Pirate Age: The Golden Era

[Fox of Hearts]

Team Rat Bait: Durant, Ray, Hewitt, Hana and several unnamed NPCs

@Grothnor and @Fox of Hearts

"Nah, we can't." Durant spoke, whipping out another knife and launching it straight at a rat jumping right at him. The wicked blade struck it squarely in the abdomen and it ended up a twitching mess on the floor. "What I say is we show them the combined might of Cerania and Lendria!"

"Yeeehaw!" a man around 40-years-old with a wide-brimmed sombrero whooped. "That the spirit, brothers! I say we get ramblin'."

"Pshaw," Durant sighed. Even without his blue eyes making contact, he could tell the bronzened skin man was towering behind him. The shadows cast by the mongrel of dubious descent made it harder to spot the black bodies running straight at him. "Do what you will, Hewitt. Me and Lendry here are fending off the small ones."

"Ya don't say," the former Captain of the Sombra de Océanos laughed, as he removed his sombrero and tossed in Hana's direction. He gave the girl a thumbs up not quite caring that she looked more stunned than anything as she stood there with the hat clutched in her shaking, white hands. "Let's round 'em up!"

Guttural snarls filled the air, making Durant turn round in time to see Hewitt transforming. He wanted to toss in several snide comments about "Werewolf Boy" when a fleeting shadow off to the side grabbed his attention. Instinctively, the man gripped the sticky handle of his bloodied knife and bided his time. Whipping around, he slashed at the air, gutting one rat and beheading a second one in the process. He didn't even pause for a second before sending his knife into another incoming target.

The last of the current onslaught squeaked shrilly as it fell to the ground. It writhed in pain and panic as dozens of ravenous brethren set upon it. Not a single paw nor Durant's knife was left insight. The Ceranian spat in disgust. "There goes a second knife. Pity the craftsmen's dead so I can't get more."

He was whipping out a third knife from his precious collection when a Hewitt charged at the mess of bodies. Leopard claws and fangs glinted wildly in the dim light, as the zoan-user ripped through rat after rat. Durant tsked loudly before shouting at Ray to buck up. With the three of them fighting viciously, the scent of blood started overpowering the putrid stench of the surroundings, luring in more starving vermin.

"Oi! Freeze one of 'em openings," a woman shouted at Ray while slapping him round the back of the head to get his attention. "We're up in our ears soon!" She pushed back her wave of cornrow braids out of her face, spun round and fell the first of the new wave with her sword whip.

Durant sneered playfully. "Who are you to boss us around? Let the men do the work. You women take the girl and run."

"Ha ha ..." she snorted. "No time for penis envy, son. I know I wear the pants round you pussies. An'way grab kitty cat and we scram. Got it?"

The woman's suggestion was backed up by Bannon's cry to retreat from the opposite side, where the Yula Fei captain and eleven men tried their best to contain the wrath of the rat king. Hana knew that they better start the retreat soon, because it didn't look like the group could hold on much longer after two more men fell prey to the horde. Now there were nine left. Seven were trying to keep the furry tsunami from engulfing them while Bannon and Luro focused on the leader.

The teen dropped Hewitt's sombrero while stepping away from the retreating crowd surging towards the two tunnels on Bannon's side. Already, the girl suspected that Ray and Durant were going to be the last to retreat. She glanced in their direction, grappling with a decision that clearly went against Alicia's instructions. Her mentor allowed her to join the mission if she promised to keep safe. That meant that she ought to be retreating with the rest, but Hana felt it was equally wrong to abandon Ray like this. Alicia spoke highly of the Stardusk, telling Hana how Yula Fei owed the brave men and the Captain a great debt. For that alone, Hana decided she was going to stand by the Lendrian's side and do her best to protect him.

Slowly and painstakingly, she elbowed her way through the crowd until she finally found herself standing close to Ray. She wanted to reassure the man but like before she couldn't bring herself to say a word. Bowing her head instead, Hana allowed her fringe to fall over her eyes while she tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword. Her palms grew damp with cold sweat, causing the seasoned leather wrapped round her sword hilt grew damp to the touch. She swallowed then her lips started forming the words of her silent vow. Don't worry, I'll protect you when Lady Tashigi isn't here.

Hana's heart leaped into her throat when she heard scurrying of paws patter against the grimy cement floor. Her eyes opened in alarm, as a single thought crossed her mind - self-preservation. The girl unsheathed her sword with practiced ease and lashed out at the rats pouring in from above. Her blade was about to make full contact with the furry bodies when a flash of hesitation shone in her eyes. Worry. Guilt. The two primary emotions running riot in the majority as they were about to draw blood for the first time. No matter how horrible these creatures were she simply couldn't bear the thought of snuffling out the light their eyes.

Changing her momentum at the very last second, Hana managed to sent the rats flying into a group bunched up to the side. As the shocked rats lay on the ground beside the bones of Durant's earlier kill, they were promptly torn up by their undiscerning comrades. The growing pool of blood made Hana's knees buckle slightly. She dug the tip of her sword into the ground and supported herself by pressing her weight onto the hilt. Those poor rats, she thought. Dying like that must be awful. All that struggling to break free as your friends turn on you. She closed her eyes and shuddered more. It made her feel very guilty for being root cause of their deaths.

"Oi!" Durant shouted, cutting through Hana's thoughts. "Don't stand there! More are coming!" To emphasize his point, the man booted a rat right into the wall in front of him and sent his knife whizzing to the right. It speared through the head of rat going for the girl's left ankle. "Either you fight or get lost."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Team King Rat: Luro, Bannon and 7 "Cannon Fodder" (Kidding, of course! May the NPCs live a long life...)

@Mizos @Capt. Blu and @Fox of Hearts

Bannon promised to honor the pirate's dying words weird as they sounded to him. He assumed it was how someone from a different culture professed their love to their wives. He clenched a fist and held it before his chest, turning round to his remaining men and shouted. "Alright, the last of the second team are clearing the exit. You seven get ready to retreat. Grab Raymond, Hana and that tr - I mean that other man with you."

"Aye!"

Trusting that the men could fend for themselves, Bannon allowed his spear arm to dip lower as he ran towards the rat. He had a plan mapped out in his head and the best way to start was to get the brute's attention. And Luro's, since the man was already there anyway. He doubted he could take down the rat thing himself. "Luro! Why don't we turn it into your steed?" he yelled. "Better a spirited mount than a dead trophy, eh?"

As expected, the spiked tail whipped forward towards him, but the man used the butt of his spear to vault upwards. The rat king felt a sharp pain as Bannon's weight pressed down on its tail and it responded by twisting its head and front body back. Boulder sized, yellowing teeth snapped viciously in an attempt to snatch Bannon out of the air. The soldier remained calm and collected, knowing that he was still out of reach. Then, as he neared the jaws of death, he thrust his spear forward. The tip wedged firmly between the two front teeth and he vaulted again. Blood spurted from the mouth when a single tooth dislodged in the process, causing the behemoth to shriek in pain.

The wild threshing made it harder for Bannon to correctly estimate his fall. So, instead of landing behind Luro, the man ended up on the nape of the rat's neck just in front of the Stardusk gunner. Bannon stabbed the back end of his spear round the underside of fleshy, furry neck and his free hand clutched the butt tightly. He gritted his teeth before yanking the shaft of his spear up sharply towards the area he believed the windpipe was.

The rat bucked crazily not liking the choking sensation. Finally, realizing that the pesky humans refused to let go, the rat king pushed itself off the ground and stood on its hind legs. Bannon slipped from his perch but he managed to hold on thanks to the shaft of his spear anchored by the frontside of the neck. "You okay, Luro?"

 

[Arcadius]

Collab

Team Disguise
Location: Inside Kane'Artem: Up to floor 50

It didn't take long for the Navy Overseer, Dumas, to return holding a key ring with one single key on it. "Alright, let's get these prisoners in the cells before they think to cause any trouble."

Arcadius made a hand gesture towards the rest of the undercover crew to move along with Dumas. "Very well, then. If it is not too great breach of a protocol, I'd like for us to follow you and your men on the escort to your floor. You see, this particular snot on the humanity's shirt," he said to the overseer, and proceeded to punch Saff into the back. They needed to be convincing Navy Officers, after all. "Indeed, she, well, her underling to be precise, brought the disease to our ship. I hold her personally responsible for his death, and we'd very much like to see her get chained down in a cell, where she and her alike belong!" he finished, slowly raising his fervour and volume as he spoke until he nearly shouted, giving the pirates under guard a very convincing menacing look.

Dumas bought into the anger Arcadius gave and gave an affirmative nod. "Yes, of course." Gesturing towards the three other guards that accompanied him, they grabbed onto the chained prisoners and led them off. Through the interaction, Dani raised her head in a prideful manner as if claiming the death as her own. Saff on the other hand glared at the navy officers as if daring them to try and touch her again.

The elevator was certainly crowded as they made their way up. That certainly worked in their favour, Arcadius thought. He looked up and tried to find Alicia in the crowd, as well as Saff and Dani, hoping to get eye contact with them. He gave few nods towards Dumas, when he was sure the overseer was not looking. Hoping he'd made his intentions clear, he shuffled over to Dumas' side and leaned close to the man. "So, you have more of Cutthroats locked up in here? Let me guess," he whispered with a sly smile and gave the man a friendly nudge with his shoulder. "Get the full house into your hand, and then mass execute them, one by one? To send a very, very clear and proper message what awaits those akin to them. Oh, I'd really like to see that. Sad our beloved captain has been stolen from such sights for sore eyes..."

Dumas and his guards paid no mind to the wandering eyes, used to 'curious glances' around the prison. He only looked up Arcadius grabbed his attention. The man's curiosity made him chuckle a bit, happy to have some sort of life back in what many of the prisoners and overseers called hell. "That wouldn't be a bad idea at all. It would sure set an example to pirates all over the world- but that's more of the Warden's call, not mine." He glanced upwards before adding, "Yeah, we've got another put in a special holding. Ones that are...stronger than necessary," Dumas seemed to say that with a bit of disgust. "usually end up in some sort of holding to accommodate them."

Besides taking note that she was definitely going to get Arcadius back for his 'acting skills', Saff was also taking note of what Dumas was saying. Every little thing counted. She was just glad this guy was an overseer that liked to talk unlike the ones accompanying them. "Tch, I'd love to see you try..." The woman muttered when they insulted her crew.

Dumas only rolled his eyes. "Don't worry about her. Their spirits are always broken first. She's not going anywhere. But who knows, she may see the rest of her crew soon enough." After a few minutes of slow ascent, Dumas also mentioned, "For these floors, Hye- uh, Hector has the key. Just...just remember to not stare too much- or mention anything." This actually caused a the accompanying guards to visibly shudder.

Arcadius looked up from where he and Dumas were standing, and gave Saff a genuine, psychopathic smile. The expression spoke about someone who'd invest a whole year, a decade even, to paint daily pictures her in her small cold cell, deprived from all human contact, day by day losing the link to what made her human. He'd paint her transition from a human being, thinking, feeling, into a feral animal, driven by mechanical instinct. He'd draw her, and he'd enjoy it, to see the metamorphosis from someone to something. He always imagined gaolers and jailers slipped into this sort of state of mind over the years spent tending their subjects. Perhaps bit of a method acting would help to get Dumas sympathetic to his cause. "Do you have more like her, then?" he asked the man. "I sincerely hope you turn all of them into animals that can't even pronounce their own names. Degenerate them past the point where they can even conceptualize begging for merciful death."

