The past few days had been a horrid and cloudy experience. Sam's involvement with the sea had always been bad but never had she been aboard a vessel during a storm so bad as this one. The first day was fine but after the storm, her days and nights during the first part of the voyage were either spent relying on Kav or being out of it probably puking into a bucket somewhere. She isn't entirely sure what happened during the time of the storm or after but she knows that Kav was there to help a lot and she woke up one time from her delirium in a hammock. She wasn't quite sure how she had arrived in the rope bed. She didn't fully understand it but the unusual bed definitely helped her stomach to not be doing as many flips as it normally would be.
At some point, there was a period where she could tell that the rocking of the sea was not as harsh. Were they at land then? Samara was still feeling very squeamish and lay in the gentle swinging of the hammock. Unbeknownst to her, Sam had slept through the entirety of the stop at Santorini. Unless told by someone she would know nothing about the very interesting occurrences that happened on the island. Guaranteed she barely knew what had happened during the storm or after that either.
She did wake up when the boat began moving again. Slowly she made her top deck to see they were slowly drifting away from the island. A small splash of disappointment flashed across her face, but they could always make the stop again on their way back. She saw Kav near Ashley. Samara quietly walked over to the two. She needed some sun so even if someone tried to force her back into bed she'd fight against it. Other than that she'd stick close to Kav.
Oddly enough, after departing from Santorini, the crashing and rocking of the waves were almost non-existent. It was odd and eerie. In the city, if things got too quiet it was almost a sign to run or at least find somewhere to hide. But the wide-open seas were a different matter. She had no real experience to draw from on if this was unordinary or not. She just found it odd that it felt almost like she was back on land with how little the boat swayed. When Troe began asking about the oddity of this dead spot, Sam's unease about the situation grew. She answered whatever questions she had but eventually added, "I don't know about the sea but in the streets of the city you never want it to be this quiet." Then she went below deck to try and sleep the rest of her nausea away.
Eventually, the open ocean seemed to return to normal but that didn't help to assuage her worry. As the ship began to renew its rocking she chose to stay below deck and rest. Suddenly, she was woken from her slumber by shouts and people flooding below deck. They were under attack? Why though? Anyone looking at their boat would think the people on it had nothing of worth to take. Or was it because they seemed to be the easiest marks? Sam weakly gripped Kav's shoulder trying to keep him from going out there but he easily slipped out of her hand to continue his way towards the hatch. At this point, she knew there was nothing she could say or do to stop him so instead she tried to quickly ready herself for battle. Once she was ready she tried to follow but was soon stopped by some members of the crew. While normally she would've been fine up there, in her condition they could tell she'd be in a bad way if she tried to go up there without cover or assistance.
As Mikhail called out orders she noticed that their leader had already been hit. That definitely wasn't a good sign. "That IDIOT rushed up there alone. I need to get up top." Mikhail's plan didn't seem to involve taking back the top deck just yet, and it wasn't like she could push past a horde by herself. She grimaced at the thought of what Kavius may be going through. She had to get up there. Anger and anxiety-fueled her as she let loose her first arrow once Mikhail opened the hatch. The arrow flew with deadly accuracy and embedded itself in the eyepatch of one of the invading 'adventurers'.
Out of the corner of her eye, she notices Xara talking to Troe about some scheme. Samara lets loose another arrow connecting with an enemy's torso a little to the left of the heart. As the two mages set about their plan, Sam thinks up one of her own. She rushes to the other side of the boat from the two and slowly begins working her body out of the porthole. She had to leave behind some of her gear, but having leaned her bow and quiver against the wall, she was able to reach back in while hanging off the side of the boat to retrieve those items. Many times she has had to fit through very tight spots but the porthole was definitely among the smallest. It was a good thing that everyone else was drawing enough attention so that her grunts didn't alert any of the enemies. Sam knew she was likely to be berated later as this was a dumb move and since she couldn't swim she'd be in serious trouble if she fell.
As the chaos on the other side began Sam started working her way up only to hear an explosion not far behind her. Pressing herself against the side of the Stinkboat to avoid being spotted, she looked around wondering what had happened. The people assaulting their boat were split and frazzled by all the big moves. Some were abandoning the sinking vessel rushing aboard the Stinkboat while some seemed to be moving to see what was wrong. There were way too many people on the Stinkboat now for Sam to safely and stealthily maneuver around up there. Deciding upon another dumb idea, Sam brought her legs up between her torso and the boat. Making sure she knew where she was trying to land, Sam kicked off the side of the boat towards the sinking one only to collide with it missing her intended target. Luckily she was able to find a purchase when she reached out her hands.
