Mako’s stomach lurched as the boat dipped. His head was full of alarm.
He nearly slipped as the floor moved down. He rushed upwards towards the deck.
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Great. Dolphus spent just enough time to glare at the messenger before taking the two bottles out of his pocket and entering his cabin, stuffing them under his pillow. Hopefully they’ll be safe there before I go climbing up and down the ladders again.
As Mariner became involved with answering Mako, Dolphus walked out of his door to check and see if the odious newcomer was finished with his machinations of-
Thrown slightly back and then significantly forward, Dolphus found himself about to impact the wall on the opposite side. Without thinking, his folded wing arm turned to take the hit, so as to prevent damage to his already concussed head.
It smarted. Hard. But Dolphus bit his lip and gripped his cane until the reaction passed, promising himself that he’d wash the wounds as thoroughly as he could with the new bottle of medicine until it was gone. Thankfully it was only the one segment to worry about, but that one stung like… Well, like how I hate magic, I suppose.
Sliding his cane back into his cabin, Dolphus used the wall to prop himself back on his feet, and gripping the handle of his sword, turned to look at Mariner. The movements of the rocking ship were difficult to adjust to, but he’d force himself to do whatever was necessary.
Alexis, too, caught his eye. He’d force himself to do just about anything for her. Maybe even… Nah. I doubt even she could convince me to not hate magic. She probably hates it too, now that I think about it. She would, wouldn’t she?
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From down in the cargo bay, Rook couldn’t quite make out the sailor’s message besides its tone, but the lurch of the ship that nearly brought him to his knees was certainly cause for concern. Following behind Tharos he ascended the ladder, albeit with all the grace of a siegefish.
What in- where- middle of my breakfast didn’t it… beard crumbs
BELLS
Oncoming ship. Ships?
Once on the cabin deck he locked eyes with Mariner, then briefly surveyed the visible damage to the boat.
“Any injured?” He muttered, perhaps inaudibly to some of those in his vicinity. At the same time he started for the upper deck with determined rapidity.
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The deck was controlled Chaos, everywhere sailors made ready for battle. Packs and spare food barrels were tucked away, crews ran up from below with ammunition, the Ballistae were strung.
Tharos observed all from his from the Caelin’s deck. Inside he mentally prepared himself for battle. Drawing on his reserves of power, he began to flex his fingers.
Mariner strode up onto deck, taking in the scene. He drew his longsword, stalking the deck as he looked at the Northern Ships. He abruptly stopped as he saw the ship on the port side winding up their Ballistae.
“BRACE” he yelled as he leaned against the mast, but the shots went low. So they seemed at least, the shots plunged into the water, right as a mass of tentacles burst towards the sky.
One of the tentacles reached down plucking a sailor off the deck. Dragging them below the waves.
More shots loosed, the chaos took on a quality beyond control as the giant squid set upon the ship.
Tharos’ eyes widen and he instinctively looses a whiplash of flame at the nearest tentacle. It recoiled in pain, moving away from the front of the ship.
“CUT THEM, CUT THEM!” Mariner called running towards the starboard side. He gripped his sword with both hands, delivering a vicious slash, before going to dart to the next one. Not even pausing to check the damage as he went.
Further away, the Northern ships pulled away, trying to escape the wrath of the Thauin. Loosing shots into the squid from a safe distance.
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Dolphus turned with some surprise at the sudden appearance of Rook, but before he could open his mouth to reply, the disheveled devil was gone again, rushing up the stairs to face whatever circumstance managed to set itself against the mighty Count Coal.
And yet, in spite of his bravery, the young duelist felt very little reassurance in his capabilities when it came to him acting as captain. He tried to tell himself it was because he was being fair and reasonable in his ascertainment of the contenders for the position, and not his unrelenting stubbornness to support Alexis for the role.
Regardless, he had taken a few steps to follow when Mariner strode past him, wobbling his steps by the sheer force of his stride. This was evidently not something insignificant, as evidenced by the-
Dolphus finally caught sight of the monstrous bolt, water occasionally lapping into Karl’s brand-new cabin as the waves hit the side, but never enough to be a serious concern. The bolt, however, was serious enough.
The blade of his sword sung as it zipped from its sheath, and Dolphus ascended the stairs.
Or at least he tried to, but it seemed every step he took required him to dodge at least three more corporeal objects being carried by incorporeal laborers. They obviously paid him heed, but the situation demanded action, and so many of the ghost sailors found themselves with little time to react as Dolphus stood on the stairs, ducking a number of different objects coming both up and down the steps.
Eventually though, and without regarding the clear sides which the sailors were traveling opposite directions in, which he could have just slipped in had he noticed, he made it to the top and immediately wished he hadn’t.
