Ok, you know what. Screw it.
Mako sprinted onto the shore, before waiting for a response from the captain, he took off towards the wrecked ship. @NOTaHFfan
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Dolphus turned and saw Ari.
Stepping just enough to the side to see around her, he looked at the figure who approached. Armored in mail, he fit the general idea of a military officer involved in ground work, although his voice - elegant, commanding, and very controlling - seemed far above the rank and task that he had been given.
Hundreds of questions flooded his mind - why would an officer suspect there were children here and no one else, why was there a Northern Armada station this far south, and why did the Armada Captain happen to be right here, wherever here is, and just so happen to find the two of them were all prominent questions amidst the many, but many if not all of them were destined to remain unansweredā¦
The forest buzzed and swirled in horrible form as those dark pits stared out at Dolphus, his horrified eyes staring right back. He had seen eyes like these once before, and while Gregorās were fierce and threatening, the dull void present in this pair were somehow so much worse - not just a starless void, but a soulless one.
He could feel his mind buckling under the pressure of those voids. To tear himself away would be relenting; to remain would be impossible. But thankfully, the choice was quickly made for him.
Dolphus stumbled to the side to avoid getting trampled, and in doing so had his gaze torn from the eyes of the mysterious stranger. The words of Captain Althain were intoxicating in their brilliance, with such a splendid delivery that the man seemed the father of all Gorovs. No one would have been a more skillful and capable opponent for his father.
Yet while even Gregor Gorov might have possibly stood a chance against this individual, Dolphus knew when he was hopelessly outmatched. There was only one clear option available, only one path and outcome that would succeed, and in order to pull it off Dolphus had to dial in 110%. Which would be difficult if Ari got in the way againā¦
Good. Dolphus shut his eyes and took a deep breath. Adrenaline cracked through his veins as he opened them again, and flipping his sword around held it backwards in his hand, pointed at the ground.
āA pleasure.ā Dolphus stepped just in front of Ari and took a bow, sweeping his one arm out as he did so. āMy apologies on behalf of the girl, she was hired as a deckhand and is not familiarized with the proper etiquette of an Armada vessel.ā He turned his head to glare at Ari, but it broke into a pleading expression as soon as it was turned just out of view. Please, oh please donāt botch this. We get on the beach and weāre gold; any sooner, andā¦
āDolphus Greylark,ā He swiftly turned back, adjusting his collar and trying to not think about mind readers again. āAssistant to the Captain of the Caelinās Hand, acting on behalf of the crown.ā Itās technically not a lieā¦ And Iāll make sure Ari gets some kind of manual labor job once weāre out on sea again to make that the truth as well.
āOur ship was caught in a torrential gale which ran us partially aground here, and I was instructed to seek temporary provisions while repairs were made.ā Dolphus gestured up at the trees, which he immediately looked at as well. āSo far, nothing sufficient for our crew. But Iām sure that doesnāt come as a surprise to you.ā
Okay, that part is a lie. But once weāre on the beach it wonāt matter; lean and cut here is more than capable of outrunning any of these armored stooges.
āI suspect the Captain will be able to provide you with more information than I.ā Dolphus took frequent dramatic swings during the conversation, to allow himself to repeatedly break eye contact, as even with an adrenaline charge in his body, not being overwhelmed by Althainās eyes was too tall an order on its own, much less while also trying to make his body stop being in cold, trembling pain long enough to put on a good act.
ā¦
Donāt do itā¦
Dolphus, stop, you donāt want to do thisā¦
āIf it isnāt terribly inconvenient, may we meet the men under your command?ā Dolphus gestured about, towards the edges of the small clearing. āIt really is awkward knowing they are listening in without getting the chance to greet them.ā
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āWell, how delightfully refreshing to converse with someone who is.ā He really seemed to genuinely enjoy it. āAn absolute pleasure to make your acquaintance Mrā¦ā A long pause, drawn out longer than necessary. āā¦Greylark, was it?ā The emphasis he placed on Dolphusā fake name seemed to tell a story of itās own.
