The Marines eyes widen in shock. He barely had time to whimper “Mercy” before Ari’s blow slammed home. His body slumped down on her fist. Hanging limply from her hand.
The other Marine gasps as his comrade is attacked. He grabs the dagger on his belt, in the same motion as pulling it out, he takes a furious swipe at Dolphus. He then took off at a full sprint, heart pounding furiously, hoping he’d managed to at least cripple one of his pursuers.
The Stone Dragon lifted it’s head at the commotion, faintly interested in the fight. The rock like scales that made up it’s armour ground against the detris that had gathered between them in it’s long nap.
OOC: This isn’t immediately after Mako’s comment, just needed a quote here so I could tell where Ari’s ship is.
Karl glanced from the obviously preoccupied Alexis to where the remains of what may have been a vessel lay in the shallows. A ship of some kind already here? Or a bunch of scraps washed up from the storm? Where are we, anyway?
“Say, does anyone know where we are? We don’t happen to have that figured out yet, do we, Captain?”
He rubbed his head, wishing he had something to get rid of the lingering pain in his skull, and that he could have at least found some food for a belated breakfast…
Dolphus clicked the blade from its sheath and drew it halfway, but the sudden and horrific recoil of the Marine’s body against Ari’s fist froze him in place. He died. He’s dead. No mercy. Instantly. Remorselessly.
His skin grew cold as his eyes followed a drop of crimson roll down Ari’s forearm and drop off her elbow. He’s dead. He’s dead. He’s gone. You’re gone. You’re going to die. You’re going to die. You’re going to die. You’re going to die. You’re going to die.
His hand gripped the handle of his sword so tightly his knuckles felt like they would burst. You’re going to die You’re going to die You’re going to die You’re going to die You’re going to die You’re going to die You’re going to die
No no no no no No no No no no NO no No NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
Reflex overrode every other emotion. The knife coming at him was the only thing in the whole world, and nothing else mattered. His wing tensed, reeling back before suddenly snapping forward at blinding speed, the power to shatter bone behind the strike as it blasted past the cape which concealed it…
…And directly over the arm of his opponent, completely avoiding all contact, save perhaps a couple of feathers hitting his helmet. The blade of the knife stung as it cut through his shirt, ripping easily through the thin amount of now-exposed flesh on his side thanks to moving his wing and bouncing off one of his ribs. The wound was mostly superficial, but Dolphus wouldn’t have believed that for a moment, as all the color shot from his entire body and he gasped in horror.
As his attacker departed, Dolphus collapsed, barely keeping himself supported with his wing as his hand felt furiously about the wound. Shakily unbuttoning his vest, he could feel his undershirt growing moist. Surely this was a fatal wound unlike anything else.
Or, if it was not, the resulting shock caused slightly by the injury and mostly by his intense hyperfixation on his own mortality being threatened by it maybe had a slight chance of taking him out.
Dolphus heard the dragon rise, but as the whole world was shaking violently in his eyes, he could not bring himself to look at its origin.
Arriving at the ship, Mako climbed up onto the deck, approaching Mariner.(@Winterstorm345 ) “Sir, i searched the wreck and found these.” He held the toolbox up. “It seems we were not the only ones who washed up.” He said, before hesitating.“Also, sir. Before we were attacked…”
She let go of the nail, sending the man’s lifeless body plummeting to the ground and turned around just in time to witness the other marine pull out a knife, take a swing at the boy and…
Ari froze in place as she watched an enormous grey wing unfold from under the boy’s cape and snap towards the guard’s head with such impressive speed and force that her brain could barely process it. Enamoured by the sight, she stared at the wing, unable to look away.
Moments later, she snapped out of it when she saw the kid waver and almost collapse to the ground and the marine cowardly go running towards the woods. Her surprise turned to burning rage.
This coward was not getting away.
She took a wide stance, right foot in front, hastily unclipped her metal bat from her belt, tightly wrapping her fingers around the handle, and swung it around, winding it up behind her head as far as she could, her back arched behind and shoulder twisted around. All her muscles tensed to their limit, her entire body focused on one motion. Her arm and torso snapped forward, her centre of mass shifting forth, her fingers letting go of the handle and sending the heavy iron bar hurtling toward the man’s legs.
