it didn’t stop him from bowing his head to Runali, a sign of respect. “That was nice. Will you teach me the words, sometime?”

And with that she gave a low whistle to Coral, waiting for her to perch on her shoulder again. Runali didn’t offer an explanation or a translation, but she did raise a brow at the others. “Not that it matters, but when we were walking we passed a cave that definitely belongs to a family of predators. It’s probably best if we don’t stay and disturb the peace too long.” She looked a bit surprised for a split second, but it turned into a playful smile. “Ah, sure you’re not in desire to dance on graves too? Adelaide seemed privy.” She turned to look over at the woman with a smile. “It’s best to be careful with how you speak about the dead. From my experience, they aren’t always so friendly.” While it was advice, there was the sound of an underlying threat beneath her words. But it was short lived as she returned her attention back to Jack and Cedric, still holding the elephant close. “It’s a prayer for the dead- obviously. For their souls to cross over peacefully. Just the addition of a good luck request in there too.” She explained as they carried on.

“Etoiles éclairent chemin. May the soul find rest in the heavens above, as the priests would say in the temples.” No other words were needed. Sid preferred letting the sober peace stay with them until they reach the ship. He wondered if a peinture de l’mort (trans. a death portrait) would be appropriate. Trovalians were a sentimental people. They always commission portraits of deceased loved ones to keep as momentos.

He never really understood why it mattered so much to them. Jack, on the other hand, seemed like someone who would be sentimental enough to appreciate one. Cedric never told the older man that he had a portrait commissioned and waiting to be gifted to his brother should he die before the man. He believed Jack wouldn’t appreciate the forethought given how superstitious the man could be at times.

Their silent trudging was disturbed by bouts of conversation between Adelaide, Jack and Runali. Chaos would chime in with her throaty purrs or high-pitched meows. Coral Pearl remained a silent guardian flying above the trees. She grew more visible as the trees thinned nearer the mountains. It wasn’t long before their breath rose in thick clouds.

“Snow is just too dreary.” The tailor shrugged off his woolen coat and draped it around Runali’s shoulders. She was much shorter than him, so a good part of it ended up trailing behind her. His lips quirked in amusement. “This shade suits you well. It isn’t too surprising since you are fair, Captain. The coat I tailored for you isn’t as colourful, unfortunately. I feel a simple black coat commends more awe and respect when on the battlefield.”

He watched as Chaos began crawling underneath the coat collar for additional warmth. “Don’t forget to come and get fitted soon. I doubt you’d like trying on a thick coat when the weather gets warmer once we leave.”

He did a mental count and realised he hadn’t made a coat for Sara, Alicia and Adelaide yet. From his observation, Zilia and Runali seemed the worst affected by the cold. He made Kadi’s along theirs to make efficient use of the remaining cloth. The bottle green that he used to line the insides of Zilia’s coat suited the navigator too. The only difference was that he used the green on the outside of the navigator’s coat. Jack was happy to borrow his spare coat, so he needn’t worry about his brother for awhile. As for Luro, the man was a walking furnace. He doubted a coat would be of any use. Maybe a thin shirt made of material to better regulate his unnatural body heat, but that’s about it.

“Hopefully the next time we see snow, everyone would have sufficient clothing,” he mused. “Sara’s coat would be easy to make. A structured silhouette fits her boyish figure best. Alicia’s would take awhile. I doubt a coat would fit over her flowing sleeves.” He tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Cloaks can be fashionable too. Yes, maybe a hooded cloak. What do you think, Captain? Adelaide?”

Runali started to mention something about the sudden cold shift, only to feel the weight of warmth suddenly on her shoulders. She looked to see the coat Cedric was wearing, now on her and smiled. “You flatter me Cedric.” She said in playful mock fashion. “Flair and fashion were never my thing in battles, but I s’pose if you make it comfortable enough I’ll end up wearing it.” She tucked further into the coat, much like Chaos did. “Can’t say it isn’t fun. You’ll have to remind me about the fitting though. Or just grab me when you see me on the deck. That’s usually how everyone else gets my attention.” They continued trekking through and Runali shrugged. “The last time we went towards the cold, it didn’t end very well so we’ve been in warmer climates for… awhile. But you’re right, we should have them stored away just in case. I’ll make note to tell Alicia to add fabrics to our list of supplies for you, so she can keep an eye out.” She paused suddenly placing a sleeved hand over her mouth, muffling a laugh.

“Ah, you should…” Runali had a mini debate in her head before continuing. “Probably refrain from mentioning to Sara she has a boyish figure. Something tells me she wouldn’t take that very kindly.” The other option was to encourage Cedric to say, but she didn’t feel like breaking up a fight because Sara’s temper got the better of her. “As for Alicia, I think that dress of hers adapts with the weather. Y’know, warm inside trim and things, but a hooded cloak sounds much cooler and I think you should definitely give her one.”

The group made idle chat, or listened as they went through the snow. When they approached the ship, Runali stopped for a few moments. It had been a days- weeks actually, and she never really got to appreciate all the work done while being curled up inside the ship and away from the cold. So for a moment, Runali stopped and admired the work that had been done. “I gotta say… I am impressed.” She said to no one in particular.