If Dolphus had been looking him in the eyes when introducing himself, heād have found it slightly easier to meet the manās gaze. For the moment he heard the name his eyes lit up with activity. Pupils narrowing in, flickering to take in the entirety of Dolphusā face, and his irisā becoming more pronounced. There was emotion in his eyes now, it was hunger. His eyes searched for more information as if it was the only thing that could sustain him. The moment passed as quickly as it came on.
āWell, Iām no stranger to deckhands behaving out of sorts unfortunately. I also unfortunately must deny you the pleasure of meeting my Marines. A meet and greet would compromise their shooting positions. Which in turn could compromise my personal safety. Besides, from the sounds of it, youāre on an important mission, I couldnāt possibly bear delaying you.ā He smiled carefully at Dolphus.
āNow, how about you get your deckhand to apologize, and I send you on your way. After a fashion that is.ā
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Dolphus gave a courteous tip of his head in reply. The eyes of his opponent seemed to devour the light, glimmers of intent creeping in along the edges and swirling in the darkness. It didnāt last, and the minute it stopped Dolphus redirected his eyes elsewhere.
Thatās curious. Not sure why āGreylarkā is is the part he feels the need to be snide about, but whatever. Some people just need something to be suspicious of, I suppose.
Dolphus performed an excellent crestfallen expression. āAh. A pity. Well, I understand your position, and I promise you we shall trouble you as little as possible. We wouldnāt want to keep the Captain and his forces waiting, after all.ā
Get past the trees, and thenā¦ Arrows. Dolphus frowned internally. Perhaps my plan wonāt work after all. We my have to lead them on a bit of a goose chase; thereās no way theyād just let us go back without tailing usā¦ And thatās all assuming this ominous fellow with the endlessly deep eyes is telling us the truth.
If heās not, weāre either dead right now or weāre about to be in a few minutes. I donāt like other possibility very much. Perhaps thereās a third option where heās the one whoās dead in a few minutes, and his guard all decide to all run away because they get scared.
ā¦That was sarcasm, me. Itās a joke.
Dolphus delicately sheathed his sword, some of the buzzing returning to his head, an indicator that his adrenaline was running out. āMake it short; we donāt want to try the Captainās patience.ā He blurted at Ari as he turned around and walked past her, the āafter a fashionā comment not slipping by him. Thereās got to be some kind of way to signal the crew from here. Stupid Ari and her stupid kidnapping brought us both right into an impossible situation; thereās no resources or man-made devices I can take advantage of, and if this fellow really wants to kill us he has the full means to.
Of course, I could gamble on him not truly being aware of the situation, since any kind of arrow barrage would run the risk of us shouting, and Iām not sure he could effectively kill the two of us himself without giving us time to cry for help, but itās probably not a wise idea to depend on it. Thereās got to be somethingā¦ Perhaps- no, that would be too unsubtle.
He adjusted his collar again, eyeing the treeline to see if any of the guards might happen to be visible. Is he so protective of the northern fleet that he would kill two random people, one in Armada attire, the other a complete stranger, just because they got defensive? Well, SHE did, but he hasnāt heard an obtrusive peep out of Dolphus Greyl-
L-Larkā¦
ā¦Oh.
OH NO.
Every feather on his alien limb began to rise. The world seem to throw itself away from him in all directions, the surrounding trees accelerating away and stretching off into the distance. The ground beneath his feet felt alien, unnatural. It should be hard, cold. And burning.
The pain of his twisted arm flared in his mind. For a brief moment he was sideways, gravity pulling on the side of his head as the space his father had occupied a moment before now contained no trace of him. With pupils rapidly shrinking, he slowly turned, his eyes dragging him back towards those knowing voids, the intolerable presence of their piercing gaze now a draw, an endless darkness to be sunken into, the world losing its precious hues of warmth and light in their presence.
All youthful energy, or what little remained, had gone from his face. His eyes were sunken now, coldly reflecting a pure and unfiltered terror which emanated off his skin, endlessly reiterating the one indisputable fact which remained after the whole world and all sense of being had fallen away.
He knows.