Elise leaned against the wall of the lift as it slowly ascended. With one eye closed, her hands were folded across her chest in a posture that subtly telegraphed her distaste for her surroundings. Despite that, it was not her first time visiting this prison, and she had been fairly open with her objections to the prison's practices. Unlike the others, she saw little purpose in acting. She raised an eyebrow at Arcadius. "Check yourself. Pirates or not, that's not conduct I'd like to see from an officer."

Alicia had been keeping the whole time, same as Elise, but she glanced over at the other overseers every now and then. She counted weapons, analyzed where she could strike and easily take them out. As usual, she was quiet but attentive.

Dumas straightened up, not so much because Elise told them to- or was intimidating, but because they had finally reached the right floor. "Alright... We're here." He, and his guards, led the way out.

 

[Capt. Blu]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Disguise Group → Floor 50 [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]He seemed awfully uneasy for someone who had been working in the prison for years. As they walked past the 'regular' prison cells, the group got a glimpse of all the prisoners inside. Some got a little rowdy upon seeing new faces, while others remained as lifeless as ever. Saff straightened up. She didn't want to stand out too much, but she knew Belen was close by. Of course, Dumas told them, but as close as they were getting she was more sure of herself. "She's not too far-" Saffron started to whisper to Dani, only to stop rather abruptly. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Hector, sir!" A green haired man, tapping rapidly on a clipboard stopped in his tracks and looked at the group. "We've gotten an emergency shipment of prisoners. This navy crew's ship was attacked and their captain was killed. We- we thought it best to bring these two up here before they were able to cause trouble." He gestured towards Saff and Dani. "One is pure Cutthroat no doubt, the other aided with the ambush." At this point, he looked over at Arcadius, Elise, and Alicia, so they could explain their story more clearly if need be.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Hector sauntered forward with a ravenous glint in his eye. "You should called over comms first…" The tapping against the clipboard finally ceased when he was in front of Saff and Dani. With sharp nails, he grabbed her chin and turned her head this way and that. "But...heheh, you're right. This one's worth a whooole lot. Another to the collection too. This one," His gaze shifted to Dani. While she was much taller than him, Hector still grinned wildly. "I like this one. I can see the rage in her eyes. She's got blood on her hands and only wants more." He began to cackle, enjoying himself thoroughly. "You have IDed them, right? That's the only reason I'm on this floor anyway..." He rolled his eyes before glancing over his shoulder to a prison not too far from them. "Some just can't stand the thought of living here for so long." [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"N- Not yet, sir. I planned to do so after this-" Dumas paused when Hector's eyes narrowed. The pause made everyone tense in anticipation for the worse. Hector knew his actions made people uncomfortable and it only made him giggle more. He pulled the single key from his back pocket and swung it around his finger. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"You two," He pointed to the two quiet overseers. "Get rid of this dead body for me. You can toss one of these...lovely ladies in this cell." [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Saff's eyes narrowed a bit, even though they couldn't be seen through the goggles. The key they needed was so close, but she knew nothing about this creepy overseer besides the fact that there was something off putting about him. He wasn't to be underestimated...but this could have been the only chance they had, without getting locked up for good. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]~~~~~~~~~~[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Team Sewer --> Trash Shoot [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The king rat had to stop thrashing about now that Bannon had his spear pressing into it's next uncomfortably. That didn't stop it from hissing and growling as it stood there. The calamity of the smaller rats didn't stop, but it did die down when they realized their 'king' had been subdued. It was enough to give Ray time to open one of the grates that the group chose, albeit in panic. "Move it, move it!" Hewitt said, as if rounding the pirates up like cattle. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]This group didn't need to be told twice. As soon as they were given the chance, the group rushed into the grate. Oddly enough, they noticed that none of the smaller rats would follow. In fact, they all began to back away when the pirates retreated. Bannon and Luro 'tamed' the beast until every one of them had managed to escape. To the ones that were lost so early on, he could only sigh. "We'll get your families out and tell great tales of your sacrifice." With no time to mourn, Bannon heaved to the side, causing the monstrous rat to rear back and fall to it's side. "No time to waste Luro!" He hadn't actually gave warning to the tall redhead, but with high hopes he grabbed onto the man, arm or collar (he was in a bit of a rush) and ran up the steps to the open grate. When the rat realized it was free, it chased after the two, narrowly missing the fabric of Luro's close. "Ahah! We made it out, now let's keep moving!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]While Bannon was raring to go, most of the others took a quick resting break. "Let's go! Who knows how far our companions have gotten! No time to lose!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Moving farther along the path they chose, the smell had gotten no better. Though, instead of sewage it smelled of trash. Which, in hindsight wasn't much of a difference, but they could also see the piling trash the farther they got towards the end. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"It's a dead end… Of trash. Great." Durant grumbled and he kicked a banana peel off his shoe. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"No my friend, it's our ticket in." Hewitt had an arm around Durant when he pointed upwards to just what he was talking about. When everyone looked up, they could see that around 4 meters up was an opening to the trash shoot. "We've gotta get up there, but I don't think this trash will be easy to climb." [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Nonsense. We try anyway-" His voice had actually softened, compared to all his yelling before. "And we do so quickly and quietly." Before he began his efforts, he looked over at Hana amidst the small crowd. "Climb on my back small one! I'll need your stealth when we get to the top. Quiet as you are, I'll need you to check and make sure there's no one around when we make our escape." It was a serious job, but Bannon figured if he put a little pressure on the girl, she'd be more focused on the task than actually worrying about everyone. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Remember to stay quiet. We're officially in stealth mode at this point."[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]

Read: Start of This Chapter l From the Beginning[/BCOLOR]​

 

[Winter]

~"I like surprises... surprises don't like me ... "~​

Alicia had been remaining quiet through most of the interactions as the guards spoke among themselves, while Arcadius favored to show just how good he was at acting. Instead of sharing in the conversation she chose to observe on her surroundings, from weapons and locations to taking notes of exits or places where the environment could be used to their advantage. This wasn't unlike Alicia but this went beyond the realm of pre-planning out of prudence. They were walking into unknown territory, a stronghold full of their enemies and individuals who undoubtedly held power of their own.

Eventually of course they came upon their final stop, presented with a cell which would soon belong to Saff as indicated by the off putting man before them. This would be it, their moment to seize control and make the first step in finding the captain and escaping this living hell. Alicia pushed her thumb against the guard of Shusui, a faint click being the only warning they'd receive before her blade moved in staggeringly swift arcs, the back of the blade striking the necks of the guards to incapacitate them, their bodies falling simultaneously before the blade finally came to rest at the neck of Hector. "I'll trade your head for that key" she said softly.

 

[Winter]

Collab - Cross & Winter

Hector glared angrily at Alicia for a split moment, before his mouth stretched out into a wide grin. He chuckled slightly as a glee filled his eyes. "Heeeeeh hehhh hehhhh. I hope you know what you're doing girly, because I certainly do." His inhumanly tongue stretched out and licked along his lips as his eyes focused in on Alicia's gaze.

Alicia's eyes narrowed as he responded, her wrist turning slightly to bring the edge of the black blade more firmly against his neck. "I have little time for games, and I will not ask a second time" she paused momentarily, meeting the gaze of the off putting individual. Despite her given response she couldn't help but notice the details that rapidly made it clear he was something other than human, his tongue stretching beyond that of a normal man. Alicia wouldn't allow this information to break her composure, but she mentally checked herself to be ready for an unwelcome surprise.

Hector's head snapped back in a lightning motion, his face slammed down onto the blade, but as Alicia looked at him, he looked back. Her blade now rested between his teeth as hair began to sprout all over him, his distant glare of grotesque hunger morphed into something inhuman. He twisted his head, throwing the blade sideways, Alicia along with it. He twisted his body & did a roll backwards, his head stooping into a more hideous canine-like fixage as he ripped an axe off his belt. With a sharp squeal, he laughed. "You'll make good flesh food HEHEHEHEHE" He roared with sharp pitch, his grinning canines glistening with saliva.

He lunged forward, his axe making a full swing across as he charged Alicia.

Alicia's eyes widened slightly when his teeth came down on her sword, her grip tightening in response as she braced. Being thrown demonstrated just how strong this man was, just in the muscles of his neck for his ability to throw her to the side in a single movement. The Swordswoman nimbly twisted with the momentum, doing a small aerial cartwheel before landing on her feet facing Hector, her sword leveled in a combat stance. Alicia was finally able to take in the full sight of him for the first time, momentarily stunned before her mind was able to refocus on the imminent danger as he ran towards her. "Of course my luck would be that bad... " she muttered mostly to herself before she bent her knees, pushing forwards to propel herself at speed to meet the threat.

Sparks flew as the sword & axe clashed against each other. Hector grimaced as her sword withhold the full force of his swing, this girl was not becoming immediately overwhelmed by the pure brute force. "Tssssskkkkkkkk, You know what you're doingggg hehehe" He took a step forward, forcing Alicia to slide along the ground as their blades continued to press against each other. "Butttt you know... all I have to do is yellllllll.... & they'll hear... Oh yes how they'll hear....."

Had her sword been made from more common metals or had it simply had a lower quality, it would've snapped like a twig under the sheer strength of her opponent, regardless of her own strength and power. The blade glinted in the light of the sparks, as if it relished the challenge from the axe as it stole the light from it's immediate proximity. Her heels lifted as she slid, her lithe frame bracing as she tensed herself. "That's right, call for your masters... like a good dog" she attempted to bait him into silence, a strategy to use his ego to keep him from calling out for help. She'd push back against him a little before allowing his strength to push past her, attempting to maneuver around him in a nimble spin before bringing her sword upwards across his back.

"Oh no, oh nononon... you see, they'd just want you to talk then throw you in a cell, I wants-" His words were cut short as his lunge fell short, a deep gash forming on his back as she played him. He screamed, but without turning, he fell down, his back leg slamming straight into Alicia, slamming her back agaisnt the cell. Squeals echoed in the hallway as he cried from the gash, blood profusely leaking down into his fur as he stood up & turned back towards Alicia. "Yoooouuuu know, I think I'm starting to like the idea of getting my teeth on you..... Heheheee. I'm not so bad once you get to knowww meee, real honessst".

The kick was unexpected, even more so it's power as she was sent flying back into the bars of a cell, the uneven surface bringing her a fair amount of pain as air was forcefully pressed from her lungs, almost winding her in the process as she let out a light gasp. She gritted her teeth as she stood and recomposed herself, flicking her blade towards him as she fell once again into a combat ready stance. "You talk to much... you need a muzzle" her left eye began to take on a slight blue'ish aura before she stretched her arm out to the side, once again lowering into a crouch before darting towards him in a burst of speed that kicked up dust in her wake. She'd attempt to make him swing for her, waiting for the axe to pass before closing the gap to strike through an opening.