It wasn’t until Coral’s shadow fell over her, did she break from her small trance seeing her ship haloed by the afternoon sun and begin walking again. “Can’t wait to get off this island, that’s for sure.”
 
K4rqyfP.png

Kadi_Banner_V2.png
The Navigator was leaning over the table, his tired, bloodshot eyes staring at the hand drawn map spread on the table’s desk. A lamp was hanging above his head, lazily swaying to the sides as the ship banked giving in to the coastal wind blowing outside. The light coming from the moving lamp was casting long shadows under his eyes, and as it moved it gave impression of two searchlights scouring the landscape.

He slammed the map with his palm. The empty soul jar jumped and the lid clinked as it landed back on the vessel, the clear note emanating telling of the high quality of the porcelain. He threw a positively angry look at Sid, who was standing on the other side of the table.

“Dammit, this place makes no sense! I’ve never seen these weather patterns, mostly because they can’t exist this way! Desert next to a rainforest, separated by a hill. Then a permanently raging blizzard, then a mountain lake. Sid, there’s some kind of magical tomfoolery at play here…”

Cedric didn’t flinch when Kadi’s angry gaze fell his way. He shrugged and took another sip of tea. Kadi’s cup remained untouched. Sid hummed softly, placing his mug back onto tray. “It’s odd, yes. I’m just as baffled as you are, mon ami. Don’t think I know more just because I can cast a few fancy spells.”

The sarcasm in his voice was very obvious. Sid patted Kadi reassuringly on the shoulder. “We should wait for Zilia to finish translating the text carved into the walls. There might be a clue in there somewhere.”

Sensing that Kadi was about to protest, the tailor added. “Magic is a broad term used for everything not related to devil fruit or haki. This includes non-humans too.” He removed his hand from the navigator’s shoulder and waved it about. “Demons … faeries … djinns … phoenixes … dragons ….”

Sid’s mouth quirked in amusement. He was curious to see Kadi’s reaction to him mentioning these creatures. He didn’t believe in them personally, but if he could distract the irritated man for a good fifteen minutes, it’d be worth it. Kadi’s sour mood was only tolerable in small doses and Cedric felt his patience wearing thin.

He shrugged. “We might have stumbled upon evidence that demons or djinns exist. Who knows? That’s the only far fetched explanation I could think of. No human is powerful enough to cast such a spell and sustain it. If there was, I’m sure we’d have heard about them.”

The Navigator gave her a look as flat as a crepé pan. "Evidence? Of course they exist. As do midnight and noon spirits, and gods of oddly shaped utensils stuck in kitchen drawers. I met them, but they are not… they are more simple things, guided more by urges more than free will. Besides, it doesn't explain the soul jar, they don't have souls in the traditional sense…"

“Oh?” Cedric asked lightly. He nudged the man further down this rabbit hole hoping to keep the angsty navigator distracted. “Come to think of it, you keep talking about soul jars for the past few days. What are they exactly? This one looks like an ordinary jar to me.”

Kadi slumped into his chair, kicking accidentally the table. The round soul jar toppled and started rolling to the edge of the table.

"Shi-"

The Navigator lunged after the falling jar, and reached it in time only for his fingers to slip on the smooth surface, propelling it at even faster velocity against the floor. It broke with a clean, soft and couth crack, like as if an expensive saltine cracker was being split at a high end dinner. The green slime residue inside squirted around.

"Huh," he commented, instantly forgetting his ire over the broken pot. He reached in and pulled a small piece of paper, covered in green slime. He placed it on the table and smoothed it.

"For the aspiring adventurer who wishes to accompany on a quest to save the world from ancient evil, please find P. A. Thotnersson at the Port Jazbo," he read. He looked up and gave quizzical look to Sid.

The tailor wrinkled his nose. He fished out his handkerchief and offered it to Kadi. Anything that oozes slime like that was bound to be trouble. They didn’t even know if it was poisonous. Sid decided to keep an eye on the man; he wasn’t willing to remain stranded on this godforsaken island, because their navigator was dead. No one else seemed capable enough to take over.

“I’m surprised you dip your fingers into the slime so willingly,” Cedric remarked. He watched as the green goop formed a puddle. The consistency reminded him of Jack’s Jaipuran porridge, cloyingly thick. He made a face as he imagined how hard it would be to clean up. “I’ll ask Ms. Vilimar to collect a sample and check whether it’s poisoned. But first, your note.”

Sharp eyes danced across the dripping page. He read it twice. His eyes blazed with curiosity. “A promise of adventure, is this not? It’s definitely worth investigating if you are so eager to solve your mystery.”

He pulled away and crossed his arms. The fingers of his right hand drummed his upper arm rhythmically, as Cedric studied the huge world map nailed tacked to the wall. “We months away but I believe the Captain wouldn’t mind us investigating.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mizos and Capt. Blu
Collab bet’w Fox and Silent

181351
181352

Location: Lady Luck, docked at Arc-en-Ciel Ile
Two Weeks After The Court Meet
Midnight


A gentle caress blew against Sid’s cheek as he slept. Adelaide knelt beside him, cradling a purring Chaos in the crook of her arm while teasing her owner awake. The crew was docked at a waystop; one of the common restocking islands that attracted all sorts of people and life. The harbors were bristling with sails and ships ranging from a junker to naval warship. Jack’d asked for them stop here as their food stores were running low, thanks to an anonymous someone who’d eaten all the bread and dried chicken. After rigorous interrogations and a thorough investigation from the ship’s hull to helm, Jack grudgingly concluded that who took the food was not nearly as important as restoring the stores. This port happened to be closest, despite its unwanted traffic and governmental control.