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As Dolphus spoke to the man, Ari was still frozen in place. The last couple of days have taken a toll on her, she was feeling tired and lost, her thoughts scrambled in her mind. The presence of the Armada captain seemed to amplify all those hopeless feelings tenfold. For the first time in years she felt like she was truly cornered, with no possible way outā¦
Ari tried to take another quick glance in the eyes of her opponent. To her surprise, they were not nearly as dead as before. As he was talking to Dolphus, his eyes lit up with interest and curiosity. It was a small glimpse of genuine human emotion that she thought this man lacked. Even though for a brief moment, but he stopped looking like a monster. After all he was still human.
This realization made Ari suddenly snap out of her trance. How could she freeze up like that? How pathetic, she got scared of some Domestic Watch Captain! She really wasnāt herself after the boat crash. Didnāt hear the obvious footsteps, allowed herself to be surrounded, get caughtā¦ oh she would give everything for that nap next to a fire right nowā¦
No, she didnāt get caught yet, there was still a chance to get out of this.
Ari listened carefully to what her companion was saying.
I guess for now Iāll have to play along with the story the boy is making up if I want to get out of thisā¦
are you serious, this stupid kid couldnāt come up with anything better than deckhand?!
It was humiliating, but she had to let go of her ego for now. The kid embarrassed himself in front of her, so he wouldnāt be able to tell anyone about the pathetic things she was about to say. They are even now.
Shooting positions?! You have to be kidding me!
Ari hated dealing with archers. Bows were pretty much useless in the crowded and cramped city streets she was native to, so they were a rare sight. She adapted to fighting against swords, daggers, maces, even spears, but if she ever encountered an archer, it led to serious trouble and she never came out unscathed.
But this was something to worry about in the future. Right now she needed to focus on convincing that freak that she meant no harm.
Ari fully lowered her metal bet, and returned it to its place on to her belt.
āIām sorry, chief!ā She spread her arms in a wide gesture, with the palms facing the captain to show that she was completely unarmed and had no intentions to attack, āI was never in any fancy circles and donāt know the proper way to talk. At first I thought you were a group of forest bandits, trying to rob us, as if we have anything valuable to give, and tried to scare them away. I did not expect to meet the Domestic Watch in the middle of the forest, but Iām thankful that youāre doing your best to keep these lands safe!ā She absolutely couldnāt stand the things that were coming out of her mouth. The last sentence was particularly disgusting, but she had to push through. The empty-eyed piece of crap was absolutely not making it out of here with both of his eyes intact after making her go through this.
As she spoke, she threw a quick glance at Dolphus and had to try her best to suppress a visceral reaction to the sight that opened before her eyes. The boy had a mortified expression on his face. It looked as if all life was pulled out of him and he was about to collapse to the ground. He clearly realised something that Ari was completely oblivious to. What part of the manās speech got such a reaction out of him? Did he see straight through the kidās lies? Whatever it was, Ari did not have a good feeling about it. Now she knew for certain that they were absolutely not letting them go.
It was time to act.
āI hit my head real hard on a tree branch when we were going here yāsee, so my brains are all scrambled and I just canāt think straight. I am sorry that my stupid words offended you!ā She let out a nervous laugh and accompanied her words with a gesture of hitting the back of her head with the palm of her right hand. Unnoticed by anyone, she pulled out one of the long iron nails keeping her ponytail together out of her hair as she lowered her arm, and hid it in her palm.
As he approached the leftovers of the boat, mako noticed a hasty trail of fairly fresh footprints originating at the miserable carcass of the small vessel, going to the midpoint between the two wrecks, then sharply turning towards the forest and disappearing between the trees. At the point of the turn, there was a sizeable imprint in the sand, as if something had been lying there for quite some time. However it was impossible to tell what that object could have been. Mako briefly stopped to investigate and noticed that the footprints were significantly larger compared to his own.
When he reached the boatā¦ if you could even call it a boatā¦ just a bunch of broken planks loosely attached together forming something that vaguely resembled a hull and a fallen mast with a torn white sail, he didnāt find anything of interest, except for an old toolbox filled with instruments, most of which Mako didnāt seem to recognise. It was clear that whoever owned the box, took great care of it and its contents, as all tools were in pristine condition, despite clearly having been in use for a long time. Most of the paint on the toolbox had been chipped off by time, but Mako could barely make out the words WOHLFORD & CO. written on the side. (OOC: I hope that Mako can read. If not, Iāll edit this last part out)
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OOC: Thank you for posting on such short notice. I appreciate it.