Immediately Ari used the forward motion created by the throw to come charging after the marine.
Mariner took the toolbox from Mako and looked it over. He stared at it so entranced he almost missed Mako’s question. Wohlford &Co, the company that had made his favourite ship, and the very one Tharwyn had been apprenticed under when he’d first met him. It brought back memories of a better time, a simpler time.
Tired of his tendency to sink whatever ship he happened to captain. The Queen had ordered he procure and pay for his own ship. So he’d sought out the finest shipbuilder he could find. The company was ran at the time by a man called Halfshell, Mariner couldn’t remember his actual name, but the two had become fast friends.
His friend had named the ship The Halfshell’s Hope. Which was short for “The Halfshell’s hope that Mariner can keep a vessel afloat.” Mariner had always raged at him that he would change the name the second the man finally dropped dead. He never did of course, he was never going to, privately he liked the name. It reminded him of his friend. Had the ship not sunk at the battle of Emberhold it would still be named that to this day. Still that ship had lasted over twenty five years
Mariner never found out exactly what happened to the company, but he was glad the Halfshell wasn’t alive to see it’s end.
Mariner said something very low and quiet what Mako was able to catch was “Sea God…Long time…Dead” he then turned away from the conversation, and stared down towards the sea, looking to see if he could spot any of the ship’s missing supplies. Mariner wasn’t fully paying attention however, he was thinking about his friends, and how they were all dead now. Dead, or they hated him.
The marine cries out as the bar hits him, sending him to the ground. “Why are you doing this? What did we do to you?”
He tries to rise, but is unable before Ari is upon him.
Alexis stood still facing towards the beach, watching the boat with interest, there was movement over there, but she stopped paying attention when she received the news.
“What…” she tried to restrain it, contain her rage at the caelin, after all it wasn’t certain he was at fault for the loss, but even so her magic betrayed her. smoke billowed off in wisps from her hands as she turned around and stormed over to Tharos. “Who was watching him?” She spat out. “And at least tell me the other kid is safe or so help me gods.”
Tharos could only shrug. “I just saw him go overboard, I was busy trying to hold the ship together through that storm. I tried to pull him back but I wasn’t able to for some reason. He will be missed.” Tharos stared deep into the flames at his feet. “As for the other, I don’t know, last I saw he was below deck.”
Tharos felt like crying again. He blamed himself for the wreck, he should have been able to hold back the storm. Why couldn’t he? Was that storm especially powerful? Or was he just… Weak?
“Who is dead, sir?” Mako asked, patient yet cautious.
He made no motion to move towards the Halinth.
“Mariner, is there something wrong?” @Winterstorm345
Ari slowed down next to the fallen marine, descended onto one knee and gently put her hand on his back, completely pinning him to the ground.
Hearing his words, Ari scratched her head with the other arm: “To me? Nothing personal…” she paused to think for a moment, “but the boy sure did look like he had a lot of questions to ask when you surrounded us… And you my friend might just be able to answer them.”
She grabbed the horrified marine by the back of his collar, raised him up a little and smashed him into the ground to ensure that he won’t resist. She proceeded to raise his torso up again and dragged him towards the tree that was closest to Dolphus. She harshly set him down facing the forest, his back against the tree, took off the long thick chain that wrapped around her waist, and used it to tie the man to the trunk.
Ari looked over her shoulder and her sight fell onto the lifeless body of the other marine. The one she murdered just before.
She turned her head back towards the man: “Ah, right, sorry for your friend. I probably shouldn’t have done it…” Despite the poor wording, a glimpse of genuine regret could be seen on her face.
“Have a little rest now!” Ari exclaimed as she raised her fist and punched him right in the temple, holding back her power, but just strong enough to knock the marine out for a little while. They’ll come back to him later once she takes care of the boy.