“Come, tomcat. We have a job to do.” Adelaide chomped on a chicken sandwich while waiting for Sid to wake up. She got enough impatient enough to roll the bread in her mouth, preparing to spit-ball it into the young man’s face for ignoring her so long.

Cedric rolled over very reluctantly and his eyes opened. He thought Adelaide would give up if he pretended to be asleep, but he refused to do so anymore. He was in danger of a very disgusting wake up call. Sitting up, he wrinkled his nose in distaste. “E’tu plus vieux q’moi?” (trans. (not literally) “Are you really older than me?”; implied: you don’t act your age)

An ear-reaching smile answered his question. Finishing off her sandwich, Adelaide patted his leg and stood up. The movement caused Chaos to jump from her arms, stretch languidly on the floor, then pranced out of Cedric’s room. “Up up, matou (tomcat).”

He threw back his covers and stood shirtless in front of the pest of a woman. He ran his fingers through his hair while groping around for his shirt. Suspecting that it had been added to the ever growing cat-nest god knows where on this ship, Cedric stalked towards the cupboard to get a replacement.

“I wish you’d steal Jack’s shirts too,” he muttered under his breath as he buttoned up his shirt. “I know why you don’t. I swear the man is starting to smell as bad as his curry pot. I know it’s him even before he passes my door. The stench practically oozes from his pores.”

He turned to check his appearance in the mirror. Dissatisfied with his messy hair, Cedric undid his ponytail and began combing his hair. He narrowed his eyes at Adelaide’s reflection daring her to mock him for using a hairbrush. His eyes narrowed further when he thought he spotted a twinkle in her eyes. He sighed. “It was a gift from one of the Tankards. He wanted to please the pretty new lass.”

“Let’s say he doesn’t enjoy the affections of another man, merci l’toiles.” He placed the brush on the table and tied up his hair. “Whatever the origin, this brush is a small price to pay for getting embarrassed. The bristles are really soft.”

Adelaide smiled but offered nothing more than a shrug. She leaned against the doorframe and inspected her nails.

Chester crawled out from underneath the cupboard. He had the missing shirt clamped firmly in his mouth. Master and cat stared at one another. Sid’s lips twitched. “I knew it! I’m going to find that cat-nest one day and the shirts are returning to this cupboard.”

Green eyes narrowed. Chester flashed his tail at Sid before vanishing with a loud pop. Chaos purred in amusement. The kitten knew exactly where her sibling disappeared to. A secret both swore not to tell Cedric. Their owner cursed under his breath.

“By job, I assume you didn’t wake me up to eradicate a cat-nest, Zebby. So, I’m giving you fifteen minutes to convince me to follow you or I’m going to find Jack.” He crossed his arms. The fingers of his right hand drummed his left forearm impatiently. “I’m also going to guess that you aren’t here to share the latest your latest Felix scheme. I’m not going to try stealing his aeter when I’m supposed to be dead.”

They were lucky to have their previous attempts dismissed so readily. Stealing another Reve’s aeter was the surest way to earn a life sentence. He couldn’t believe he let Adelaide talk him into it not once but twice. Had he really gotten that drunk?

Jack wasn’t happy when seventeen-year-old him had been escorted home after each failed attempt, but his brother’s wrath was nothing compared to Charlotte’s. It made him think twice when the opportunity presented itself again. No, he’d have to be more discreet if he wished to try again.

His eyes flicked to the diminishing sandwich. “So is it Madam or the Guild?” He wasn’t foolish enough to hope for a simple night out. It had been too long since they wandered the streets at night, hit a few pubs and instigated drunken brawls for laughs. He recalled their last sojourn involved an opium den and them leaving with even more money in their pockets. He raised an eyebrow. “Is that a yes or a no?”

Adelaide didn’t move for a solid second. Only her eyebrow twitched up as she watched Cedric mull through his questions, her posture nor features giving away the truth. She pushed off the door frame, arms crossed under her chest, and sauntered soundless until she and Sid were close enough to touch noses. Despite his large height, the smirk she wore gave the feeling that she was looking down on him. She leaned forward, invading his personal space. Her eyes never broke contact from his.

“What do you think I’m doing?” she asked him with a mild tone. “Why do you think I’m on this ship?”

“Jack,” was the automatic reply. “Anything that brings you within a few feet of him has to involve him. Considering you left Madam’s side, then yes, the reason borders on unpleasant.” His eyelids drooped into a lazy gaze. “I doubt his cooking would be enough to bring you here. Nor, shall we say, his prowess in bed.”

“Then, if that’s my reasoning, do you truly need another to follow me? It’s for Jack after all.” She patted his cheek.