Dolphus moved a few steps from the stairs. The phantom touch of his missing had was gripping the sword with all the strength of his remaining one, which wobbled without the support of its missing member.
In the now sun-lit sky massive tentacles were silhouetted, making the sun blink as they swung overhead only to come crashing down and knock a ghost sailor in corporeal form through the air. These massive hands of evil would rise to the sky, seeking something to grab, while others curled and swam across the deck, daring the now quite small-seeming amount of ghost sailors to take a swing.
In all of this, however, Mariner’s composure remained focused to a refined degree, slashing through whatever managed to grab a hold. Sometimes the tentacles were deterred, other times they held on in spite of the wound. The ships which presumably had fired upon them were now backing away, with the emblem of the Northern Fleet clearer than the sun signaling their affiliation.
Huh. I remember uncle Pyotr having something to do with them. Maybe they were after the squid?
The calming thought was hardly one to last, as when glancing back to find no more ghost sailors making trips up and down upon the stairs, Dolphus realized any that could be spared were already here, and it was up to the crew on deck to finish the job.
Meaning me too.
His arm tightening to quell the shivering joints in his lonesome limb, Dolphus marched forward at about as slow of a pace he could manage while trying to find perhaps a baby tentacle whose parents weren’t around that he could eliminate. I really don’t know why I decided to sign up for this.
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Karl promptly fell backwards as the ship shook dramatically, sending him rolling backwards into the cabin, swearing violently as he crashed into a table. Disentangling himself from the wreckage, he rolled back his left sleeve to reveal an arm that looked like a combination of plate armor and clockwork. He drew his knife from his belt and attached it to his wrist, using it to climb up the steeply tilted deck to the hallway. Once outside his room, he was able to brace himself against the wall. The ship was now tilting the other way, causing the destroyed table to smash into the wall behind him, trailing wood across the hall.
That isn’t good, he thought. I’d better get upstairs to see what’s going on.
He began heading up the stairs to the main deck, using the wall for balance.
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Mako rushed around, trying to avoid being swiped by the tentacles until, a massive tendril smashed into him, sending him careening off the ship.
The cold icy water flowed around him as he sank deep into the depths below.
Again? Again. Once again, he had been pulled underneath by the sea.
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As if sensing his fear, a single thin tentacle slid along the deck towards Dolphus. Seeking to entangle his leg, it moved towards him with predatory grace.
A Ghost sailor nearly ran into him on the stairs. “That thing is gonna tear the ship in half!” They yelled, “I’m grabbing the Phoenix Bolts!” The sailor sprinted down the stairs.
As the sea surrounded him in it’s crushing embrace, Mako got his first good look at the Thauin. Abnormally large for it’s kind, the beast was an impressive 25m in length. Most curiously however, it appeared to be chained up. Three massive iron chains stretched from the beast, anchoring it beneath the Caelin’s Hand.
Where the other ends went Mako could not see, as he went deeper and deeper. Soon all he could see were the 4 massive islands sitting at various distances from the ship. Except one of them wasn’t sitting, it floated, as if leisurely paddling along.
If Mako looked he might have seen the occasional massive limb as it pushed itself along, or the long powerful tail casually waving behind it. Disturbing the water in even, and strong currents. The beast turned it’s head to regard Mako as he fell.
A voice spoke in his head. “Welcome child of the sea.”
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A convulsive shiver worked its way up his spine, seeing the tentacle approaching across the deck. In spite of its comparatively small size, it looked to Dolphus as if it was large enough to crush his whole body with the slightest effort, or throw him into the sun. An attempt to scoot himself backwards was abruptly cut off.
No. Alexis would be expecting more from me.
Steeling himself with reassuring coldness, Dolphus stood motionless, waiting for the tentacle to approach, for the moment it made contact…
…And another moment after that, because Dolphus briefly became paranoid that it could somehow see him, the sword shot downwards, in an attempt to skewer it to the deck.
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What happened to you? Mako asked, staring at the creature.
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The blade bit deep, but the tentacle evidently was tougher than it looked. Though the blade punched through the other side, so much momentum was lost it failed to bite into the deck.
The tentacle grabbed his left leg with surprising strength, the blade wedged in it ripping flesh as the musculature contracted.
“What do you mean?” It replied. “Do I look ill?” The Huge beast suddenly dived, it’s powerful limbs propelling it towards Mako. As it approached he could make out it’s features more clearly, it was a Dragon, albeit one adapted to living in the sea. It’s size was truly massive, as though it stopped a great distance from Mako, it filled his vision. “Did you perhaps expect more?”
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The chains. Why is the thauin chained to a ship? Mako asked, attempting to use his magic to create a pocket of air around him.