Not waiting for another trick, Hector swung his axe in but it traveled past her, with his other arm, he brought his claw straight aimed for Alicia's face but as it went down past her blade, he flinched. The tip of his claw slid against Alicia's face as a wave of blood fell to the floor, Hector took a few steps forward as the two past each other. A tear of blood dripped down from Alicia's cheek, a bucket's worth from Hector. He shook as he snarled back at her. "Okayyyy..... you got me... I lostttttt.... Is that deal still on the tableeee? I'd like to keep my head hehee" he said before squealing in pain.

The exchange was so aggressive and so fast that anyone looking in on the fight wouldn't rightly know what had happened or whom came out the victor till a few seconds had passed, each of them standing motionless on the other side of the other for a moment. Blood ran down the smooth curve of her cheek, staining it red as she turned to face Hector, her sword flicking away his blood before returning to her saya in a single smooth motion. Her cheek burned from where his claw had caught her but she didn't yet feel it with the adrenaline still coursing through her body. She'd keep a hand rested on the hilt of Shusui as she approached him, her expression betraying nothing as she spoke. "Surrender the key, and I will honor the deal and leave you with your life".

Hector dropped his axe & slipped a key out from his pocket & tossed it to Alicia, at no point has he stopped grinning. "Thereeee you goooo.... hehehehe" He took a few steps away from the cell as the key landed in Alicia's hand. His glare continued. "Ssssso what will you do nowwww?"

Alicia's blood stained hand clenched around the key as she caught it, eyeing it for a moment before looking to regard Hector as he asked her a question. She thought about answering it truthfully, wondering what real impact it'd have if he knew their intentions. Perhaps it would, after all who was to say someone wouldn't happen by and release them after she locked them in a cell. "I'm going to get what I came for, then leave" that was all she'd give to the creature before she'd motion for him to step into the empty cell meant for Saff prior to the fight. She'd wait for him to enter before proceeding to use the key to unlock the restraints on Saff and Dani. Once the rest of the unconscious guards were placed in the cell, she'd lock it with the key.

His eyes didn't once break their gaze as he walked in, "ssssmart of you", He giggled & winced in pain as he stood within the cell. "You'll never gettt out of this place you knoww..." he muttered as the cell locked. Once they had placed the group within, he began to squeal uncontrollably. "OH oh, you know, there are so many peoples here that are so much ssstronger than I am, you'll be ripped apart so sssoon if its not me feasting that soft flesh. HEE HEEE HEEEE RAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" as he lauged, he took deeper & deeper breaths until he let out a massive roar that hurt the ears of everyone present to hear it "HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHA" He resumed grinning at Alicia, his teeth dripping even as he tried holding his wound closed.

The swordswoman held her ears as he roared, gritting her teeth before she pulled her sword, striking it at an angle against the seastone bars to create a sharp metalic sound that'd ring in the creatures sensitive ears. "Mutt... I'll take my chances" she said before turning towards the others, her expression stern and expressive of the gravity to their situation. "We need to leave, now" she said before turning towards Hector once more, holding her blade in a threatening manner to strike the bars again. "Where is Belen?" she had to hope this creature knew the name of Saff's friend, it'd be a problem if they had to search with the alarm having been sounded.

He yelped in response to the rattling, grimacing at her before responding. "Sssshes pass the archway down the hall, 3rd door on the right.... you cant misssss it, all the guards in that area are eunichsssss hehehe, this floor is called the Harlot House for a reasssson.... so sssaddd you're going to get trapped here for getting your harlot backkkkk....heh"

 

[iiSaralaxyii]

"I am the shadow, and smoke in your eyes, I am the ghost that hides in the night."

"Aidan's not gonna be happy you're tampering with those chains." Cecilia heard her friend said, and laughed in amusement. She stopped rubbing her ankles and looking through the bars to the eyepatch girl. "I don't give one damn about what that overseerer has to say 'bout it. All he does is watch me trough the bars. Teh only one of us he cares to give a shite about is you." She chuckled, staring at her friend on the other side. She smiled a bit when Runali asked if she had a knife on her, but alas she did not. They had taken away all her weapons when they captured her, which had really pissed her off, but at least she had that pin which took the shackles off. Don't really matter tough, does it? Unless a damn miracle happens, I'm stuck in 'ere. Tey're gonna put them shackles back on me the moment tey find out I took 'em off. Probably gonna check me again too. She thought, staring at the bars which entrapped her. She moved towards them, not thinking about what she was doing, and reached an arm out, her hand outstretched. Even if she was released from these bars she'd be trapped in the building. How many more days 'til my execution again? If I remember, the other day a guard said I had only a few days left..... That means.... I'll be dead come the day after tomorrow. The thought caused a shiver down her spine. She did not fear death. What she feared was never accomplishing her goals. Thinking about it caused her to sigh and Cecilia stared at the ground. Unwillingly, she thought back to her brother and the memories she held of him. All the times he saved her, got himself hurt to protect her, and told her stories. Remembering it she smiled, a look of peace falling on her face. It twisted to pain though when her memories shifted to when he was taken and the things that followed afterward. Leaning back against the wall, close to the bars, Cecilia closed her eyes and rid the memories from her current thoughts.

[Sorry it's little >.<]​

 

[Grothnor]

No Rum Here =( -----> Team Sewer
@Mizos @Grothnor @Fox of Hearts

Ray was quite glad to be away from the rats. "Disgusting creatures. Hell of a way to go."

"You don't say, Lendry," Durant snorted. "You like pointing out the obvious." He went on to mutter something under his breath about idiots. The man gingerly inspected the wall before choosing the least grimy spot to lean against with his arms crossed his chest. "The smartest way's back and finding another route."

"Psh, and running that gauntlet again? We can't sustain the losses. No, we have a way in right here." Ray pointed up to the garbage chute above the pile. "Trust me, it'll be a lot easier to get up there than fighting our way past those rats. We just gotta find some way to get up there. Of course, if you want to go back, by all means, please do."

Hana glanced up like Durant when Ray pointed upwards. Her pupils dilated slightly as the dim light filtering in seemed much brighter than their current surroundings. She blinked slightly, wondering if she imagined hearing voices from above. They were as soft as wind's whisper on a sweltering summer day. "It's very far," she observed. "I can't hear the words clearly."

Bannon scratched his head. "Not too far if we can hear people up there. Might dent a knife or two using them to claw our way up." The man took out a knife and stabbed at the wall. Sparks flew with each successive blow but he managed to force his blade into the thick cement. He paused to wipe away the sweat dripping down from his brow.

"Bad idea, partner," Hewitt said with a yawn. "We don't have that many knives nor should we waste energy doing that." He leaned forward then back, stretching his arms fully. "I won't even bother climbing the sides like a kitty cat. The sides are slick as a duck's back."

"And no grip or ledges," the woman from before commented as her whip fell towards her again. She had been trying to find even the smallest ledge while the men jabbered but it seemed like this was cess pit was designed to be another death trap. "Say, ice boy," she beckoned to Ray. "Help us create some ledges round the sides. A stairs like you did outside the cliff, you know. Might as well put your powers to good use."

"I don't think that'll work." Ray said. He had been thinking the whole time about that, and had concluded it wasn't possible. "I'd need to anchor the stairs on something, and that garbage pile is too unstable to use. And before you ask, freezing the entire garbage pile would just make it too slippery to climb and exhaust me in the process."

Durant guffawed. "Told you, we don't have a plan." He tilted his hand backwards, jabbing Ray in the chest with his thumb. "Don't catch the stupid from Lendry here. I mean what you wanna do? Have this idiot here scream himself hoarse till someone pokes their head down?"

Ray silently fumed before Bannon snorted in response to Durant's sarcasm. "He'd have to scream pretty loud," the captain pointed out. "I figure he'd lose his voice before someone heard him or something." As he spoke the last bit, he caught sight of Hana who simply shook her head. "Eh?" he commented, feeling somewhat amused that this was the first time she had enough guts to contradict him. "What're you thinking of little one?"

Hana's cheeks turned bright red and she looked down quickly. Her hands began fiddling with the hem of her skirt. Bannon repeated his question twice before she loosened her grip on her skirt and pointed upwards with her right index finger.

Bannon tilted his head in bewilderment. "Something up there?" Another shake of the head told him he ought to guess again. "You heard something?" he asked again, hoping that it wasn't another rat. This time he received a nod.

Hewitt's ear morphed into a leopard's and he cupped a hand behind it. Clamping a hand over Durant's mouth, the Captain of the Sombra de Océanos started listening intently. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as he realized what the child was trying to tell them. "Hey, seems like we're under something. There's people up there alright."

"Oh really? And ya think Lendry can shout so loud?"

Bannon laughed. "You know what - even if he can't, I can."

"Wait!" the woman yelled. "That's plain stupid. You're going to sell us out. Just - just stop, okay? I think we need another plan."

Ray thought for a moment before hatching a plan. "Okay, everyone hide, I have a plan."

"What? Strip bare and dance around a fire like a heathen? Maybe the smoke will get their attention before you can summon your pagan Gods." Durant spat.

"If you'd shut your big mouth and open your ears for once, Ceranian, I'll explain." He then gestured to the navy jacket that he still wore. "See, I told you I had a plan, you buffonish wine-guzzler."

With the last of the opposition dealt with, Ray began calling up while everyone else his themselves from view of the chute. After some minutes, the light from above was faintly obscured and a voice called back. "Who is it?"

"Get me out of here this instant!" Ray belted in an authoritative parade ground bellow.

"I'm sorry, but who are you?" The voice from above

"Commodore Damien Setn, now get me a ladder or rope this instant!"

"Uh, sorry sir, but what are you doing down there?"

"Sewer spot check."

"I - I thought the inspection is not till 3. Commodore Franz will be leading the team with four other men. He came in 15 minutes ago to confirm that he's back in 30 minutes."

Thrown for a loop, Ray recovered quickly. "It's not much of a spot check if the enlisted men expect everything, now is it? I am going to ask one last time, or I'll see you scrubbing the inside of this place from top to bottom with a toothbrush!"

"Sir, yes sir!" the voice above squeaked hastily.

There was a sound of metal bolt being drawn. More light burst into the area, giving Ray a better view of the rotting filth around him. Whatever bit of fresh air pouring in only reminded him of the stench that now filled his nostrils. "I'm waiting...." Ray called in imperious impatience.

The poor ensign didn't need a third warning. He scrambled around with as much grace as a heaving elephant and nearly threw himself into the hole along with the rope ladder. Huffing and drenched with sweat, the shaking man pulled away and stood at attention. His hand shaking so much that his eye appeared to be blinking.

After climbing up, Ray adjusted the cuffs of his dirtied uniform. "Ahh, that's better, rating."

"Ensign."

"Whatever. You did well, ensign." Ray clapped his hand on the soldier's shoulder and froze him stiff.

"Who are you?" a man's voice shouted from behind. "Release that ensign at once!"

"Uhh... I was... ah, screw it." Ray whipped out a pair of ice pistols and started blasting away. Commodore Franz's party scrambled out of the small garbage alcove and into the adjoining kitchen for cover. Cooks and chefs scrambled in a panic as Ray charged after them, firing his ice pistols wildly. Surprised, but armed marines from the nearby mess began pouring in, returning fire on the Lendrian.

"Sounds like a party," Hewitt commented as shots rang from above.

Bannon nodded. "We better not keep them waiting." With that, he gave the signal for the men to start climbing the rope. "Oi, Luro! Wait for us!"