Her head was spinning but she started climbing anyway. On the deck of the slowly sinking boat, she had a good visual of the Stinkboat. She was about to begin Shooting down the horde only for the attention of hers, along with many others, to be drawn to the back of the boat. It was Kav and he looked in absolutely awful shape. She took aim at the person close to him but the arrow fell early and landed in the man's leg. CRAP! This was not good. Kav was all the way to the back of the Stinkboat and back in the water. Sam took a few more shots at anyone who seemed to be going near where Kav was only one finding full purchase while the others merely grazed their targets. Her position by now was fully given away and enemy archers were sending their own arrows at her. She ducked behind cover to avoid the missiles. She was panicking about how to help Kavius when her vision latched onto a long coil of rope. She didn't know if it would work but it was better than nothing.
Quickly she tied one end of the rope around an arrow and the other end around a banister. That's when the few who had stayed behind to stop the sinking of their boat came back up. She let two arrows fly with one embedding itself deep into the mage's throat and the other hitting another shoulder. Taking the rope arrow she quickly shot it towards Kav only for it to not land near him. She pulled out her dagger and rushed the enemy yelling, "KAV HURRY!"
Clothing (Cloth tied around forehead, gloves(right glove has the pointer and middle finger cut off), short-sleeved dark green tunic, only the top half of leather armor, dark grey pants, dark green tattered skirt, and boots
Bow
Quiver with 32 24 arrows
Two waist pouches(contains money, materials to make arrows, and items to keep bow maintained)
The young woman thankfully nodded her head at the man who held the door open for her. Elysia felt her foot catch on the doorway but thankfully she caught herself. She was so tired. Why had she come out today? She took a few deep breaths and rapidly blinked her eyes to shake the dreariness away. When she refocused her vision, the man who had opened the door for her was standing there with a concerned expression. Maneuvering the things in her hands she used her phone to let him know she was alright. Just terribly tired.
Soon leaving the awkward conversation Elysia made her way through the halls to where her new group was meeting. She could see all but Kyle. Well, hopefully, he would arrive soon. Otherwise, the coffee she had gotten for him would get cold. Approaching the growing number of students she waved and held up a notecard she had prepared earlier. *I got everyone something to drink. I got mostly generic drinks so sorry if there aren't any you like.*
It was then that she noticed they were all still standing outside the classroom. That was odd. Was the TA not here yet? Puzzled she precariously balanced the coffee's again and using her phone. "Did she say she would be late?"
Elysia gathered her things after the conversation was seemingly over. She had a lot to think about. And she needed to study the notes from today's class. She purchased another coffee before leaving knowing that no matter what, she was gonna crash from sleepiness despite how much caffeine she consumes. Might as well get some help to stay awake long enough to study.
At home sitting at her desk, she felt her eyes becoming droopy as she looked over the notes. In order to stay awake, she decided to copy what she was reading while also occasionally looking at the textbook. Eventually, this devolved into ignoring the notes and taking an even closer and more critical look at the book about the various things that started to seem more real. She took out her laptop and began doing even more research on the details and terms that stuck out to her. She even studied up on the person who wrote the textbook and looked at the various sources mentioned. She had become so lost at what she was doing that when she looked at the clock she saw it was almost 3 AM. She had entirely lost track of time, but somehow she had fought off the grogginess for the time
However, as if on cue she felt her eyes closing heavy as she laid her head down on her desk. The buzzing of her phone caused the young woman to stir. Grabbing it she looked at the group chat. While she wasn't having dreams she was certainly not happy with waking up to a weird drawing. She stretched as she sat upright. The desk was not a good place to sleep. Looking at the new drawing which she had apparently drooled a little bit on, she was extremely confused. It was a picture of the TA in an outfit that resembled a maestro. Elysia's brain felt like it was melting. What on earth does this even mean. She grabbed her head and rested it down against the desk and groaned. She was going nuts. At least she had a lead finally but what did any of this mean. She still had no idea why she was drawing these things while sleeping. Maybe it was these drawings that kept her from having the weird dreams.
Taking a picture of the drawing she sent it to the group chat, "New drawing this morning. Does this mean anything to anyone?" Feeling her stomach rumble she decides to do her morning routine and eat as she waited for some form of response.
Well, she honestly should have expected someone to get the group to introduce themselves like this was a kid group. Should've realized that Kav was the kind of person to do this. She decided to use this as an opportunity to figure out what kind of people they all were. Kav obviously went first but she already knew plenty well what kind of person he was. Next was the most recent addition. ChurchGirl. She seemed refined and dignified, albeit a little rigged. Way too poised for this in Sam's opinion but a dedicated healer would certainly be useful. Next to speak up was the boss lady herself. She was definitely smart but felt very haughty with how she talked herself up. Being a lady knight of some fancy rich-born people isn't that high of esteem to flaunt in front of others. Her knowledge of curses and the like though? That certainly was something to put her in high regard. Still being so boastful about it irritated Sam.