Stepping back, she went to the corner of his room and picked up a bundle of clothes. She tossed them at his chest. “Oh, did I forget to tell you? You won’t be needing a shirt.” The bundle consisted of full ensemble: a blue dress, right for Sid’s height and styled from Trovale’s fashion, their home country. It was simple but elegant with a full, sweeping skirt and low-cut bodice. With it were a black cloak, Sid’s personal shoes and necklace made by his own hands, a gold ring, gloves and lady’s face paint.

The smugness practically radiated from the woman like the sun’s heat in doldrums. “Get dressed, tom cat. You’re going undercover.”

He gave a very exaggerated sigh. “The things I do for fère. You and Jack are going to be the death of me one day.”

Very reluctantly, he allowed Adelaide to lead him to the nearest stool. She always insisted she liked pretending he was her little sister. He believed otherwise; she probably enjoyed emasculating him at every opportunity. Jack couldn’t have fallen for a more sadistic woman. Dead even before he’s married. L’toiles benissent d’morts! (trans. (not literally) “Bless him.”; the equivalent of saying Rest in Peace)

“You better not suffocate me when you lace the corset,” he hissed through gritted teeth. He could feel her yanking his hair with savage glee. He winced again. “Zebby, please! Let me do my own hair.”

x-x-x-x-x-x-x​

Outside Douzette

The cat-calls and wolf whistles became more obvious the closer they got towards the pub. Sid’s eyes narrowed as he elbowed a drunk sailor in the gut. He rolled his eyes. He was sure Adelaide did this on purpose. The two of them could have gotten here before this wretched hour. He really hated this woman at times.

“Em gái, những người đàn ông này thật đáng sợ.” He whispered using the local dialect. His eyes widening ever so slightly. He leaned closer to Adelaide. His arms wrapped around hers even tighter than ever. “Chúng ta có thể về nhà không?” (trans. “Sister, these men are scaring me. Can we go home?”)

Arc en Ciel Ile, or Rainbow Isle in Common, was a resort island for the nobles. An idyllic summer getaway known for beautiful flower fields. Cedric realised he hadn’t visited this Trovalian colony in years. The crowd was even more unsavoury than he remembered. He guessed such a lovely place couldn’t stay untainted forever. The poor from the other colonies would come here to look for work. He frowned. How badly were the other colonies doing for the slums to be overflowing?

He leaned his head closer to Adelaide’s, smelling saffron and cinnamon oils from her curls. His breath tickled her ear as he murmured. “Ba đâu rồi? Chúng tôi cần anh ấy.” He lowered his gaze modestly just as she led them into a smokey pub. (trans. “Where’s father? We need him here.”)

He could feel her tensing; she heard his coded message. He waited patiently for her answer. He didn’t like what he witnessed so far. Their king (or father in his coded message) didn’t strike him as someone who would let the colonies suffer like this. He would send government officials to check on the governors every year. Cedric sensed that Trovale was sitting on a powder keg of social and political unrest.

He hoped the government was wise enough to avoid a second bloody revolution. This one was going to much worse. Their army lacked the manpower to clamp down on the unrest both at home and abroad. No matter who took over in the end, Trovale would end up poorer than ever. Losing the colonies meant losing huge tracts of arable land and their status as the top agricultural producer.

Adelaide’s eyes slid over him but she didn’t respond as they entered the pub. A smoky haze blasted in their faces the moment they crossed the threshold. It stung their eyes to water as the din of loud, arguing, drunk voices fill the small hole to its brink. Filled to the brim with patrons, the thin wooden walls looked ready to burst. It was hot and claustrophobic. The ideal place for visiting, criminal riff-raff to spend their nights before kicking off again.

Adelaide’s eyes shifted endlessly across the bar and tables. She identified pirates by their leathery tanned skin and excessive need for ear jewelry; bounty hunters by their rugged clothes and shifty eyes, always glancing towards the door to see if a new target had the misfortune to wander in tonight. Disgraced soldiers were the loudest, their arrogance tripled by drink and loss of purpose. The rest were thieves, cutthroats, swindlers, conmen and any other character with blood money in their pockets. The spy hummed-- it sounded like Chaos’s purr. Sid felt her slip into an effortless; this was her kind of stage, a place she was most relaxed in.

She suddenly gripped Sid’s arm and directed his attention to the bar tucked in the far right corner. She leaned until her lips grazed his ear, and even then it was difficult to hear what she said. “One o’clock at the bar. Black-haired grimace with a white scar on his neck. Trovalian badge on his arm. That’s your target. Get to know him. See what he’s doing tonight.”

She made a smile and pecked a kiss on his cheek. “I’ll be watching.”

She nudged Sid further into the pub and disappeared from his side. The void she left was nominal; it didn’t feel like she’d been there at all.

Cedric pretended to hesitate. He was supposed to be skittish young noble woman. He would have lingered longer, but he saw someone approaching him out of the corner of his eye. The lecherous intent was evident in those red, twitching eyes. He tried his best not to wrinkle his nose in disgust. His persona wasn’t supposed to be that observant.