 

[Arcadius]

The sudden strike of mass narcolepsy created a rather amusing sight around the group, several of the guards dropping and falling onto the shackled pirates next to them, the rest unceremoniously flopping onto the floor like snappily dressed sacks of potatoes. Only proof that Alicia even moved a finger was a sudden mild breeze stirring the air. Right... from now on, I'm wearing clothes only with extra-starched collars around her.

"Right, I suppose there's no point in disguises anymore," he said and pulled out his pistol, seeing Alicia went straight into high-level diplomatic negotiations with the administrator. The administrator seemed inclined to agree with the statement. He proceeded to pull off his own disguise. Kadi pulled out his sword with his free hand, nervously shifting when the werewolf showed his true form. What followed was a brutal and quick fight that made Arcadius think that investing into a venture that would produce military-grade starch might make a solid bank.

When all was done and the still knocked out guards were safely stored away, he joined Alicia's interrogation, just in time to hear the rather unsavoury description of Belen's cell. "Harlo- you mangy bast- how dare you!" he exploded. Were the conversation held on more calm conditions, he'd be able to control himself, and silently agree that Belen's morals were, if not loose, certainly notably bent, and that he'd been on the receiving end of those and absolutely did not complain back then. This was, however, the first real proof that she was actually alive, and the overwhelming emotions of the moment got better of him.

He turned on the spot and started briskly according to the directions. "Let's go, time's wasting! We get Belen, we get Runali and then we go back here and set fire to this incredulous mutt's tail!"

 

[Mizos]

Though the idea of a rat mount brought a wide smile to Luro's face he had a feeling the captain wouldn't condone it , especially when it came time to clean up after it. He had a feeling he'd forget to feed it too which meant it might eat one of the other pirates and that would just lead to a whole other problem. His thoughts drifting to how he might talk the captain into it he missed Bannon hopping onto the rat until it raised on its hind legs. Luro slipped a bit but managed to grab onto the rat's fur again his body almost falling to the ground in the process. Hearing Bannon he raised a hand to indicate he was fine as he tried to make his way back up to its skull. The opportunity never presented itself however as a hasty retreat soon followed, being pulled Luro reached toward the rats, akin to a mother watching her child being taken from her, he could no longer add a giant rat to his kill list as he was pulled through.

Walking down the tunnel Luro was a little depressed at the wasted opportunity but he was more disappointed not getting a chance to see Hana kill something. The apprentice of Alicia and he missed a pristine opportunity to see her slaughter something, he sighed a little making a note not to miss it next time. He came to a stop with the group his gaze moving to the opening above them, staring up he knew he wasn't getting up there. He regretted not making Risa's wings now, he'd have to fix that if he ever got the materials.

While the group discussed how to get up the chute Luro's attention moved to the young man next to him, the youth from the prison who he was surprised wasn't dying in his arms right now. He wasn't big on heavy thinking so he decided to leave the planning to the group, he had the captain for the difficult questions, or he would soon anyway.
His eyes moved to the pistol on the youth's waist and blinking a few times he reached down and took it from him.
"Hey what're-" the youth started but stopped when Luro held up a finger.
The redhead promptly took apart the gun ignoring the youth's requests to stop, and tossed a part over his shoulder, digging in his pocket he took something out before putting it back together and handing it back to him.
"You must have gotten that gun cheap, a lot of them are messed up and sold at a low price. Your hammer wasn't in good shape, that would have ended really badly if you fired it. It's fixed now though."
"...oh...uh...thanks," the young man said eyeing the gun.
"Don't worry about it, I want you to kill as many people as you can before you die horribly in this prison alone away from your friends and family."
"My brother's in here..."
"Oh great then you'll die near your brother lucky you."
"I don't intend on-"
The youth stopped talking seeing Luro was no longer paying attention, his attention moving to Ray as he worked his charm on the guards above, he gave a small content nod at his friend's acting. He knew he was good with women but he had no idea he was proficient with men as well, he decided to ask him how later as now wasn't the time to discuss such things. When he climbed up Luro watched the rope waiting for some sign that it was okay to come up, the moment he heard gunshots however he was already on the ladder.
"Don't fall behind!" Luro called back as he quickly made his way up the ladder. "Person with the least amount of kills buys the first round later!"

The moment he was up top Luro wasted no time joining the fray, he sprinted towards two of the armed marines paying no mind to their loaded guns, seeing their barrels turn on him he quickly changed direction as one fired and missed. He ran sideways blocking the others view of him as he closed the distance, he gained on the first marine and spinning his body drew his rifle from his back and with a large swing slammed the butt of his rifle into the man's chin. The man's feet left the ground before he hit the ground with a heavy thud. Luro lowered his body seeing the second rifle pointed in his direction ducking under the gun, raising his body when he was close he slammed a knee into the second man's stomach. Taking the rifle off his waist he slammed the end of his own rifle down on the back of his skull. Aiming the pistol at the groaning man on the ground he pulled the trigger silencing his voice before throwing the gun aside. Chuckling a little he placed his rifle on his shoulder as he turned to the remaining marines, this was exciting, he'd have to break into more prisons in the future.
"No fair Ray you got a head start, now I have to work harder to catch up so I don't buy the first round," Luro said with a wide grin.​

 

[Fox of Hearts]

Archway Down the Hall, 3rd Door

Eyelashes fluttered slowly before they parted to reveal russet brown eyes. 124 or 125 days, Belen asked herself, as she contemplate exactly how many days had passed since she ended up a caged bird. She settled on the 124 days since she remembered vaguely that there were some months around this half of the year with 30 days. Almost 6 months here, maybe more.

She remained there lying on the metal floor, smiling softly to herself. Yes, she missed her former accomodations more than she'd let on. No matter how cold it got in the evenings or sweltering during noon at least she could estimate the passage of time by counting the number of times the guards changed shift. Here was different. She was deprived of human contact, kept behind cement walls and locked in a cage suspended over a pit of water.

Fun. In a different sense.

Well, not that fun actually.

Belen was not a selfish girl by nature. She'd choose to share her body with a lover over tripping her own switch any day. However, over here, she made an exception once, twice, thrice ... okay, way more than four times just to see the confusion and disgust in the guards' faces. Their dark muttering fuelled her desire to repeat her performance so that she could watch them stew in their frustration. Poor self-righteous men! The lack of male organs never impeded her ability to pleasure anyone before but she wasn't in a good position to convince anyone otherwise thanks to her shackles. Her fuzzy cuffs.

"Mmmmm," she purred, sitting up slowly. "What's a poor girl like me to do?"

Adusting her limbs slowly and tilting her head back so that her hair flowed pass her shoulders, the Cutthroat threw the door a sidelong glance. "It's been awhile since I took a shower," she teased. "Would you care for a peek?"

She winked and blew an air kiss to her assumed audience. "There'll be lots of moaning, squealing and much, much more." Giggling coyly, she wiggled her toes then slid to her feet gracefully. She swayed her hips naughtily and soon she was dancing as best as she could given her limited mobility. "Awww, pretty boys," she called in her best immitation of a harlot touting her wares. "I know you are there."

This had been Belen's routine for the last 90 days. Dancing in the morning, singing the crudest dittanies by afternoon and engaging ghost lovers in lots of dirty talking late into the night. It was the least she could do to stave away depression. That and whining inside her head to an imaginary Saff. Boy, what would she give to have Saff hurry up! Belen had even rehersed her break out of jail speech so many times by now that it was word perfect, at least to her it was.

"I hope you are ready," she spoke breathily, as her fingers began to tingle. "I'll give a taste of what I can do if you take me to bed."

Flames leaped from her fingers tips. She continued dancing, as the red and orange light filling her prison home gave her paler skin a temporary healthy glow. Already anticipating what would happen next, Belen tilted her head upwards to embrace the freezing, salty deluge from somewhere above. Before the waters even reached her toes, she started squealing, shouting and moaning. She gave her performance her all, ensuring that anyone listening from the outside would find it hard to avoid imagining her being overly excited in the shower.

Yes, this was how bored she was.

 

[Capt. Blu]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Disguise Group → Floor 50 [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]In the instant she stepped forward to 'oblige' being put into a cell, Alicia took her chance to strike. As amazing as Saff thought it was, she decided to gawk later about Alicia's abilities. Without hesitation, Saffron reacted by grabbing the keys that locked the prisoners together and began to set them free. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The roar made Saff cringe a little, but she continued to walk over to Hector's new cage. "Harlot House, you said?" There was a brief moment of irritation that flashed across her face, but instead of reacting harshly she turned from the cage. Before she could speak again, she couldn't help her slight surprise by Arcadius' own outburst. For a moment, she just watched the navigator rush forward. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Yeah...that sounds like Belen." With a shake of her head, she beckoned the rest of them forward. "It's not going to be long before that alert catches up to us." She looked at all the cells around the group before smirking a bit. "Let's add to our numbers." Aware that it would waste some of their time, they needed another distraction while the second team caused a ruckus downstairs. So, with prisoners fleeing left and right, there would be more to worry about than the ones that got into the prison. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Some of these prisoners were still weak and lifeless, but there were some who were in uproar as they were freed from their prisons. There was no need to order them around either. They knew their job: [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Free others and escape. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The commotion that followed was just a bonus and unfortunately was going to alert the rest of the prison soon. "Alright, let's get moving!" Down the corridor they went, and sure enough there were guards already primed to kill. There was no doubt they heard the roar from Hector and they began to prepare for the worse. "Alright, the navigator has the key." When they were freeing prisoners, Arcadius was left with it last. "So either we play keep away or we clear a path for 'im." There was no time to debate about it. This part of the plan was a 'make it up as they go' process and hope for the best. The guards were already rushing in to attack, not giving them too much time to chat anyway. Saff had counted at least ten before striking down two. Fortunately for her and Dani, the two navy ensigns that Alicia incapacitated had weapons to spare. The other prisoners scavenged from the ensigns they incapacitated.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Both women rushed in first. Dani was much more of a heavy hitter than Saff was, preparing to battle every single one of them if she had to. Saff on the other hand raced through, more focused on dodging attacks than she was killing random soldiers. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]A few ensigns attempted to slip away in order to sound alarms and lock down the prison. Saff noticed them, but a few of the pirates that tagged along as prisoners chased them down to keep them silent. Pirates and prisoners scattering to fight and escape was loud enough for the echoes to reach some floors above and below, an extra alarm would have made matters much worse. While at first some believed it was just the typical rowdiness of the prisoners, when the noise began to spread and get louder they decided it was best to check it out.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The door separating the group from Belen fortunately didn't require a key. It was just a heavy sliding door. All they had to do was open that door and free Belen, it was foolproof. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Well, it was foolproof until Saff felt the sharp pain of a sword stabbing her side, or more so, cutting her side. Any further and she would have had a hole in her stomach. Ignoring the sudden pain, she heard Dani's frantic call. "Don't worry, it's just a flesh-" It didn't take long for Dani's rage to cause the towering woman to practically bulldoze through the navy standing in their way. "...wound. Ya know, you'd make a really great Cutthroat." The tall woman only gave a nod, planning to protect the woman who saved her life. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The path was clearing up considerably, so Saff had enough time to check and make sure she wasn't bleeding out or anything serious. "Time's tickin'! Let's go!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]~~~~~~~~~~[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Team Sewer → 1st floor going up [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Well that didn't take long." One pirate muttered as they hurriedly climbed the rope to help Ray in the ongoing battle. Seeing the numbers, the navy crew were not only startled, but confused. Why on earth were they trying to get into Kane'Artem!? It wasn't as if questions could be asked or answered, so while some tried to restrain the pirates were they were, the cooks ran off to call for help. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"We don't have time for this! Let's go!" Bannon grabbed the nearest and albeit heaviest pan of gross substance that was considered food and tossed it at the marines. Fortunately for them, the pan and food had been cold, however Bannon threw the kitchen necessity with enough force to knock out the one it hit. "Move it!" His voice boomed, causing pirates and marines alike to scramble. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Move it where!?" The pirate woman equipped with her whip ended up leading the charge out of the kitchen before stopping to frantically looking around. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Up of course!" Another ran to her side and pointed up to see the large empty gap that showed just how many floors they'd have to go through.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Holy fu-"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"No time for that! We move before they get the big guns!" Bannon pressed on, keeping Hana close by as gunshots began to fire. "There's a lift, up ahead!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Listen, how are we supposed to know which floor your captain is on?! There's like 300 of them!" This particular pirate was frantically yelling at Luro in hopes that maybe the tall redhead would know what to do. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Checking every floor didn't sound very realistic and by the sounds of it, there wasn't much time to either. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]~~~~~~~~~[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Prisoners → Chilling on floor 23[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Hearing Cecilia made her roll over and laugh. "Ya think so? Probably because I'm not the one trying to escape like you missy." Runali looked at her hands, tugging at the stiff chains. "Well, at least not now." Runali yawned and laid on her back. "Trust me, care isn't something Aidan has. No one here does. And ever since that shortstack, Kino got assigned to this floor it's been even more boring than before. And I didn't think that guy could get any. More. Boring." [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]It fell silent for moments, but then faint echoes could be heard. No one thought much of it. It was probably just pirates being tortured or newer prisoners being rowdy… Or prisoners...getting closer? "I've lost my mind a few times, but tell me ya hear that too?" Slowly, Runali sat up and listened. The prison was a lot louder than usual. In fact, she was sure there were alarms going off. For the first time that day, Runali moved over to the wall and pushed herself up to a stand. "There's something going on Ce-" Somewhere deep down, that faint spark of hope lit up, but she shook her head and returned to her seat in the center of the prison. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Ah, it's...probably some sort of-" Runali couldn't find an excuse of what it could have been. It sounded like frantic footsteps and uproarious yelling, but that wasn't possible. Not in the two years and few months she had been stuck there. This place was orderly and nothing less of precise scheduling and all that other mumbo jumbo she heard the overseers talk about. It could have been new prisoners on the lift passing by, yeah that had to be it. The overseers just had some difficulty shutting them up. Speaking of overseers, she wondered where theirs went off to. Usually, they were checking to complain about lights out and making sure no one died during the day.[/BCOLOR]