Ari went around the tree, now facing the distraught Dolphus, and slowly set down on the ground, her back against the same trunk that the marine was tied to.
how tired she was…
The adrenaline finally completely ran dry, she felt her exhausted muscles relax and the reality of the situation started to set in. She has had to kill before to defend herself. It was always either her or them. But was this one necessary? She looked over at the dead marine once again. What did he do to deserve this?
Ari shook her head, trying to get these thoughts out of her head. They were too heavy. She didn’t like having heavy thoughts.
She switched her focus to Dolphus. Right, it’s better to move her attention to him right now.
“Did he get you?”
She attempted to look at his face, but failed miserably. There was something else relentlessly grabbing her attention.
Ari stared at Dolphus’s wing with amazement and child-like wonder unapologetically showing on her face.
Dolphus’ muscles were taking turns contracting and releasing aggressively, in whatever parts of his body happened to be dealing with the brunt of the suffering at the moment. Surely this was a fatal wound; surely he was going to die any second now, surely he…
…Very slowly, reason was conquering his other thoughts. But very slowly. He was so convinced that this was the end for him, that somehow his heart had been sliced clean open even though that didn’t make any sense, that the blatant and obvious facts of the world slowly coalescing back into a consistent form and the blood seeping out not nearly quickly enough to constitute a mortal injury taking quite a bit of time to get past all the panic and symptoms of physical shock he was suffering from.
He needed something to cut through the noise and emotion, to get to his actual brain instead of the reactionary static overwhelming him at every turn. Something like…
Well, like that.
Or more accurately, what happened right after that, as Dolphus fought his repeatedly constricting neck muscles in order to look up at Ari, who was eyeing him with all the whimsy and wonder of a child watching the stars at night now don’t you get started on that again, this is not the time or place for that melancholy. See, it was already doing wonders.
Dolphus pulled himself slightly up with his wing, only for his stomach to suddenly contract at the added pain and force him right back where he was, almost completely flat on the ground, save for his wing acting as an elbow. “He- I don’t-”
WING.
The feathers all jolted along with the rest of his body. Dolphus tried to suck it towards his body purely as a reactionary measure, but he was simply leaning on it too much for it to do anything other than pull at his side again. The clarifying thought had cut through everything else; she could now see the wing.
And I missed with it as well. The guard saw it too.
Dolphus blinked as his head rotated back towards Ari, in stiff, shaky movements, his uncaring brow now contorted by the grief of this revelation. He couldn’t see it, but his eyes were starting to grow red again, easily visible on his pale, cold skin.
Wing. She can see the wing. The wing is out because I was being attacked. I got hurt. I’m bleeding. Blood is… On my hand…
Dolphus slowly pulled his hand away from the fresh wound to find… Less blood than he had expected. He gripped the soil to get as much of it off his hand as he could, but this action’s true purpose, which was to break eye contact with Ari, could only keep him looking down for so long. The return trip was even more awkward than the first glance towards her had been.
“I’m okay,” Dolphus tried to say, but in between the red around his eyes as liquid built up behind his lids, the cold sweat building on his forehead, and the scarlet-stained palm now facing the soil, it was clear that - regardless of how hurt he actually was - he evidently wasn’t doing okay.
ooc: I think this is the first post I’ve made in this topic without quoting someone at the start of it. That’s wack
Ari sat at the base of the tree and watched on as the kid tried and failed to hide away the wing, still unable to look away from it. How could she? It was such an incredible sight.
Suddenly his stories of ghost sailors and giant squids became much more believable. What kind of insane ship did her boat manage to crash next to? What other kinds of unusual freaks did that crew consist of?
Somehow this notion made her feel more comfortable with the prospect of potentially sailing with them. Maybe she had a chance to fit in for once? Not be treated like a freak, an outcast… for the first time in many years?
Ari smiled to herself. Of course it was just stupid wishful thinking by her stupid tired brain.
She couldn’t help but laugh out. She must have gotten infected with the kid’s constant unrelenting self-pity. Stupid kid.
She sat there for a few moments, consumed by her thoughts.