I wonder who this couldāve been. Perhaps they are still alive. Iām going to have to check later. Mako thought examining the boat.
Mako hesitated. Through the many ships Mako stowed away upon, he had seen glimpses of the Wolfords handiwork. Truly a sight to behold.
If one of them is on this islandā¦well, they could possibly fix this ship. And judging from their tools, thatās probably their profession. They probably walked off the boat and headed towards that way. But then, what with the giant imprint? A body? But then whom? Who? And where did they go?
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āNo lasting harm done.ā Althain says with a small chuckle. āHmm, you say you had to forage for your crew? Iāll tell you what, if you go thatāa way, thereās an Orchard. Check with itās owner, but in the name of the crown Iām sure heāll donate some food to your cause.ā As he spoke he raised his hand and pointed straight opposite of himself relative to Ari and Dolphus.
āIt would be absolutely terrible of me to not have you return with your objective, whilst I know where itās to be found.ā He paused. āI could send a pair of my Marines, to ensure you get there safely of course.ā He smiled at them, in this he was being genuinely truthful, heād gotten enough information to satisfy the Admiral.
Most of the story was fabricated of course, once a man starts lying about his name heāll lie about anything. However, the rare kernels of truth hidden inside, no doubt to make the lies believable, those were the prize here.
A short distance away, on another small island, a small figure lay on a beach. White gloves, now wet and dirty loosely gripped about a cane. Nico Markl was dying, but not dead yet, he was also unconscious. A shadow fell across his face.
A clicking voice called out to itās fellow, āFound it, itās a human. Near dead, what should we do?ā The speaker was a young female Halinth, her red shell spotless and glistening in the sunlight.
Her fellow, a larger male Halinth grunted. āTake it to the Village, they wonāt die if we can help it.ā
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Apology accepted.
Dolphus blinked once. Some part of his brain had managed to be pretentious enough to stay grounded in reality. But the amount of good that would do was evidently quite unreliable, as his cynical attitude could not focus his vision.
Thankfully, although it didnāt feel that way at the time, the fellowās eyes were still too intolerable despite their intoxicating draw, and Dolphus was forced to avert his own. His heart seemed to beat against his ribs until it bruised, and his senses started flooding back in just in time to stop his hand from trying to sneak under his cape and smooth down his ruffled feathers.
Dolphus never turned to face the direction he was pointing, fixed only on his hand. It pointed, returned to his side, and did not move again, with his words slowly trailing back into Dolphusā mind after having gone in one ear and straight out the other.
āā¦what-ā He looked around slightly, as if the world suddenly became real again. āYes, uh, weāll be glad to-ā
He froze, his eyes locking with the lightless ones which looked right through his soul. ā-to do that. B-Best of luck to you, sir.ā He raised in salutation for only just long enough before swiftly turning around, walking off in the direction the captain had pointed. His knees were starting to tremble.
He knows he knows he knows he knows he knows he knows he knows he knows
ā¦Uh oh. I just agreed to that.
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Ari silently listened to the captainās speech and, when he was done, responded with nothing but a mocking grin on her face, not trying to hide any of the disdain she had for him, turned around and joined Dolphus who already started walking in the direction that the man pointed to.
He was so darn lucky that she is out of shape right now. If they ever meet again, he wonāt be having that smug look on his face - she thought to herself.
But those eyesā¦ she will be seeing them in her nightmares next time she falls asleep, thatās for sure.
She would give away everything for that nap next to a campfire.
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That complicates things, Althain thought. Luckily he always kept a few incompetent and more importantly expendable marines just for this eventuality. He called these two forward. They were garbed in the same fashion as their captain, although simpler.
āAccompany these two to the Orchard, then meet me on the ship. Ensure no harm comes to them, and most importantly that they not get lost.ā
After they departed, and making sure Ari and Dolphus were out of earshot. He called the rest of his troops out, including the two Caelin he had in his company. āBack to the ship please.ā He spoke to his mages. Barring the potential loss of his marines, the day had been an unqualified success. Heād had his doubts about this backwater posting, but Ghalwyn had been correct in the end. Which reminded him.