Read: Start of This Chapter l From the Beginning​

 

[Grothnor]

Team Sewers
@Grothnor @Mizos @Fox of Hearts

With the arrival of the rest of Team Sewers, the marines were pushed back, scattering in a panic and fleeing the mess hall. None of them expected to have their meal interrupted by a firefight, and only a few of them were even armed. Team Sewers took the brief respite to plan their next move.

Luro stared at the young pirate surprised at his strange question once the dust had settled, they could search floor by floor if need be, they just had to take out anyone that tried to stop them. Though the sooner they found the captain the better, he had questions he really wanted answered and only the captain would know the answer to the ones on his mind. He had a feeling she would know who Runali was, something in his gut told him he needed to ask it. Bringing a hand to his chin he closed his eyes and tried to formulate a plan that didn't involve necessary violence, after a few minutes he realized that wasn't working so he just said the first thing that came to mind.
"A shanty," Luro said. "It's pirate law to sing along with a Shanty, if you hear one you know, you have to sing. All we have to do is sing a shanty on each floor and listen for the captain's response. She's a pirate so she'll have to sing."
Luro clapped his hands together before crossing his arms, he realized there was a problem with his plan.
"....I'm not good at shanty's though that's Ray's thing. Hmmm is there a shanty only Stardusk would know, I mean there's pirates everywhere it'd be hard to find the captain if everyone's singing...it would be nice though. Oh after we find the captain we should sing a shanty the whole prison would know."

"That's a good idea, Luro." Ray said. "Searching every cell or trying to find someone who knows exactly where the Captain is will take too long. We can sing the shanty I came up with at Yula Fei; I don't think anyone outside the crew knows it."

A wide grin formed on Luro's face and he gave a small nod at this as he was positive no one outside the crew would know that Shanty, he had forgotten some of the words himself. Though he had a feeling he shouldn't be too proud of that. Looking over at his fellow comrades Luro brought a hand to his chin.
"Oh they might not know it...you should teach them it Ray, we should all sing it."

Ray cleared his throat and mock bowed to his 'audience'. "Prepare for a feast upon the ears, ladies and gentlemen... and Durant." He shot the man a devilish grin before launching into song to drown out his protests.

"Onward to fight for vict'ry's in sight,
Follow this scion of Lendr'a.

Best fear his blades, they rain in cascades,
This Duelist scion of Lendr'a.

Nobody knows how deep the sea goes
Except this scion of Lendr'a.

He's sworn his life, a Stardusk through strife
Here comes the scion of Lendr'a!"

Bowing again at the end of his brief song, Ray explained, "There are more verses for the other members of the crew, but I think it's best that we avoid announcing our names to the marines."

"We're not annoucing our names," Luro said looking over at Ray. "How will they know who killed them though? Wait...is there a point in saying our names if they just die afterwards..."
Luro brought a hand to his chin considering this point for a moment, he didn't see any fault with it but something felt weird about it he couldn't quite place his hand on.
"...Luro Makachi of the Stardusk Pirates is currently beating you with your own arm....yeah I don't see anyhing wrong with that."

"Good call," Bannon agreed, clapping Ray from behind. "I say Hana, Luro and I will head to the higher floors. Young un like her will be great for sneaking around." He glanced upwards, noting that the stairs spiralled so high overhead that he couldn't even see the ceiling. "I'd say Luro and I will bring Hana up as high as possible at record speed." Motioning to Hana, he got onto his haunches and indicated she should climb up.

"Aye and I'll clear the lower tiers with whoever's staying," Hewitt purred, as he shifted back into his feline form. "I don't fancy the climb." He eyeballed the group and managed to get several volunteers who offered to stay with him.

Durant considered asking where he ought to go but ended up shrugging. "Well, Lendry, I say I head with you then. We'll be headed to floors to the middle floors. Eh, I hope we find a lift first. I don't think we'd be able to sing if we run all the way up."

"Not running? You've got to be kidding." Bannon said with a shake of his head. "We're faster and stealthier on foot." He put up a hand quickly to hush any possible protest coming from the Ceranian. Whistling, he waved for the men to start swarming up the stairwell. "So, now Luro, shall we continue our race?" he encouraged. "I bet I'll reach the 45th floor first."

Luro pulled a small notebook from his sleeve mumbling Ray's words to himself as she wrote in the small book. After a moment he slammed it shut with a grin moving it back into his large sleeves, raising his gaze to Bannon he grinned and pat his chest before slamming a hand on Hana's shoulder, perhaps a little too hard.
"Deal! Last one to the 45th has to give up a bottle of rum! Hana since you got a free ride I wanna hear you singing the loudest!"
Luro turned and quickly sprinted up the stairs not wanting to waste anytime in finding the captain, and having to sacrfice the bottle he kept on him.


A few minutes later.


Durant collapsed against the wall under a sign that read 19th floor and grabbed Ray roughly as the Lendrian passed by. The Ceranian was so winded he could barely spit out the following few wheezy words. "H-how we gonna sing? I'm winded."

"Seriously?" Bannon called from somewhere above where he and Luro raced pass a sign that read 29th floor. Their strides were barely slowing down. "I'll make a man out of you yet!"

The Ceranian shook his fist in Bannon's direction but the man didn't even bother glimpsing behind after that parting shot. "I... I'm not an idiot," he added breathlessly.

Grabbing the man by his collar, Ray hoisted him up the stairs. He gasped out a retort, "You are slowing us down. And considering how much you weigh, I'd say you're rather dense too." Hoisting him onto the landing, he gasped for breath. "And I'm not letting you butcher my song with your yowling any more, so stop bitching." His patience was running thin, being so palpably close to finding the Captain and yet not knowing how close she was. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he leaned into the door to that floor's cell block and sang a few lines before falling silent to listen for a response. After a few moments of nothing, he moved on, making sure to grab Duant on the way up.

"Onward to fight for vict'ry's in sight,
Follow this scallion of Laundry."
Luro sang the lines with a loud voice though he misprounced some of the words, mainly vict'ry, onward, to by some weird coicindence and sight as he contiued to race up the stairs. He laughed heartily as he finished the verses only to sing them again louder and still incorrectly, he didn't seem to be listening to a response too focused on just singing the shanty and moving up the stairs.

 

[Arcadius]

A collab between Fox, Arc, Winter, Click and Blu

Team Disguise
Location: In front of the Archway down the Hall

They were greeted by a cold scent of the ocean, carried by a draft that began blowing when the heavy doors were pushed open. Through the small gunport-windows one could almost hear the salt and kelp boiling on the smooth stones somewhere down below, where the prison's walls touched the ocean's shores, were it not for the ruckus and noise of the close quarters battle that spilled in, and drowned any weaker sound.

Arcadius joined Dani and Saff and helped them push the door fully open. He lost track of Alicia and Elise in the meleé, but he hoped the two were at least keeping eyes on the equivalent of a human lighthouse that was Dani. The woman turned out to be deceptively quick for her bulk, especially when enraged, as several ensigns found out to their doom.

"Quickly, in, in!" he shouted and pushed Saff through the doorway, following Dani who was already through and establishing beachhead on the other side. He'd wait for Alicia and Elise to go through and close the door behind them, shutting the group away from the combat. The heavy door would prove to be excellent sound insulator. Suddenly, the noise coming from the fight was reduced to a low drone, and one would hear the ocean more clearly. Ocean, and sound of heavy boots quick-pacing towards them down the hall.

A quick look down the hallway would tell them they were in the right place. On the side that faced the sea were the cell doors, nothing more than holes in the wall, open to the outside. Each was equipped with a small ramp that served as a railing when raised, and a winch mechanism, attached to a long coil of chain the prisoner's cages hanged on outside. The closest door to them was numbered 12, then the following 11. The hall followed the outer wall's curve, and the furthest door they could see was 7.

"Which door did he say?" Arcadius asked between paced breaths. "Third door, or door number 3?" Then he noticed the blood soaking through Saff's shirt, painting it unwashable crimson. "How bad... no matter, no time!" he said, looking again in the direction of the approaching footsteps. He pulled out his sword. "Saff, Dani, you are dangerous pirates I captured and am leading to captivity into one of the cage cells."