The interior reeked even more than the streets. Sid withdrew perfumes lace handkerchief and covered his nose. He wasn’t liking this mission at all. The number of hands he slapped on his way to the counter deepened his foul mood. He guessed that’ll explain the lack of bar maids here. This wasn’t the type of establishment women would thrive in. The men here were loathsome. He huffed softly.

Yellowing, bloodshot eyes landed on him shortly after he reached the bar. Sid gave the barkeep a nervous smile. He shrank back by a half step. The hunched man remained silent. Sid waited for a few more minutes, but he failed to get a word out of the man. Great!

“E-excuse me, good sir,” he began in accented Trovalian. It was the accent common among the nobles living south of the Trovalian capital. They were also the owners of most of the resorts on Arc en Ciel Ile.

The barkeep blinked. Sid continued quickly not wanting to lose the man’s attention. “I - I’m looking for my older brother. My parents heard that he was here before he disappeared.”

There was slight frown. Cedric sensed the man was about to protest. Nobles, as far as the barkeep knew, don’t hang around this part of the island. He wasn’t wrong. Most nobles would avoid the slums, but the young men found it thrilling to mill around these cheap pubs. It wasn't a pleasant situation for everyone involved. The number of pickpocketing, muggings and murders increased exponentially whenever a particular slum became fashionable.

Sid pretended to wilt. “It’s … he came to this area with three friends. He disappeared after having a few drinks. No one has seen him since.”

He twisted his handkerchief around in his hands. A universal sign for anxiety. He saw the frown lightened confirming that the barkeep bought his story. A similar incident happened five years ago. Baron Guilhem’s second son met his demise in an opinion den two streets down. It was the opium den he and Adelaide raided a week later. From the looks of it, a successor had already taken its place.

“My parents offered a reward for his safe return … or any useful information.” His eyes were downcast. The handkerchief in his hands was crumpled beyond recognition now. Cedric noticed his mark shifting a seat closer to him. He kept still and waited for the man to approach him first.

“Three friends?” The words came out as five syllables instead of three at Sid’s shoulder. The hunter Adelaide targeted slid over to the next stool to leer at the faux noble mistress. His eyes were unsubtle as looked Sid over, taking a drink before continuing. “‘Might be knowin’ somethin’ aye. Wha’s your brother look like?”

He grinned a cracked smile, two front teeth broken with one silver replacement shining dull against the pub’s smoky light. Up close his stench was prominent: cheap whisky and tobacco on his breath, and the odor of man who hadn’t bathed in weeks lay heavy in his clothes. His look overall was dirty and rugged; he must’ve only come into town recently, being on the road and seas prior. The only untouched accessory was the Trovalian badge on his arm. It shone bright and clean, obviously well taken care of.

Bracing himself on the bar by a forearm, he extended a dirty hand to Sid. “Name’s Fyox. Fyox Drevidge. I’m a Trovalian bounty hunter, milady. I know all about finding folk...for a price, natura’y.” He winked then waved at the bar tender. “George, give the lady whatev’ she like to soothe her worry over her lost brother. My treat. Nows, what can ya tell me abou’ your brother and family?”

Cedric’s eyelashes fluttered. “Oh …. merci, M. Drevidge.” He relaxed his grip on the handkerchief and edged cautiously towards the bounty hunter. He didn’t take the man’s hand as it was a faux pas for a noblewoman to do so. Instead, he waited for Fyox to dust the seat of barstool before he sat down. He gave the man a shy smile. “I’ve never met a bounty hunter before. I heard you are brave and dedicated men who risk your lives to catch criminals.”

“Ah, lassie, ya too kind. Just a way ‘o livin’, it is,” the more he talked, the more his lowtown accent came through. It was similar to Adelaide’s, when she slipped into speech of her childhood. Musical, yet rough and uncultured.

Sid acted a little flustered when the barkeep placed a honey coloured drink in front of him. Sid cupped the glass in his hands but didn’t take a sip. He didn’t like the cloudy appearance of the glass. It looked like it hadn’t been washed in months.

“Is this whiskey?” He asked. “Father doesn’t allow me to drink alcohol unless I’m accompanied by my brothers.”

“It rum, lassie. Not the you had, probably, but likes the best good ole George got. Ain’ that right George?” The bar keeper grunted. Fyox laughed and cleared his throat. “Ah. Alas, I lose focus. Probably got more in me than needed, you know wha’ I mean? You were, uh, gonna tell me about your brothers?”

“Ah, I guess I should. I don’t think my chaperon would be comfortable waiting outside too long. Madam Lettie has been insisting we go back to L’Oustal soon.”

He fell silent and waited to see Fyox’s reaction. Chateau L’Oustal Des Fleurs belonged to the Noailles, one of the wealthiest families in the south. The current head, Duke Noailles, was a first cousin to the current king. Little is known about the family since they were extremely private. All anyone really knows was that he has five grown children, four boys and one girl. His only daughter was rumoured to be well-acquainted with the current crown princess.

Fyox choked on his mead. He coughed and pounded on his chest, spilling a little more over himself in the process. He waved for a towel from George and did his best to cover up the slip. “Yer- ack- related to the Lord Noailles? That right?”

“Oui, I’m his daughter Lady Victoire Noailles. My brother, Lord Hadrien Noailles, is the one who’s missing.”