āIāll also need to send a message to the Admiral. At your own time please.ā When the portal opened he waited for the last of his Marines to step through before he went through himself. When the Caelin stepped through the portal closed behind them with a slight pop, leaving the small clearing empty and silent once more.
The two Marines jogged along behind Ari and Dolphus, their bows still in their hands. As they went along, one looked to the other. āIs it just me or do we always get the worst jobs?ā
āEh, canāt be worse than waiting on the ship for some other ship to pass.ā
As they went along, the packed trees started to give way for a pleasant clearing of fruit trees. Lemons, Oranges, Apples, and other perfectly ripened fruits sat on uncountable fruit trees. About one kilometer away across the orchard sat a pleasant little cottage. The marines started to catch up as the beginning of the orchard started to become visible ahead.
It was a squat little building, stone construction, with timber framing around itās windows. The only thing ruining the rustic image, was the stone dragon curled around the building. Head on one side, Tail on the other.
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(OOC: are their faces exposed, just like the captain or do they have some kind of face protection?)
No harm, huh? What a joke!
Ari threw a quick glance at the pair of marines approaching her. It wasnāt hard to tell that these two didnāt hold themselves even with a fraction of the confidence of their leader. On the contrary, they looked like this was the last place they wanted to be.
These two were definitely not returning to their ship, that she knew for sure.
As Ari and Dolphus were leaving the clearing where they had been surrounded, followed by their newfound āguardsā, she looked around her, examining the surroundings and hoping to catch a glimpse of the other archers hiding between the trees as she went by.
As Ari walked through the woods in compete silence, she tried to listen carefully to the footsteps of the marines.
They were quite behind and did not let go of their bows. Bad. Even if she bolted towards them at maximum speed, she could bet that she wouldnāt be able to get close enough before they loaded their bows. Thatās what she hated about archers so much. They always kept their distance, not giving her any opportunities to attack.
So she could only keep walking towards the mysterious Orchard, getting more and more visibly frustrated each passing minute.
They are leading us straight into a trap, arenāt they?
The group has been walking through the dense woods for quite a while, until Ari started noticing that the gaps between trees became bigger, letting in more light, undergrowth became more rare, it got windier. They were getting out of the forest.
As if confirming her thoughts, a big clearing between the trees came into view about 300 meters away, revealing a big luscious garden consisting of well-kept fruit trees. And beyond it, Ari could barely make out the silhouette of a small house. It was a surprisingly peaceful, pleasant sight and Ari couldnāt help but think just how long ago was the last time she ate.
As they approached the property, reaching the exit of the forest, Ari suddenly heard the footsteps behind her back get louder. Much to Ariās delight, they were getting closer, closing the distance between them rapidly.
The thing about bows is that they become completely useless once you get close enough. You canāt load an arrow and aim reliably when the opponent is right in front of you, and these imbeciles just did it to themselves.
It was either now or never.
Ari moved her hand, attracting Dolphusās attention, looked straight into his eyes, gestured towards the two marines with a slight movement of her head and gave Dolphus a huge grin, with a meaningful look in her eyes.
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Internally, Dolphus was furious.
If he had the opportunity to take a good close look at the coast, he might know which island they were on, and that could have completed his act. But, unfortunately, SOMEONE had whisked him away before any of that could be determined, and he was now being ushered to some unknown destination, to receive an unknown fate.
Unknown. Yeah right.
He knows.
Dolphusā depressed hyperfixation on the revelation of the ages was overpowered by the natural beauty of the orchard. His stomach twisted and knotted, caught between being so hungry all of a sudden and the horrible, gut-wrenching feeling of what that little cottage represented.
It wasnāt a home with a peculiar stone decoration. It was a chopping block.
Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to die. Iām going to d-
Dolphusā head slowly turned, his grieving eyes having fully visualized the burial at sea, the partially upset Pyotr back at home, the opportunities with Alexis lost forever, the rest of the shipās crew dancing merrily at the revelation that the stupid kid was finally gone, and other associated topics and events which continued to get much worse and much more unrealistic, to finally settle on Ariās eyes. Maybe she had a plan for how to get away from the two guar-
Her eyes were wide and glowing, and her sharp teeth were set in the widest and most devious grin imaginable. Dolphus narrowed almost his entire face in confusion, before his eyes impossibly widened with the realization of what was about to occur.