"Alicia," he said with a mild stutter. He almost said 'one other of us', but that would leave choice between Alicia and Elise, and he was definitely not yet convinced Forsythe could be trusted. "Alicia, please tell the patrol to follow you," he said and nodded in the direction of the approaching footsteps." Tell them that you need reinforcements to put down the riot. Lead them into the scruff and take care of them. Rest of us, we get to Belen's cell, get her free and hope the chaos will let us slip out!"

"Third door." Elise's reply came curt as usual. Even for her, the experience inside the prison was new -and distasteful- for her. Despite Arcadius jumping to draw his sword, the uniformed girl still kept her weapon in reserve, although her sword hand lightly rested atop the hilt of the sword at her side. She raised a slight eyebrow at his instructions, but in the end she had no reason to object. So far, Elise had avoided bloodshed on her part; in the fray of disguises, genuine soldiers, and escaped prisoners, it was a miracle that people were able to make sense of the fight in a genuine way.

"It's possible. If the prison were about to fall, I would withdraw with key prisoners. With some luck, we could pull it off."

Dani said nothing, simply nodding to the new instructions. Every so often, she glanced down at Saff. The first mate mumbled she was fine with every glance. "Luck's gotten us this far eh? Let's keep it movin' before Davy Jones catches up with us." Saff spoke in a whisper, and upon hearing the footsteps she quieted down to let the 'navy' talk. Right before they came to view with them, Dani quickly tossed her sword behind her to Alicia, remembering she had a tight grip on it for defense.

"Who's there?" The voice called out, only narrowing his eyes when the batch weren't recognizable.

Alicia's eyes furrowed slightly as Kadi put together a plan on the fly at the sound of the approaching footsteps. Alicia was no strategist like Kei Lin, but she had to admit Kadi was quite attuned to the way of tactics himself. "Right" she said with a simple nod before she turned and strode in the direction of the approaching footsteps, catching the sword mid air from Dani before disposing of it quickly. It'd have looked suspicious if she were to carry another sword without it's sheath over her own which sat neatly in it's saya.

"All of you!" she barked towards the group of marines, attempting to maintain a navy demeanor based on what little she'd learned of them throughout the years. "With me, we're to quell this uprising at any cost, I will not have this scum make a mockery of this navy or this prison" fortunately for the swordswoman her marine coat's shoulders carried epaulettes that reinforced her appearance as someone with rank. The approaching group gave a brisk salute before responding with a firm "Yes ma'am!". Alicia drew her own sword for effect before motioning them to join her down the hall towards the fighting. Alicia would give Kadi a subtle nod, her eyes moving quickly between the others as she passed them, sliding back the heavy door before disappearing behind it.

"I suggest you all hurry. By now, that other team of yours has caused enough trouble to get themselves caught. Or killed." Elise said after the doors closed behind them.

"She's right. Let's get Belen and go."

Following the instructions given, the third door wasn't too far away.

Arcadius nudged his prisoners with the flat of his sword. He wanted to have them start moving again when Alicia accrued her faux entourage, to make the ruse look believable. After all, they were leading dangerous criminals away from the breakout attempt, there was no time to loose to stand around and talk, was there? When the heavy door slammed close behind Alicia, and the sound of the battle were silenced once more, he let out a very, very relived sigh. "Huh. It actually worked. How about that."

Calling it a door was giving it too much of a credit. The cage access ramp was raised and worked as a railing to prevent accidental fall downs. Arcadius dared to lean over it and look down to check on the cell hanging at the end of the chain. He instantly regretted it. The wind this way up was surprisingly strong and random and nearly pulled him out with sudden gust. He retreated back inside, with a vulgar comment in some foreign language. He leaned against a wall, suddenly very grateful for the solid masonry work done on the prison. "Okay. Seems there is a cage hanging down there. We need to pull it up."

The cage moved on vertical rails carved into the prison's outer walls that guided it's raising and lowering. The rails also prevented the prisoners from swinging the cage with their own momentum and breaking if off of the chain. The chain that held the cage in the air lead to a hoist, mounted on a beam protruding from the outer wall above the cell access door. From there, the chain lead over their heads, across the vaulted ceiling, to a winch placed opposite the hole in the wall. Kadi grabbed the handle on the winch and started turning. The the mechanism made squeals and creaks in protest, shedding flakes of saltwater induced rust. "We'll take turns to get it up quickly as possible! The damned cage must be dozens floors down!"

 

[Capt. Blu]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Team Sewers → Split up: Headed to the Heavens and Floor 20[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Their idea of taking the stairs instead of the platform lift that slowly rose and descended managed to help them evade a bulk number of prison guards. Plus, Bannon was right about them being much faster on foot. The lifts weren't anything too impressive, but they were more efficient. As time progressed and the prison grew, the navy knew no one would want to climb all those stairs so they left them be. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]There was a drastic difference on the floor 20. Before Ray, Durant and whoever remained with the two could race to any higher level, the group was stopped by a peculiar sight. Vines sprouting various flowers slithered around the floors and walls like snakes to prey. In fact, the further they went into floor 20 the more flora they were able to see. The smell of lavender filled the air, which was better than the trash and stench of death that riddled most of the prison. It was as if someone was growing a garden and bringing life to an otherwise dead man's home. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Do stop your obnoxious singing. You are interrupting what was a rather peaceful evening. The prisoners were quiet and everything." The man that stood in their path adjusted the striped bow at his hip and the one around his neck. "There are plenty of ways to be arrested and sent to Kane'Artem, breaking in wasn't necessary." This rather lanky, green haired man finally looked up at the individuals who intruded on his floor. "And if death was what you wanted, well, there were easier ways for that as well." Without missing a beat, the vines that entangled the walls and floor shot up and out at the sewer team. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The prisoners couldn't reach the bars of their cells to see what was going on, (unless they were directly in front of the intruders) but the sounds of a fight commencing caused some of them to start an uproar. Chains began to rattle and some stomped. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Get us out of here!"[/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent]"Kick his ass!" [/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent]"It's about time Michael gets put in his place!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Michael simply sighed at all the yelling and pointed remarks. His arm raised and along each cell door a row of pink flowers pointed at the prisoners. "I don't suggest you test my patience, unless you want to end up dead...like some of your friends." This caused some of the prisoners to quiet down and step towards the very back of their cages. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Michael simply watched as the intruders attacked his plants. He hadn't been too far from his post when Bannon's group passed, but he decided not to waste his energy chasing after them. There were people fully capable of handling them the further they went. In the mean time, the plant connoisseur and devil fruit user focused on the one's who were left. Michael's bored expression never changed as he turned on his heel and moved to the end of the hall, waiting to see how long it would take for them to get past the plant wall that separated him from the group. "This place is insufferable…" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Team Disguise → High Stepping it Out of There[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The small group rubbed their hands together and used all their might to start heaving the cage upwards. When it wasn't Saff's turn, she dared to lean over the edge just as Kadi did. If the drop didn't kill them, she realized she could hear the quiet waves splashing against the walls. "Always being a stubborn one…" Saff rolled her eyes before taking a deep breath and belting out "BELEN! If you're not dead, starting talkin'!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]For a moment it remained silent. And in that moment the, Arcadius, Dani, Elise, and Saffron were a bit deterred from continuing their pull- or chain turning. However, it wasn't long before there was a squeal of excitement from the cage below. "Well don't just stop! Pull me up, pull me up!" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The cage rocked gently, due to Belen rushing to the edge of the cage and this time, Dani spoke. "Tell her to stop moving, this cage is heavy enough!" In response, she heard an apology from down below. The three continued taking turns to pull the cage up until finally a wiry, auburn haired woman dressed in rather stylized and revealing outfit came into view. Despite her gold makeup being smudged or just completely gone, she still managed to look as presentable as ever, or in this case, as best she could. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Thank the heavens you're okay. Captain would have-"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Kadi! Oh my hero!" Because the Stardusk navigator still had the key, he was given the honor of unlocking the cage door when they finally managed to get to it. And once it was open and she was free, Belen leapt forward and hugged the man.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Dani and Elise glanced at each other before looking over at Saff with slightly questioning looks. Saffron rolled her eyes and gestured for them to get moving. "Oh yeah, you're welcome Belen. It's nice ta see you're still kickin' and causin' problems. Look, ya can toy with the navigator later. We've got ta find the others and get the hell outta here." [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]She pouted playfully and released her hold on Kadi before catching up to Saff. "Aw, you don't sound so happy to see me. It's not like I meant to be captured ya know~ Albeit, it was a bit of a misstep on my part- I bet captain woulda been happy to see me! Though, she might've also started a war… Wait a minute, you didn't come with the crew!?"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Yes, our captain was planning to cause a war. That's why I'm here. And no, I didn't bring the crew. Not our crew at least. The Stardusk are here. Some random pirates we picked up, and whoever we let free from their prisons. It was a stealth mission until about twenty minutes ago. We have to make sure we got their captain and then get out."[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Oh, right! Oh that poor Runali! I saw her a few weeks ago before I got put in solitary confinement for my...bad behavior." Belen refrained from giggling at the thought because the looks she was given obviously meant that it was a more serious matter at hand. "I didn't get to talk to her long but she's been here for awhile, longer than I have. The poor lass didn't look so good. I hope she's alright still... I tried bribing a few of the guards to send her stuff but they're only so willing to-" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Belen where is she!?" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Oh, floor 23! Wait you don't have her now? How the hell did you get up here before you managed to get her!?" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Prisoners → Floor 23 and stuck there [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"S-Sirs!" A younger officer rushed up to the floor as fast as he could, practically leaping off the lift before it stopped. He was heaving and trying to catch his breath as he stopped in front of Kino and Aidan. "There's- there has been a breach! I was told to relay the message and lock down all floors! Some of our comms have been destroyed and we can't get to the warden right now!" He heaved a sigh once more before saluting and dashing off again. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The brief message was of course, not very detailed and it was debatable if it was really helpful. But it did cause the prisoners on the floor to stir. It was a domino effect of uproarious chatter. Some cheered; not because they were being freed- but because they were sick of the order and routine that they were stuck in day in and day out. The slightest bit of chaos, even if it wasn't going to benefit them, brought them back to life. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Runali didn't hear the message, considering she was towards the end of the hall, but the sudden yelling did catch her attention. "...Someone else must be finishing their sentence today… I hope death is kinder to them than this place was." This happened a lot. When a prisoner's time was up, the overseers would take them out of their cells. The ones still locked away watched the prisoner go, but never saw them come back. Runali never understood why they were even held prisoner if they were all going to be slaughtered at some point in time. But then again, she never questioned it too much. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Instead of seeing the prisoner's last walk down the hall she saw one of the officers zipping past. "I wonder what that was about… Hmph. They're all losing their minds being here, that's what it is. " [/BCOLOR]

Read: Start of This Chapter l From the Beginning​

 

[Mizos]

Luro-Location Unknown on some kinda floor.