The next to make their presence known was the younger female mage. Sam had expected the girl to go on a full monologue like an actor. But she kept it quick and precise. Sam found that respectable. She even seemed mostly open about why she was going. Samara couldn't fault her for that but the girl's lack of experience greatly worried the young archer. The one-armed beast of a woman introduced herself next. Pretty blunt and straightforward. She also looks as powerful as her voice and words seemed to indicate. The guy who seemed obsessed with his books gave an even shorter introduction. Book types tended to be like that from her experience.
Next was the skilled 'lancer'. He seemed to be somewhat put off his game by Ashley's comment. It was quite funny to watch this man struggle. She wanted to laugh but deigned not to make jokes about these people at least until they are no longer on the boat. She decided to finally speak up, "Names Samara. Call me that, Sam, or whatever you feel like. I don't really care that much. I'm skilled with a bow and I have a few dubious talents that I doubt most of you would have. Don't ask my age because I don't know and I'm in it for the money like Margot. Pleasure doing business with you all. I'm going to find a corner to sit in before the waves start messing with the boat." She then walked towards the edge of the boat and sat with her back to the railing.
Clothing (Cloth tied around forehead, gloves(right glove has the pointer and middle finger cut off), short-sleeved dark green tunic, only the top half of leather armor, dark grey pants, dark green tattered skirt, and boots
Bow
Quiver with 32 arrows
Two waist pouches(contains money, materials to make arrows, and items to keep bow maintained)
As they boarded the boat Sam looked around. Man, if they made it out of port they would be lucky. She began looking around the topside of the boat when Kav approached her again. She was about to respond when younger mage girl approached them. Sam slowly shook her head, "While I won't try and stop you I don't necessarily think something like that would be a good idea. We are going to set sail soon and if we get attacked by other adventurers we'll need everyone ready, and if my stomach starts acting up on the ride I don't really want to throw drugs in the mix. But you guys do you." She gave Kav a light pat on the shoulder, "I'm going to go talk to older mage lady. It's looking like she's going to be leading this party so I'm gonna tell her what I can do before the waves put me out of commission. Whatever you do just don't overdo it." With that she walked away from the two towards Ashley, "Hey boss lady. Thought maybe you wanted to know a little about what Kav and I can do before we set off."
Clothing (Cloth tied around forehead, gloves(right glove has the pointer and middle finger cut off), short-sleeved dark green tunic, only the top half of leather armor, dark grey pants, dark green tattered skirt, and boots
Bow
Quiver with 32 arrows
Two waist pouches(contains money, materials to make arrows, and items to keep bow maintained)
Utter confusion. That was the state Sam found herself in. They were simply walking to the docks and Kav had somehow lost his shirt, gained a shiner, and carried a bag of candy. It took way too much brainpower to try and understand his antics at times. Over at a different boat, her attention caught onto tablehopper from earlier. That ship was absolutely dreadful. The smell wasn't a big issue to her as she had smelled many horrid things through her life on the streets. A couple of full buckets discarded into a closet is definitely one of the worst. But looking at the boat she was unsure if it could even make it to Irinoth in perfect conditions.
She was about to question Kav about his current lack of a shirt when the younger female mage piped up in a weird speech about herself and how she was great. Sam just stared at the woman with a look of complete incredulity. The one-armed axe woman then suggested a battle between their mages which while Sam was interested in watching she was unsure if this was the best place to do so. But then the younger mage, quicker than a spooked cat, spewed out a flood of words to get out of it. If it wasn't for the fact that they would soon be on a boat with this person heading towards a dangerous place she would have laughed. What are with these people? The most normal person here is the woman knight.
Thankfully, Kav interjected at just the right time to distract Sam from breaking her own mind thinking of the oddness of this group. Only for the rambling words to confuse her even more. Her head started to spin listening to him spew out various facts at her about ships. "Kav, Kav, Kav. Please slow down. I'm not a boat expert like you. I only know how to stowaway on one. But whatever boat we get on we aren't going to steal anything until we learn more about these people." Responded Sam as she nodded her head towards the others. "And if while we're checking out the boat they start pulling out I'll have to head up top. Since we're allowed on this boat we can roam freely and I'd rather be up top when the motion sickness hits me." Sam visibly cringed remember her first time on a boat. She had hidden in a barrel below deck. Sam had no idea that her stomach was incompatible with being on open waters. What made it worse was that her hidey-hole had tipped over at one point causing her stomach to do both figurative and essentially literal flips as she rolled around in the barrel. Let's just say that smell is towards the top of the worst things she has smelled.