Sid proceeded to describe Hadrien although he felt it was a little redundant. The man was a familiar face at the court up till a year ago. According to Belvedere, there were rumours that the youngest son had been travelling abroad with several friends. This was the only reason Cedric felt that this cover story was plausible.

Fyox nodded along, showing he was listening as he ate peanuts with grubby fingers. He allowed “Victoire” to describe the missing brother, scratching at stubble thoughtfully. “Your brother, ain’ he the one parading about the Trovales’ estates?”

“I see you are well-informed, M. Drevidge. Are you an important person in the court? I don’t recall seeing you around the palace when I visit Her Highness Princess Celestine.”

He laughed from his belly, nearly choking on his drink again. “Hah hah, my lassie Victoire, your thinkin’ too highly o’ me. Nay, never been to the Court meself-- I only hunt their enemies. Le Renard de la Nuit, Court of Miracles, the Jackal, Lady Red--”

“I’ve never heard of The Jackal before,” his eyelashes fluttered before his eyes widened. He tilted his head in the bounty hunter’s direction giving the impression that he was being extra attentive. “I … oh!”

He pulled away just as his fine locks brushed against Fyox’s forearm. “I remembered something, monsieur. Alfie, I mean Lord Brimeu, mentioned seeing a man approach Hadrien. He didn’t recognise him, but Hadrien did. The two of them left the private room after and approached the bar. Alfie lost sight of them then as it was just too crowded.”

He blinked slowly as if struggling to remember vague details. “He was a noir. Lean physique with hair in tight curls. The type the foreign men his nationality usually have. It flows down his back. His clothes were hidden beneath his cloak. And … oh! He had cat-eyes. Golden like a ginger cat’s…”

Sid broke off abruptly and stared at the whiskey glass in front of him. “I’m sorry if that’s not very helpful. None of us could figure out who the man was.”

The bounty hunter’s silence stretched for too long. He stared at Cedric with beady eyes, looking him up and down in a practice notion, reading who he was from the tiniest details. On the back of Sid’s neck, a chilling breeze created goosebumps. It was Adelaide sending a warning. Caution.

Just when the silence dragged too long, Fyox burst into another rowdy laughter. “Never? Never hear o’ The Jackal? Lassie, milady, wha’ rock is your family livin’ under?” he crowed and held his chest, wiping tears from his eyes. “The Jackal been the most notorious wanted criminal since the traitor Phalton Beaux. King Delmont’s a’calling that murderer’s head for a year now. Don’ tell me you nor your family know nothin’ about him?”

Sid didn’t bother looking over his shoulder. He wouldn’t be able to spot Adelaide unless she wanted him to. He folded his hands, right over left, to indicate he received her message. He tried his best to recall the numerous bounty hunters he met, but the name Drevidge eluded him. Strange. He knew he wasn’t the type to forget a face so easily.

“My family, M. Drevidge?” he tensed up. He gave the man a withering glare, as he straightened visibly as if offended. “My father raised me to be a lady befitting my class. Such matters are often left to men. I have enough trouble keeping busy with the numerous charities I volunteer with.”

Sid reminded himself not to cross his arms, because it wouldn’t appear lady-like. He opted to turn his stool slightly to the left so that he wasn’t looking Fyox straight in the face anymore. He would only face the bounty hunter again if the man apologised. “I think it’s best if I leave soon, monsieur. It’s getting late. Please let me know if you are interested in helping me.”

“‘Pologies, milady. I mean no harm. Just that man you described sounded like the Jackal.”

Sid gave a small start. His hand flew to his mouth, but his “attention” was back on Fyox. He blinked slowly and leaned away slightly. The man seemed a little too eager to study his reflection in Sid’s eyes and that meant invading his personal space. Fyox appeared to be hoping for more out of this interaction. Good.

“I … Monsieur! I don’t think Hadrien would associate with criminals.”

Fyox settled back, shaking his head. “The Jackal’s wanted for mass murder, milady. He massacred a mining village, Oublia. Him and his bloodthirsty pirate crew looted the place and killed every last man, woman and child.” Fyox spat on the ground and slammed his hand on the bar. George, overhearing, made a sign against evil on his chest. The bounty hunter sighed. His expression flushed red with outrage but his eyes shined overbrightly, growing wet on the corner. The look in his eyes burned with loathing, far more heated than a hunter simply afflicting his nation’s opinion. “No one left livin’, there was. A great tragedy. Lots of people in the capital lost family, you know? Was s’pposed to be a great payin’ opportunity fer thee lower class folk-- Oublia, I mean. Digging up aeterium there. Good ‘mount of precious stones too, far as I know. Guessin’ the pirate scum found out and got all greedy like, decided take it fer himself. Ye know I heard tha’ the man was a heartless sun’a bitch-- if you don’t mind me language, milady. Killed all sorts of people, he did. Contracted by the spymaster, some say. ‘Splains how he knew about Oublia.”

“Bonne Florilege a’pitié.” He crossed himself the way the barkeep did earlier. “What has my dear brother gotten himself into? Father would be so worried …” (trans. (not literally) goodness gracious)

The faux noblewoman grabbed Fyox’ arm in a beseeching manner. “Monsieur, how terrible is this Jackal? Would … is my brother safe?”