Air caught a glimpse of Dolphus’s wound. REALLY?! All of that drama, because of THAT?!
“Have you never gotten hurt in your life, kid?” She looked Dolphus in the eyes and pointed her finger towards her arm, which was covered in scars she’s gotten throughout her life: “None of these have been able to kill me yet, so you’re going to be fine.” She smiled. It was not the wicked grin that Dolphus had witnessed before, but it was a lot closer to a genuine smile of a normal person. Just with more teeth.
There he goes crying again. Stupid kid.
How tired she was…
Dolphus breathed out something vaguely resembling a chuckle, but his mouth didn’t smile along with it. He sniffed, his eyes traveling for something other than Ari to latch on to, only to turn away sharply from the body of the first marine, motionless on the side of the infrequently-traveled path.
His eyes finally landed on the unconscious marine poking out from behind the tree. Somehow his brain hadn’t processed the events surrounding his capture. Pulling at his wing once more, he was finally able to tuck it mostly under himself, wincing through the pain, and began to rise to his knees.
…Before collapsing back on his hand. His eyes fluttered to the marine once more.
“…taking a little nap. Thought you might have some questions to ask him and… calmed him down… a little. Don’t you think I didn’t see that look on your face back there in the forest? You definitely want to know something.”
Ari rolled her eyes when she saw Dolphus attempt to conceal his wing again.
“Why do you hide such an amazing thing away? It’d be much more useful if you weren’t covering it with that rag all the time”, she grinned again, “I’m sure our marine captain friend wouldn’t be so smug anymore if you slapped him across the face with it back there!”
Alexis descended down onto the beach leaving a trail of smoke in her wake “He Will Be Missed? Are you even listening to yourself.” Alexis thought about going to garb for his collar, her hands now letting of sparks, but decided if she wanted to drive home her point violence wouldn’t be the greatest of answers. “Because of you we are one crew member down, Because of you we’re stuck on this island, and your first instinct is to warm yourself by the fire instead of getting to work to fix your problem.” She spat as she loomed over him “you should consider yourself lucky no one else was lost.”
“No-” Dolphus blurted out, his entire body shying away from Ari before he caught himself. “I d-… can’t think of anything, is all.”
“N-No,” Dolphus swallowed, his body beginning to shake again. “Please.” He tried to get up on his feet, but only managed to place one foot on the ground before stumbling forwards and landing on his knees in front of the seated Ari. A couple of gasps interrupted his attempt to resume his plea.
“I can’t show anyone. Ever. Do you understand?” He struggled up onto his knees briefly. “I-I- I can’t, hurt like this. The pains, the thoughts, they don’t stop. I can’t make them stop. Every night she’s there, she-” He looked away, trying to interrupt that train of thought, but caught sight of the dead marine again and looked back at Ari instead, water welling up behind his eyes.
…That is a LOT of scars, wow.
“You can’t tell anybody.” Dolphus adjusted the cape over his wing without looking, subsequently doing a very bad job at it. “Please. It’s the only thing I have left in the world. I don’t- I can’t go on if people know my shame. Please.” He tried to grip the side of her head, but wobbled and grasped her shoulder instead, moving her literally not at all. “Please. Please. Please.”
“Please.” The water was fairly swiftly running down his face at this point.
“Oooh boy, I chose the wrong morning to wake up to,” Karl muttered, seeing the raging Alexis looking like the personification of anger as she stomped off towards the group on the beach.
“Well, I guess I’ll join them. Some fire might take the edge off that temper…”
He pulled at his collar, adjusting it to take a bit of the chill out of the breeze, and took of towards the bonfire, planning to stay there with the rest of the crew until Alexis decided to stop burning. Why does there have to be so much burning? It can’t work well on the ship, he thought.
She couldn’t be more wrong. The kid has definitely suffered before. Both physically and emotionally. Perhaps way too much for someone of his age. Now who did that remind her of so much?
She tried to push that thought away, trying to force it into the farthest corner of her mind.
“I know you have absolutely no reason to trust me, not after everything that’s happened today. But you have my word. I promise.” Ari gave Dolphus a serious look full of confidence. Where is all of that water on his face coming from?