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“That is of little concern to me.” The Dragon replied. Resting upon the bottom. “The machinations of humans are beyond my purview.” It noticed Mako’s attempts at magic. “Ah yes, I forgot about your need for air.”
Suddenly Mako felt the magic come far easier as the Dragon lended him it’s strength. An air pocket formed quickly around him.
“What are you doing down here?” It asked curiously.
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The tunk noise from the impact of his blade hitting the deck instead of the satisfying feeling of slipping into the tough wood was both a wake-up call to the reality of the kind of pushing force Dolphus had in his possession, being someone who despised manual labor and barely went outside, and a wake-up call to the stupid situation he had just found himself in.
I’ve fought ruffians and drunk sailors and I decided to fight a giant squid with the strength to rip the ship apart. His heart thumped. And I decided to let it get within grabbing range.
Dolphus’ eyes shot even further open as the sudden pressure of the tentacle gripping his leg, startling him enough to stagger him. He kicked his opposite leg out behind him to prevent his fall, but his blade slid easily back through the gash it had now created, and he stood, leaning back, hunched over the tentacle of this nautical monster, trying to decide what the heck he was going to do.
Do I stab it again? It already grabbed me; this thing could twist my leg off at the knee. Oh gosh it can twist my leg off at the knee what was I thinking this is the stupidest idea I’ve ever had what is wrong with me
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Thank you. I was flung by one of the thalins tentacles.
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“Most curious.” The Dragon sat still for a moment. “I suppose you’d like to go back to your ship?” It tilted it’s head, examining him. “I seem to recall entrusting you with an important task.”
His indecisive thoughts allowed the tentacle time to catch him off guard, suddenly yanking him towards the edge. The sea frothed wildly in that direction, as the head of the beast began to surface. Clearly intending Dolphus as a more substantial meal than the ghost sailors.
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I have a question. Just one. Do you know any reason for why he would leave?
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Dolphus’ vision swam for a moment as his head hit the deck, the sky blending into the sails and masts, with the cries of the sailors seeming more akin to the sharp cries of the seabirds. As the pain reared itself again and the world seemed to coalesce, Dolphus suddenly reached up and yanked his military cape back down, his eyes darting wildly in the hopes nobody saw anything.
The violent bubbling of sea foam and chopping of the waves against the ship brought Dolphus slightly back to reality. e was still of the opinion that, somehow, he could manage something to free himself from the situation he found himself in. Perhaps he could stab at-
No, then his cape would go back up and everyone would see the wing. perhaps he could catch it on the railing and somehow lever it in such a way that is that the head of the squid rising out of the water why is it doing that
Oh.
Oh.
As the massive eye of the squid slipped from beneath the water, Dolphus met the leviathan’s gaze with a look of cold-stricken terror, all the color washed from his face in an instant. The squid was beyond large enough to swallow him whole, and he was about to hit the railing.
What do I do what do I do what do I do what do I do It’s going to eat me I’m going to die I’m going to actually die I’m going to be devoured whole and it’s probably not all because of this stupid wing but it sure is convenient to blame things on
The rest of the boat seemed to dip out of existence, the cries of ghost sailors desperately fighting their own battles and getting stomped on by massive tentacles echoing into a chorus of pain. Destiny had finally come calling.
But would he give up?
His free leg hit the railing, but somehow he couldn’t find the strength to resist. It was almost hypnotic, staring death in the eye; a massive, unfeeling thing, thoughts barely beyond that of fish and sponges, yet knew how to smell for weakness.
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“Now that, is the correct line of questioning.” The Dragon said appreciatively. “Tell me, what do you know of the God of the Sea? What does he do?” The Guardian leaned down loser to Mako’s eye level.
The Dragon seemed to be enjoying the conversation.
Tharos stared in shock as the Port side ship seemed to be on a collision course with the Caelin’s Hand. When he looked closer he noticed alarmingly, the sailors weren’t in control of the vessel, it appeared to be being dragged towards them.
A horrifying idea occurred to Tharos as he glanced over at the starboard side and the leviathan surfaced there. Not even Ghalwyn he thought. Absentmindedly sending a blast of fire towards the squid.
Mariner was moving through the deck, cutting at tentacles. “I am master here beast! You will yield!” He shouted.
The Thauin Squid almost relinquished it’s grip on the ship, trying to pull away. Suddenly it shuddered as if in pain and renewed it’s assault.
His mind a whirlwind of rage, Mariner fought on, friend or foe meant little to him. There were only things to kill, and things in the way. Somewhere in the back of his head, a voice railed against this. This isn’t us, we don’t want it. He quashed it, now was not the time for weakness.
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Well, he insures good crops, watches over life of the sea, protects that from storms, makes fishing bountiful, destroys ships, and can be unpredictable.
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