He leaned back in his chair and ran a hand over his hair. “Man’s been on the run for quite some time. Bounty hunters’ all over lookin’ for him...makes me surprised he’d turned up with your brother, if ye don’ mind me sayin’. Ye described him prett’ well off. Hold on, I think I got a- ah, here it is. This yer man?”

Pulling out a rumpled parchment, Fyox handed it to Sid. It was a bounty of the Jackal. A man with messy dreadlocks from beneath a face mask. He wore a haphazard turban with a cloth connecting from ear to ear hiding the majority of his face. Slanted eyes stared up at Sid. It wasn’t hard to imagine them a glittering gold hue despite the blank and cold expression the drawing gave them.

Sid didn’t have to stare very long at the poster. He recognised the person immediately. The information he gleaned was giving him a headache, but he couldn’t afford to be distracted. Adelaide already warned him to be careful.

Thinking quickly, Cedric forced tears to gather in his eyes. His lashes fluttered delicately causing them to trickle down his powdered cheek. “Oh M. Drevidge, it’s truly terrible. The picture matches Alfie’s description all too well. I … what are we to do?”

His slim frame began shaking with stifled sobs. He read Fyox enough to suspect the man was likely to be sympathetic if “Victoire” started crying. True enough, he heard the rustle of fabric as the man moved closer. Sid’s mind was made up. He was going to kill this man for Jack’s sake. It would be one enemy less to worry about. He allowed his eyes to close. More tears spilled down his cheeks.

Not wanting to leave any loose ends, Sid realised he needed to figure whether there were others working with Fyox. The actual number didn’t matter. The two of them could take them out easily. He faked a shuddering sigh and allowed his mark to draw him closer. Cedric disassociated himself from the physical action. His mind already calculating his next move.

Fyox’ body reeked of stale sweat, dried mud, mead and tobacco. Cedric tried his best not to recoil. He could feel a hand rubbing a little too suggestively around his waist. Definitely an opportunist, he thought. Then again, Trovalian noble women weren’t known to be very chaste. Not this far from home at least. He wondered if he could persuade the bounty hunter to introduce him to the rest of his group.

“M-monsieur?” he stuttered in a softer, more sultry tone. He allowed his eyes to stare wistfully into the man’s darker orbs.

A rough thumb wiped away the lingering tears from Sid’s cheek. He could smell the man’s breath stronger than ever as Fyox leaned closer. The other’s lips were so close that the rancid breath warmed his ear. Sid was glad he replaced his usual earrings tonight. He was sure the man would recognise aeterium the moment he saw those stones.

Cedric’s mind wandered back to Adelaide. He wondered whether she was still close by. She was holding onto his aeterium in case he needed them. All he had on his person was a poisoned dagger hidden in his corset and a vial of strong sleeping draught. He guessed this had to be her plan all along. If not, she wouldn’t have provided him with these tools.

“I … really should go,” he reminded Fyox again. There was a hint of reluctant in his voice. It was implied that he wouldn’t mind having the company for the night. An act that wasn’t going disgrace the real Victoire since Cedric shared her bed more than once. He was sure he wasn’t the only one. “It’s not proper to be seen in public like this. I hope you understand.”

He batted his eyelashes coyly. His hair brushing suggestively against Fyox arm. He made sure to sound wonderfully breathless after that hasty kiss. “We can’t return to the chateau nor are there hotels discreet enough in this area.”

Fyox grinned, barely believing his own good fortune on this night. “Don’chu worry, lassie. I think I knows just such a place.”

Downing the rest of his drink, he tossed some coins on the bar for George then took Sid’s hand and tugged towards the pub’s exit. His grip was tight on his wrist. Not enough to cause bruising, but in the bounty hunter’s overexcitement, he didn’t want to let his luck go. Red marks blossomed quickly on Sid’s pale skin.

Fyox forced their way out, the pub somehow becoming more crowded in the time they’d been talking. He kept Sid close to his side being careful enough to ensure the Lady Victoire wouldn’t stumble or be pushed aside by the ruffians. It over a minute to reach the doorway-- in that time, Sid glimpsed Adelaide only once. Their eyes locked in the briefest moment of two bodies parting, revealing the spy against a paneled wall, her hazel eyes intense in the dimness. Her mischievous air was replaced with blank seriousness. Despite their distance, Sid could imagine how the air around her would’ve dropped ten degrees, remembering the times when she became all business and cast aside her acts humanization. The times when their mission was about to take a bad turn.

The bodies pressed together again. Sid didn’t see her again as Fyox and him breached the pub’s exit, into the cool night.

Fyox stopped short a few feet away, his grip tightening again, his body stiffening. He swayed from the drink yet there was a clearness in his eyes that wasn’t there before. His gaze swept across the town. If asked, the bounty hunter would say a feeling came over him, like they were being watched. He stood there for several seconds, then shook his head. He gave Sid an apologetic smile. “C’mon, milady. ‘Tis a few minutes’ walk from here. A little place on the edge of town I rent whenev’ I come about here. Pop’lar among us bounty hunters. Whadda say?”