Clothing (Cloth tied around forehead, gloves(right glove has the pointer and middle finger cut off), short-sleeved dark green tunic, only the top half of leather armor, dark grey pants, dark green tattered skirt, and boots
Bow
Quiver with 32 arrows
Two waist pouches(contains money, materials to make arrows, and items to keep bow maintained)
Samara calmly walked back to the bar to watch the fight continue. There were some impressive individuals. Obviously, the one-armed woman seemed fairly powerful and she had noticed how she was the only one who noticed what she was doing in that crowd. The well-dressed moody looking man near her had entered the fray and knocked one guy out in a single punch. Her attention was drawn to the two women next to her that the man had been talking to. They were both apparently mages. This piqued her interest. Mages could be quite powerful. If she could get in the good graces of one that'd be really nice. She looked back over to their companion who seemed to be speaking to the one-armed woman. But her attention was ripped away from whatever they were saying as she saw the guy she'd told she would join launch himself out the window like a madman.
Ok yeah, nevermind joining him. If he was the kind of person to literally throw logic along with himself out the window, Sam had no intention of staking her or Kav's safety anywhere near him. She was debating whether she should find him to tell him that she was rescinding her offer of helping or just ignoring him if he brought it up. Annoyingly though, Kav decided to go outside to follow the Jumpy Blonde. She groaned at the idea of going to find that guy. But she couldn't leave Kav to go alone with him to get himself killed.
Before Sam could leave though the fight was soon ended by a few knights entering the building. The older mage rushed towards the leader. The whole act played up by the nobleish looking woman was quite good. It was obvious to Sam that the woman knew exactly how to play that man. She couldn't exactly tell what the relationship was but she somehow had all those knights wrapped around her finger. She lingered a little longer to listen to this impressive group that was gathering. She was happy she chose to stay and listened as she soon gathered that these people seemed like they may be setting out to journey to Irinoth. Her mind was immediately made up. One crazy mage versus two who also had two very strong people? Yeah, that wasn't a hard choice.
Leaving the tavern she quickly tracked down Kav only to see the mad mage getting up from a pile of hay. A strong look of annoyance flooded her face as she listened to him talk. Battle strategy? Really. Sam had a hard time believing that the guy she was looking at would participate in any kind of combat. Before Kav could walk off following him Sam grabbed him by the shoulder. Whispering "Look, I know we both said we'd go with him but just inside the tavern a much stronger and able-minded group is about to set out to Irinoth. We're going with them. I am not dealing with someone crazier than you. Come on they are heading towards the port."
She then jogged past Jumpy Blonde and Kav in order to catch up with the other group. When she reached them she found the knight trying to commandeer the Santa Lyrica. Sam guessed that the nobleish mage woman had put him up to it? She chuckled to herself when the man said that it was impossible to stow away on his boat. She knew that wasn't the case, but admitting that near a few knights likely wouldn't be a good idea. Then the woman in charge turned to the group and asked about the tablehopper. She mentally groaned before speaking up. "He flew through the window into a pile of hay. I went past him on my way here. Anyway, names Samara. I overheard you guys were planning to go to Irinoth. My friend Kavius and I were planning on joining tablehopper but y'all seem like better prospects."
Clothing (Cloth tied around forehead, gloves(right glove has the pointer and middle finger cut off), short-sleeved dark green tunic, only the top half of leather armor, dark grey pants, dark green tattered skirt, and boots
Bow
Quiver with 32 arrows
Two waist pouches(contains money, materials to make arrows, and items to keep bow maintained)
This was beginning to get quite frustrating. The fuzzy feeling in her head was finally starting to subside but she wasn't finding anything that was exactly useful in the book which was supposed to be about the kinds of things they were experiencing now. But to give the writers of this text the benefit of the doubt, now that she was looking at the words with the thought in mind that it was real and was happening to her and those sitting at the table, it felt all so surreal. The main thought that sprung up in Elysia's head was her art. Not the ones from when she sleeps but her normal artwork. She'd never seen them as all that special but maybe what the book says about a 'knack' has something to do with why everyone always seems to enjoy her works so much.
She felt an impulse to ask the group at large a question. As she put her textbook away Elysia listened to what they were saying trying to gather what they may have been talking about. Apparently, they were going to talk to the TA soon? She wasn't exactly sure what they could get out of her but maybe she was more into this stuff past what the book said? Either way at the mention of going to the gym the young woman shook her head. pulling out her phone, "I've never felt comfortable at gyms. I do have question." She then quickly typed out her question so as to not hold up the conversation too long. It, unfortunately, had a little lead up so it took her a bit and she began to get a bit red hoping they weren't just staring at her waiting. "Remember how the book mentions witches having knacks. Like natural talents. Have any of you experienced anything magical looking back on your life?"