"Wooooo-hooooooo!"
Luro ran onto one of the floors a mess of winded pirates stopping behind him, he grinned and tapped his rifle on his shoulder as he took a quick look around the area. He blinked a few times however seeing most of the pirates around him didn't have familiar faces, scratching his cheek he wondered if he had made a wrong turn somewhere. He had been running up steps though how did you turn wrong going vertically? While trying to figure out where he was officer's came running into the room, hearing Luro's loud exclamation and the pirate shanty that was being sung until they decided to stop. Luro turned towards the group of officers as they drew their weapons, the pirates behind him doing the same as they faced each other down. The prisoners nearby roared and pounded on the bars before the officers screamed 'silence' at them and focused their attention back on the group.
"Who are you?! Lower your weapons! Resist and we will attack!"
Luro looked back at the other pirates before looking back at the officers a small smile on his face as the officers continued to make requests that more than likely weren't going to be acknowledged.
"We can't do the second thing but I'll answer the first thing, the third we'll get too in a moment. We're here to kill you and free the prisoners," Luro said.
"Intruders take them out!" One of the officers yelled.
"No...we're here to kill you and free the prisoners. My name is Luro not Intruder and we all don't have the same name so that's rude ," Luro said holding up a finger to approaching marines.
"Talk to them later!" one of the pirates yelled running towards them. "Also no names!"
"Oh I keep forgetting sorry," Luro said running with the other pirates. "After we kill them I'll make up a name and explain I'm not Intruder."

Sparks filled the air as blades clashed between the two opposing sides, the sounds of battle only dwarfed by the sounds of the prisoners yelling through their bards. Luro ducked under the sword of one of the officers and bringing his gun up in an arc sent him to the floor. He spun around raising his gun to stop a sword coming down on him, he glanced sideways the sword pressed against his gun and spinning let the officer stumble slamming the butt of his gun into the back of his skull as he passed him. He could feel his heart beat just a little faster as kneed another officer in the stomach and drawing his gun from his belt put it against the side of his head and pulled the trigger. He tossed the gun at another the man ducking the gun and running towards him the two's weapons clashing before the officer kicked Luro in the stomach sending him staggering back. He watched the man drew his pistol and grinned as he made a fist his eyes moving to the man's finger on the trigger. A gunshot rang out and Luro watched the man fall to the ground as another pirate lowered his pistol, Luro nodded at the man before holding his hand up.
"Grenade!" Luro exclaimed
One of the pirates took a round object off his belt and tossed it to Luro, distracted Luro almost took a sword to the neck barely catching the glint in the light as it neared him. Lowering his body he slammed his shoulder into man before pushing him back into one of the bars. The man glared at him but froze seeing the toothy grin on Luro's face, seeing the redhead point down at his belt he looked down to see the ignited grenade attached to it.
"You're...ah wait I'm bad at these things. Ray would have something for this. Oh I got it you're-"
An explosion shortly followed and Luro sighed at the wasted opportunity, he raised his hand yelling for another grenade so he could try again.

By time the fighting ended on the floor most of the walls and cell doors had either been blown off or in. The prisoners stepped out looking at their saviors some of the pirates helping them with their chains.
"If you had the keys why'd you blow everything up," one of the prisoners asked.
"I'm not about to tell the one laughing at explosions that he can't blow stuff up," the pirate responded.
Luro stood covered in gunpowder a small smile on his face as the wonderful scent filled his nose, small fires here and there in the room, the smell of fire and gunpowder mixed together, it was like a fine ladies perfume to Luro he couldn't get enough, it always made his day a little better. He eyed the room giving a small nod at the blackened walls, the burnt floors and the general destruction they had caused.
He looked over at a group of officers on their knees their hands raised nearby, they had surrendered after most of their allies had been defeated, most had willingly surrendered, the others had only just woken up to a barrel pointed at their faces.
"...please don't kill us," one of the men said.
"Don't beg for your life," another said. "Not to this filth."
Luro stared down at the men holding his arm out to stop one of his allies from putting a sword through the one with the mouth, Luro approached the group and knelt down on the balls of his feet grinning at them.
"We're not going to kill you," he said.
"What?" the officers and pirates said both surprised by the man's words.
"Oh sorry I thought you could hear me. We're not going to kill you!" Luro yelled motioning to himself and the rescue group. "I'm here to save my captain, and my captain told me that we're pirates...not murderers. I only take the lives I'm allowed cause she told me to. You can't fight anymore...so you're boring now. We're not here to kill people just rescue. We just have to kill the ones who try to stop that. That's the rule."

Luro stood fully up and put his rifle back on his back before grabbing one of the officers swords, he motioned toward the stairs for the group that came with them.
"Wait so can we leave?" one of the officers asked.
"Huh oh well don't ask me," Luro said arching a brow at the group. "I mean the prisoners should be allowed to choose right? Everyone's opinion is important."
Luro tossed the sword to one of the prisoners, the man eyed the blade running his hand along the side, a small smile resting on his face as he looked back at the men. Luro took out a small pouch and unscrewed it finding he was sobering up a little bit.
"...the people who you kept imprisoned for all this time now get to decide if you live or die. You got to decide their fates, so they get to decide yours, only fair right? Good see ya!"
Luro took a large swig before grinning at the men and going up the stairs, the other pirates smiled with him at the screams that echoed behind them just before they got out of earshot.

Floor 23- Still blowing stuff up

Luro sang the shanty with the other pirates as they continued to move, each floor they ended up on they freed prisoners and blew up what could be destroyed only for their group to grow as they kept moving. Luro was still trying to figure out where everyone went, he missed his comrades, blowing stuff up was fun but he missed Bannon's voice, he wanted to see Hana rip through everyone with an insatiable bloodlust and he missed Ray and Durant's friendly conversations. Tapping his rifle on his shoulder he tossed the grenade in his hand sighing a little bit, due to the size of the group most of the officers had stopped fighting, he asked half of them to go free prisoners on the other floors just to try and get the others to fight again, but in the end they just blew up stuff and kept moving.
"Luro," the young pirate said walking next to him. "You okay?"
"...Still no sign of the captain," Luro said sighing. "We've been looking forever..."
He looked up at some of the prisoners blinking a few times before waving to a few in the cells.
"Hey guys! We're here to free you and stuff...um...step away from the bars we kind of blew up somebody accidentally a few floors up."
Luro handed the grenade to one of the pirates his gaze moving to the prisoners as he lowered his rifle tapping it in his hand.
"Hello! My name is Luro Makachi! Carpenter of the StarDusk pirates. I"m looking for my captain! Um...what was her name again?" He asked looking at one of the pirates.
"I don't know her name she's your captain" one of the pirates said.
"You know she's a lady though so you must know her name."
"...no...you've been saying her for...five floors. Each time you asked, that's all I know."
"...so do you know her name or not?"
"I see why your friends do all the thinking,"
"I'm thinking right now," Luro said looking over at the pirate. "I don't know what about but it's something."
"Let's just free the prisoners and try to regroup with the others."




​

 

[Astoria]

"That is… a good question."

Elise's eyes met that of the rescued pirate before meeting the gaze of her fellow party members, who seemed just as informed as she was. Her speech came a bit breathy; unaccustomed to such physical labor as an officer, even after being helped with pulling on the chains that held up the cage, Elise had been left a bit winded by the effort. "Can we assume that level is already liberated?"

Deciding to spare herself from another complicated introduction, the brown-haired officer let the question go answered as she immediately heel-turned, the coattails of her uniform poofing upwards at the near pirouette as she did so.

"Let's go. We've 27 floors to cover, and that's quite enough time to get cut off or get caught."

She took several strides towards the direction of the stairwell before stopping again, snapping her fingers before giving a brief, scrutinizing look before appraising the features of the newly freed pirate. "…That won't do. Belen, is it? We're going to need to get you in a uniform or an appropriate disguise before we proceed." She glanced at the others for confirmation, keenly aware that their trust in herself was still not particularly high.

But it was still important. After all, if she was immediately recognized after making it all the way up here, that would throw a cog in the plans and make it all for naught, and they and especially Elise were taking a very heavy risk as it was.

 

[Arcadius]

A collab between Arcadius and Fox of Hearts

There's no way to prepare oneself for this kind of encounter, really. Weeks ago, he thought they were all dead, worse, that he got them all killed. Arguably, an even worse feeling. This morning, he was afraid they'd find a corpse here. Perhaps in some other universe, somewhere and sometime else, someone like Kadi did. He realized he could not fathom how that entity must have felt when they wrestled the rusted door open, and he was glad. The world stopped around him when she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed. Her hands were rough from spending three months hanging in a cage, open to elements. Her hair were a mess, heck, all of her was a mess. But that smile? Those dancing sparks in her eyes, ever threatening to jump out and set the world on fire? For the first time in who knows how long, the tension wound up inside him loosened a bit. He felt a relief, relief that something he cared about was safe.

"Not a hero, really..." he whispered. "Just opened the door."

Belen leaned close and whispered something into his ear, before turning to respond to Elise and to ask a very poignant question. "Aye, I'd hate to leave the good captain waiting for her release, after all," she answered Elise and pulled Kadi along to follow her, striding back towards the heavy door. "Fairly sure we'll also find a decently dead body to pull the uniform off, right? Kadi must have been mad and berserk, coming to rescue his damsel in distress..." she said, and gave the other navigator a wink. Arcadius offered nothing but pretend stoic silence in response.

The hall behind the heavy door was littered with dead boides, eerily silent, now that the combat was done and the freed prisoners on their way to spread the riot into the other sections of the prison. There was no trace of Alicia. Belen chose a dead Navy officer and gave her a decent kick, to test for traces of life. The dead body offered none, so she started to pull the uniform off the still warm cadaver. "Fits like a second skin," she nonchalantly stated. "Let's go. The 24 floors of stairs will do you some good," Belen said towards Elise, noticing her lack of stamina previously. The time spent in a cell seemed to fail in removing any portion of Belen's snarky attitude.

 

[Grothnor]

Team Sewers' "Lendro-Ceranian Dream Team" --> Floor 20
Ray and Durant vs Michael
A collab with @Capt. Blu

Acting on instinct, Ray threw himself into the floral tide, chopping away with his looted cutlass. Vines attemped to impede his progress, only to be hacked away or frozen stiff and snapped by Ray's struggles. Managing to fight his way to the wall of plantlife obstructing his path to the 20th floor cellblock, Ray planted an orb of ice upon it and leapt back, only for it to explode into a large ice crystal, piercing through the wall of plants before shattering into dust. Ray leapt through the opening he created, surprised that Durant was not only still with him, but following him through as well.

"It's a pity you're too uncultured to appreciate the fine arts. Even my old gardener had more taste... and skill... than you." Ray quipped. He didn't want to fight the overseer, but he had to keep him occupied so the rest of Team Sewers could find the captain. He took a fencing stance and prepared a brace of ice pistols on his person as Durant prepared a handful of throwing knives. "Your move, gardener."

Michael had stopped walking away, not because of the taunts, but because of the sudden chill he felt when his plants were taken down. "A devil fruit user? That's going to be a problem." The colorful man sighed once again. As he turned on his heel, Michael raised an arm causing vines to once again shoot out at the two. "I do consider myself a gardener, yes. Uncultured? Not as much."

The vines snuck from behind and managed to grab Durant by his ankles and pull him up into the air. The vines after Ray attempted to grab his arms and legs to keep him still. While they did, a pink flower similar to the ones on the cell bars appeared in his hand. "The gardening is fairly useful in my opinion." His movements were fairly graceful and almost lacked effort. That was shown when he flicked the flower out of his hand and it shot at Durant like a bullet.