The marines were close to being right alongside them. Dolphus swallowed - hard - as his fingers touched the handle of his delicate blade, fully aware that it would take all of the Armadaās forces to convince Ari to change her course. These men were going to die.
Iām going to die.
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Ari saw the change in the boyās face and the movement of his hand towards the handle of his laughable sword, signifying that he understood the hint and somehow the grin on her face became even wider than before.
Letās do this.
Not wasting a single moment, Ari turned around sharply and immediately bolted towards the closest marine with the same wicked grin on her face, momentarily closing the distance between them and, transferring the energy from this motion, gathering all of her might, swung her right arm, the nail from earlier jammed in her fist in between her middle and ring fingers, long sharp end facing forward, towards the bottom of the manās jaw, in a devastating uppercut motion.
Finally, for the first time since she took to the sea, she had a chance to do one of the two things she knew how to do best.
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Well, whatever the case, i might as well take this stuff backā¦ Mako thought, picking up the tools, and started to head back.
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The Marines eyes widen in shock. He barely had time to whimper āMercyā before Ariās 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 heād managed to at least cripple one of his pursuers.
The Stone Dragon lifted itās head at the commotion, faintly interested in the fight. The rock like scales that made up itās armour ground against the detris that had gathered between them in itās long nap.
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OOC: This isnāt immediately after Makoās comment, just needed a quote here so I could tell where Ariās 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?
āSay, does anyone know where we are? We donāt happen to have that figured out yet, do we, Captain?ā
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 breakfastā¦
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Dolphus clicked the blade from its sheath and drew it halfway, but the sudden and horrific recoil of the Marineās body against Ariās fist froze him in place. He died. Heās dead. No mercy. Instantly. Remorselessly.
Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead.
His skin grew cold as his eyes followed a drop of crimson roll down Ariās forearm and drop off her elbow. Heās dead. Heās dead. Heās gone. Youāre gone. Youāre going to die. Youāre going to die. Youāre going to die. Youāre going to die. Youāre going to die.
His hand gripped the handle of his sword so tightly his knuckles felt like they would burst. Youāre going to die Youāre going to die Youāre going to die Youāre going to die Youāre going to die Youāre going to die Youāre 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 itā¦
ā¦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 wouldnāt 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.
IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING IāM DYING
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Arriving at the ship, Mako climbed up onto the deck, approaching Mariner.(@Winterstorm345 ) āSir, i searched the wreck and found these.ā He held the toolbox up. āIt seems we were not the only ones who washed up.ā He said, before hesitating.āAlso, sir. Before we were attackedā¦ā
āYou were going to tell me about The God of Sea.ā
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Ariās smile dropped off her face in an instant.
He didnāt even get a chance to fight backā¦
She let go of the nail, sending the manās 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 andā¦
Ari froze in place as she watched an enormous grey wing unfold from under the boyās cape and snap towards the guardās 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 manās legs.
Immediately Ari used the forward motion created by the throw to come charging after the marine.
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Mariner took the toolbox from Mako and looked it over. He stared at it so entranced he almost missed Makoās question. Wohlford &Co, the company that had made his favourite ship, and the very one Tharwyn had been apprenticed under when heād 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 heād sought out the finest shipbuilder he could find. The company was ran at the time by a man called Halfshell, Mariner couldnāt remember his actual name, but the two had become fast friends.
His friend had named the ship The Halfshellās Hope. Which was short for āThe Halfshellās hope that Mariner can keep a vessel afloat.ā 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 wasnāt alive to see itās end.
Mariner said something very low and quiet what Mako was able to catch was āSea Godā¦Long timeā¦Deadā he then turned away from the conversation, and stared down towards the sea, looking to see if he could spot any of the shipās missing supplies. Mariner wasnāt 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. āWhy are you doing this? What did we do to you?ā
He tries to rise, but is unable before Ari is upon him.
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