She grabbed his arm by the wrist, took it off her shoulder, pushing it away.
“I am horrible at calming people down, but, if it’s something that matters so much to you, I will keep it a secret. It’s not like I have anyone to tell about it anyways… I wouldn’t betray your trust… you are my ticket off this island, after all…” The last sentence wasn’t true. That’s not the reason she was saying all of these things at all… at least, not the entire reason. But it’s better not to get too attached to him.
She closed her eyes, resting her head against the hard bark of the tree. It’s been a very long couple of days. When was the last time she had a chance to have a rest like this?
Dolphus swallowed - hard - and tried to nod, but his neck wouldn’t allow it. Eventually, something vaguely resembling a nod escaped his spine, but it took a good amount of shoulder constriction to make it happen.
Dolphus’ expression changed instantly from anticipation of grief to a child-like awe as Ari seated him on his ankles. He felt a lot younger all of a sudden, but whether that was through his own willingness or from Ari’s overwhelming, matured resolution, he couldn’t tell.
There was a moment of silence, followed by another. Dolphus stared at her face, lips parted, trying to decipher exactly what was happening. “Ari?” He whispered, reaching towards her cheek. “Are you…?”
She’s sleeping, idiot. Dolphus leaned back, still staring at her face, trying to decide what to do. You’ll have no choice but to trust her. There’s nothing else you can do in that regard. Mariner too, if he knows; confirmation will have to occur once you return to the ship.
His eyes flashed suddenly, and he looked towards the tree. There is one more person…
With a little hyperventilation, a few whispered cries of pain, and a lot of wobbling, Dolphus finally made it back to his feet. Staggering slowly, he made it to the other side of the tree, and stood for yet another moment staring at the man tied to it.
He doesn’t know I’m a Gorov. Captain Althain does, but he doesn’t know about the wing. This man is just like Sickle Setroth; he can ruin me and everything I hold dear with a flick of his tongue. He has no reason for silence; he saw his comrade die in front of him and tried to avenge him, he’s just doing his job. He could not be trusted.
The blade sung as it slipped from its sheath. The point was raised to meet the marine’s throat. It had to pierce his throat. It had to silence that tongue of his, which could do untold harm to him. He had to die.
He has to die. He has to die now. You have to kill him. Kill him. Kill him. Don’t let him live with this secret. He can’t be allowed to know. He has to die. He has to die. He has to die. He has to die. He has to die. He has to die.
The blade refused to move. The mask, while firm, was not quite hard enough to make the choice on its own.
Alexis had gone too far. Instead of beating him down further, the words made him angry. He looked up at her, taking in the display of anger she was putting out.
“Are you threatening me?” He said quietly
“Blast this incompetent fool into nothingness, borrow our strength.” the more aggressive voice in his head howled.
“No” Tharos thought intently. “I will do this myself. Hide yourselves” Tharos gave them a moment, and dropped his hood. His utterly alien features coming into full view. His eyes were a single, uniform dull red. His ears were pointed, his features all seemed a touch exaggerated. All the same, he looked young, yet weathered, as if he’d been malnourished. He appeared only about 17 years old.
“I don’t think I have to remind you that it’s only thanks to me we made it this far? I held the ship together, the Thauin was going to rip it in half. The storm would have sunk us with no hope of land. I nearly killed myself to do it, and you begrudge me a little rest? Who are you to speak to me this way?”
Tharos wasn’t looking for an answer, he immediately followed up. “Nothing, even if the vote makes you Captain, your authority extends only to the course we take, and your fellow privateers.” He took a deep breath.
“I alone command the honoured dead. I answer to Tharwyn only.” Without waiting for an answer, Tharos turns and walks towards the tree line.
“Are you so eager to inflict death little one?” A woman’s voice spoke to him, clear as day. However no audible sound pierced the quiet of the orchard. The dragon fully rose at the other end, and softly walked towards Dolphins. “What crime has this one committed that warrants execution, whilst already bound?”