Unfortunately for Michael, Ray was the quicker draw. He let the vines sieze him, but focused his power into his free hand, causing the vines to freeze. He wrenched his arm free of their ineffectual grasp and, casually aiming in Durant's direction, he shot through the vines holding him up, causing him to unceremoniously drop to the floor as the flower projectile whizzed past. "Never mind the Ceranian fool, you're fighting me," he taunted, seemingly heedless of the fact that the rest of his body was restrained by vines.

Durant grumbled something behind Ray but it was inaudible due to him picking himself off the ground.

The comment however brought a small smirk to Michael's face, an obvious change from his
passive indifference. "That's tough talk for someone that's drugged."

"What are you talking-" Before Durant could finish that question, the vines restraining Ray sprouted purple flowers that released a cloud of pollen around the two. The effects were quick. The hall around them distorted in odd shapes and where one Michael stood, there were now three more.

"Don't worry. This won't kill you. That would be too easy."

Durant's eyes narrowed, trying to focus on what was going on. "Please tell me I'm not the only one seeing four of these guys right?"

Ray blinked and shook his head in surprise. He hadn't expected poison, much less such a hallucinogenic one. "Aye, four times the dirt-grubbers," he replied defiantly. He began tugging at the vines restraining him, haphazardly freezing them as Durant stumbled aimlessly behind him. Ray did however hold his free hand behind himself, preparing a surprise and hoping in his drugged state, Michael wouldn't accidentally see it.

"You both are pirates, right? I hope you didn't expect a fair fight? That's not what you guys are about last I recall." The attacks this time were scattered. Every time Durant threw a knife at a vine, it went right through, only for him to get attacked on the opposite side. "You can never tell which is actually the real one can you? It's alright, not many can." Michael taunted as he watched their failing attempts.

Feeling he had freed his movements enough to enact his little plan, Ray flung his surprise at Michael's feet: a second fist-sized orb of ice. As soon as it landed, Ray cried out to Durant, "Get back to the stairs," before he used his full power to freeze the rest of the vines constricting him. The orb shattered, not into a spiny ice crystal, but a cloud of obscuring ice-dust, giving Ray the cover needed to wrench himself free of the frozen vines. He drunkenly stumbled out of the biological detritus and faded from vision. He slipped past Michael and deeper into the cell block, obscured by his frost-dust and transparent ice-form. He was definitely in no condition to fight Michael now, exhausted and drugged as he was, but he still needed to hold his attention away from the rest of Team Sewers. He'd do so by infiltrating the overseer's domain, betting that he'd defend his corner of the prison before any other part.

 

[Capt. Blu]

Disguise Group → Breaking and Entering and Escaping

"As long as she's been flirtin' with these guards, I'm sure they can spot her in a heartbeat." Saff's comments went on deaf ears mostly, but out the corner of her eye she noticed Dani crack a smile at her joke.

"Belen that's no way ta treat a rescuer." Saff chuckled and looked over at Elise. "Don't mind her. The caged bird is free and has no limits sometimes. It's probably why she got herself stuck here in the first place." It was a warm feeling to be able to joke around a bit after so much stress and tension built up over the course of a week. But the firstmate couldn't relax just yet. They had one more stop but hopefully the other team was able to 'capture the captain' and they all could get out of there. This place was giving Saff the subtle creeps. She was sure she saw at least three chained up dead bodies. This was definitely something worse than a prison.

"24 floors-" Before she could make any other quip, the sounds of yelling echoed. "Annnd the backup is on their way, we're gonna have ta make this quick! No time for fighting," That was pointed towards Belen and Dani considering both Elise and Arcadius were fine with not doing so. "We don't need anything slowin' us down."

The staircase spiraled downward and true to her statement, Saff spent more time focused on dodging and escaping than stopping to confront the soldiers who got in their way. "Oi! What floor was that? I missed it!"

"36!" Dani called out, keeping to the rear of the group.

"I swear, this has gotta be a punishment in itself! Too bad we can't just jump-" Saff slowed down, actually considering the option. They could probably reach one of the lifts stopped a few floors down, but it didn't seem that sturdy… At least not sturdy enough to handle a few people being dropped onto it. "Ah...never mind, we're runnin'."

~~~~~~~~~~

Team Sewer aka the Dream Team → Still Floor 20

"You really think a bit of fog is going to stop-" The fog cleared and to Michael's unpleasant surprise, both his opponents were gone. "Smart...I suppose." He fell silent, and pressed his palm to the floor. Unlike most of the stone building, this floor had a layer of soil hidden beneath the flooring. His living space wasn't ideal but he appreciated the warden for allowing the minor changes to accommodate his plant life.

A crack opened and out crawled a humanoid looking plant. It was only knee height, but with each step, it collected vines to grow large enough to stand a few inches taller than Michael. "Find them. Kill them if you have to." There was a slight pause and Michael dusted his hands. "Actually, just go ahead and kill them. The warden won't be pleased when he finds out about his prison not running smoothly." As its mouth opened, a yellow cloud of smoke seeped out. "Yes, yes, poison works fine. It's cleaner. Now go, I'll be right behind you."

The plant creature shambled in the direction Ray went, not making a single sound. The prisoners were still silent, afraid to make a sound with the sudden monstrosity passing them by. Sure they had seen Michael's various assortment of lethal and nonlethal plant life, but it was rare they had to witness the creatures that came from it. Michael was very keen towards his convoluted sense of harmony within the three cell floors he watched over so his 'monsters' were only used as a last resort or as he claimed, "to keep the peace".

"Come on out ice man~ You're only making this harder for yourself. My prisoners were finally coming to terms with their lives here, finding inner peace even. But you giving them this sense of false hope isn't healthy for them." He shook his head in disappointment. "Frankly, it's not very healthy for you either. I do apologize but whoever you came for is more than likely dead by now. It's fate for anyone imprisoned here, and frankly that includes you now. The warden won't tolerate this."

~~~~~~~~~

Prisoners and a...Revolution?! → Floor 23

Cecilia looked up from her spot on the floor as she tried getting comfortable as possible. She had heard the sounds just as Runali did, but she was way more curious than the delusional one eyed pirate. "I dunno… That doesn't sound like something very-" A sudden shake caused everyone to stir. Some lost their balance and fell, others were disrupted out of their sleep. The shakes became successive but by the third one it was clear that someone was insane enough to set off explosives not too far below them. That or something went very wrong and the guards needed it to be fixed. "Someone's getting fiiiired~" Cecilia sang out, trying to reach the bars of her cell. Unfortunately for them, the chains linked into the stone wall didn't allow them to reach the bars. She wasn't sure if that was the thing she hated most about being in the cell...besides being in Kane'Artem in general. "Listen, listen!"

Oddly enough, the sudden explosions didn't stir the pirate captain. She was slowly escaping into her own little world to find some shred of peace that she once had, but the sudden excited hiss made Runali open her one eye. "I thought it was time to sleep...What now?" With a sigh, she scooted her way towards the wall and put her back against it. Most of what she heard was rowdy prisoners demanding to be freed or simply causing a commotion. It wasn't typical since the prisoners were usually calmer, but it didn't make much of a difference.

While her back was against the wall, Runali found herself mumbling a song she had almost forgotten. When she realized that she was receiving a 'response' to each verse, Runali straightened up quickly. "Best fear his blades...they rain in cascades...This Duelist scion of Lendr'a."

"You know what they're singing?" Cecilia looked a little confused as her cellmate began to mumble along.

"...Nobody knows how deep the sea goes, Except this scion of Lendr'a… I know this song! But- how do they know it?" It had been awhile since Runali tried testing the limits of her chains, but something so familiar deserved her attention. It felt so real and so close, but she couldn't be so sure. No matter how hard she tried to pull, she wasn't going any farther than the middle of her cell so with a frown she sat back down.

"I know that song…" There was a bit of desperation in her voice, but moreso exhaustion from the sudden struggle. When the song stopped, she hurried to the wall to press her ear against it. Thanks to the prisoners in between her and the commotion, she couldn't make out what was being said but it didn't sound like other prisoners- more like a group outside their cells? How was she supposed to get their attention? For the first time in a long time, Runali paced back and forth despite it being a short distance back and forth. She didn't hear the overseers yet and for a brief moment, it got quiet. "Oh!"

She cupped her hands over her mouth and finished the rest of the song as loud as she could.

"He's sworn his life, a Stardusk through strife
Here comes the scion of Lendr'a!"

The big, the bad, and Hana

Luro had sped off with a group of pirates and prisoners, leaving Hana and Bannon with a small group of their own. "That man has fiery hair and a fiery spirit!" His voice boomed with laughter. "Come now! We can't keep them waiting! Check these floors for your loved ones and a StarDusk captain!"

Their more thorough search behind Luro and his 'team' went in vain. There was no luck finding any, but the pirates did free as many prisoners as they could. With the extra support, the group easily caught up with Luro. "I thought you were heading to the top! What's slowing you down!?"

Bannon once again set Hana down and pushed his way to the front of the group. He didn't mean to continuously grab the small girl, but in the heat of battle and adrenaline, he picked up the necessities and kept moving. In front of them, to his confusion was a young girl, smaller than Hana with a deadpan expression. Her hand rested on her revolver and she still had yet to say a word.

The girl wasn't one for words and instead of announcing they'd be apprehended or killed, with one swift movement she pulled out her revolver and shot at Bannon. The large man's size didn't slow him down though. He managed to duck down, bringing his spear to deflect the bullet.

"Guess we're doing this the hard way fellas!"

As one particular pirate rushed at Kino, the small girl, she angled her gun and used the blade extended on it to stab him in the chest before disappearing completely.

"She disappeared!?"
"She's a devil fruit user too!"
"Be careful!"

Meanwhile, towards the end of the hall, Runali and Cecilia looked at each other in confusion.

"Well, this is...new."

 

[Winter]

As soon as the heavy door slid shut behind her she knew things were about to get more difficult. The prison riot began to spiral more and more out of control which while helpful, also posed a threat since more than half of the prisoners weren't waiting to see if you were friend or foe. It probably didn't help that the swordswoman was wearing an officers uniform either. "Ma'am! orders!" one of the marines beside her asked, their swords sparking as they collided with occasional prisoner trying his luck. Alicia's eyes surveyed the cell block before her thumb pushed up against the guard of her sword, releasing it from it's saya with a small 'click'. "Forgive me" she replied, closing her eyes for a moment before the corridor would suddenly be filled with silvery flashes of light as her sword arched elegantly, taking down both marines and pirates with swift ease.

It took little more than a moment for her to reach the other end of the cell block corridor, leaving behind incapacitated bodies groaning, some of them barely conscious. Alicia had secured an escape route for her friends, but this was far from over. She could see how this was going to play out and with the riot spreading the chances of them escaping before the arrival of reinforcement or running into opposition themselves was slim at best. The swordswoman took a deep breath before she came upon the decision to cause a bigger distraction away from the others... if she could draw enough attention then the others would have a higher chance of getting out of here. Alicia was one body among the chaos, she could find her own escape when the time was right. If not... then at least she could take solace in the knowledge her friends had made it out.

"Let's see how much trouble I can make... " she muttered to herself before she broke into a sprint, heading towards the heart of the chaos. She'd try to draw the chaos away from the others to the other side of the prison, once there... well it was a matter of making some noise, and she had a good idea of just how to do it.