Long lashes fluttered seductively, as Sid giggled. He sensed Adelaide tailing them but reminded himself not to turn around. “I trust you, M. Dervidge.”

Fyox’s hand wrapped around his slim wrist even tighter than before. Sid gasped. He was shoved against the wall as rough lips met his again. The kiss was desperate and panicked. His eyes widened in surprise.

A yellowed smile flitted across Fyox’s face followed by a wink. The Stardusk tailor suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. Cedric’s heels clattered softly against the cobblestone. They were weaving through dark alleyways. He sensed that Fyox was trying to outrun Adelaide. It won’t help, he thought.

Clasped in Sid’s hand was the aeterium Adelaide passed to him earlier. While Fyox was busy kissing him in the bar, the crafty woman pressed close and slipped it into his hand. His stones, being sibling pairs, meant they were able to communicate with one another. Track one another even. So, with Adelaide holding onto Chester’s stone, she’d have no problem finding him.

“Where are we, Fyox?” he asked softly.

“Just round the corner, lass,” came a voice thick with lust and adrenaline. The sweat on the man’s palms were eating through Cedric’s lace gloves.

The younger man tensed. He clasped his soul stone even tighter. He didn’t want to know what Fyox was planning. His eyes darted around as the man pulled him through the doorway.

Five other men sat around a scarred round table. The wood was literally grey with age. Sid coughed as the smoke filled the area like a toxic haze. His spotted the Trovalian badge adorning each of their arms. He pretended to sputter some more.

Leery conversation passed over his head. Cedric pretended to shrink away, pressing himself closer to Fyox. He hoped the man would whisk him away sooner, so that he could get this over and done with. He wasn’t keen to keep play acting for such foul men. He suspected that if the real Victorie was here she’d end up another missing statistic.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

“It wasn’t just Jack, was it?” Sid asked as he allowed the blood crusted dagger to clatter on the floor beside his last kill. “They were responsible for another noblewoman’s disappearance, yes?”

His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Whose fiancée or daughter was it this time?”

He felt he deserved to know. He and Adelaide used to do this all the time. Investigate then dispense justice as they see fit. Fyox and his men were just another statistic. Same as the gang running the opium den where Baron Guilhem’s son met his end. Charlotte never soiled her white gloved hands.

The pause was a little too long. Sid rolled his eyes. “No? Then it must a young couple. Disappeared and were never found. I bet you received word of it when you dropped by outpost.”

He straightened his ruffled dress, ignoring the tear in the front. He stole a fallen cloak off the floor and threw it over his shoulders. Slowly, he began searching for two corpses. He tried not to smile at the irony of the situation. Even after going into hiding, he was still doing Charlotte’s bidding. How quaint.

They found their first body stuffed inside the closet. The young lordling’s clouded eyes stared at them from the floor. A foul smell assailed their noses, forcing both to step away. Maggots and a strange greenish-yellow liquid seeped into the dusty floor. Adelaide turned his over. The multiple slashes, some crusted with blood, told them all they need to know.

“Not the killing one,” someone muttered.

On instinct, Adelaide turned the corpse around. The skull was caved in. Blunt but effective. Neither of them blinked. They’ve done this before. Surveying corpses and getting rid of them before their relatives saw the deceased in such a horrid state.

Sid ripped the cloak off the nearest fallen bounty hunter and threw it over the dead nobleman. “He fought hard enough for them to try and subdue him. It’s one of the more dignified deaths we’ve seen.”

“Nothing’s dignified in death. It is what it is,” she replied in a flat voice. They were the only words she spoke during their clean-up of the hunters’ hideout.

The second corpse had been thrown down the dried out well. A quick glance was all they needed before they replaced the lid. There was simply no retrieving the body when the well was that deep. Sid turned to Adelaide and she nodded.

Remaining completely silent, they tossed the young lordling into the well. Next, they dumped a copious amount of kerosene followed by a lit torch. They remained just as silent as they rearranged their crime scene and made it look like a drunken brawl gone wrong.

The two assassins strolled nonchalantly down the streets. Both knew that even if there were witnesses, no one would ever step forward. The people here were simply too suspicious of authority. Some even resentful. Sid pulled the cloak tighter around his shoulders not enjoying the nippy pre-dawn breeze.

“She’s going to know,” Cedric said finally.

Adelaide stopped. “I don’t think she’ll be your immediate concern.”

Farther down the street, Jack stepped out from a darkened alleyway. Two hard, disapproving eyes met each of theirs in turn. Adelaide smiled at his gaze. He closed them. He took a cigarillo from his mouth and stamped it into the ground, then turned his back to them and walked away before they could get close. Doubtless they’d hear his words later and separately. Adelaide hummed low in her chest. “What’s the number one rule of Stardusk? ‘Don’t kill unless given permission’? I think we just broke it.”

“We killed? I thought we visited the brothel to pass time. There’s been a lack of good looking people lately and I needed the distraction.”

Cedric saw Jack’s back tensing and knew the man heard him. The wind wasn’t an obstacle to such sharp ears. He added as a side comment. “I’d prefer pancakes for breakfast today, merci. No more naan with too much garlic.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mizos and Capt. Blu