jasbraq
op2024
Noctis
FernStone
NoriWasHere
YummyYummy
Mixtape Ghost N
ctrlsaltdel
Suicharte
Carlyle
A Foreword: This chapter contains a particularly bleak subject matter and brings a dark aspect of this world, slavery, into the forefront. There is a summary at the bottom of the post if you wish to skip this and get a quick rundown of the events without detail. Please note that reading the summary will spoil the events, so read at your own caution if you do wish to read the full post later.
'The bird who flew so high and carefree took his freedoms for granted and never worried for what was below him. He had been turned into a worm, the lowest of earthly beings, to pay penance for disrespecting the ground others tread.'
Excerpt from Virangish folktale 'The Bird Who Fell'
Anthal Jr.
Enoxii
Revan
Sanette
Anthal Sr.
With every volley their position grew worse; the battle became less and less likely to be something they would turn the tables on. What made things worse was the introduction of a new mage. They had struggled enough with the one in the golden robe, but this girl was shooting out their cannons. From their startling entrance, their position had steadily and unchangingly dropped. The odds of victory were no longer the sole factor of practical advantage, mage number, cannons, or munitions. A vicious fall in morale struck the members of the Blue Adam as the reality of this battle began to dawn on them.
Anthal spared a glance to Enoxii, she looked exhausted and close to breaking. She was a kinetic mage of equal renown but it did not escape him that she had taken a good portion of focused fire. The Virangish picked one of the mages to wear down in the hopes of taking them out, she became the target. She spared a glance at him and their eyes met. Between her ragged breaths, she smiled at him and tried to look pretty despite the circumstances. "Don’t tell me you’re getting tired so soon?" Her delivery poked fun at him but the underlying sweetness couldn’t be mistaken.
Anthal smiled back. Gods, even in a hell like this she's beautiful.
There was no need to continue this. A nowhere group of islands in a battle that was no longer theirs. His father had a worthy cause, but they didn’t need to die here for it. Even he would agree that fighting another day was worth more than a failure suffered in the moment. He rose and turned to the rest of the crew. ”Retreat! Turn sails and disengage.” The orders were carried out quickly and without question, most of the crew looked as though they were expecting such a call.
Once the ship had swung around and was putting a safe distance between themselves and the Virangish, the kinetic mage pair could finally relax. Enoxii had practically collapsed when the exhaustion caught up to her and the new safety allowed her rest. A few of the others rushed to make sure she was alright.
Revan approached Anthal to check on his condition but Anthal raised a hand to dismiss him. ”I’m perfectly fine, Revan.” He smiled at the usually stoic assassin he called friend. ”I just need some time to catch my breath. Watch our flank and try to make sure our disengagement is successful.”
As ordered, Revan made his way to the stern while Anthal stood alone at his own little end of the ship. Coming out of the stress the battle had placed on him, it was nice to get a moment of quiet.
He saw the others crowding around a tired Enoxii. She made a token effort to stop others from doting on her, she would make a few attempts, and then give in. Where he liked the quiet to gather his thoughts, he knew that she liked the company of others in a time like this.
He saw his sister, Sanette, calmly sipping a drink that was set aside for her. Her expression remained focused and stern. As a tethered, her job hadn’t ended yet. She would be critical for a successful retreat and her mind would be elsewhere for most of it. It was best not to disturb her.
He saw the empty gunpowder barrel - the cazenax was no longer atop it.
Suddenly, a weight latched itself to Anthal’s neck. Small legs wrapped around his chest from under his shoulders. Hands with claw-like nails gripped each side of his head, raking and pulling at the skin. The face was just beyond the reach of the young yasoi’s periphery but he knew who it was and he knew he was smiling.
"Getting a little ahead of yourself, don’cha think Anthal?" Zast spoke into his right ear, malicious glee lined his words. "The deal was that I help you and get a share of the loot. I’ve helped, but how am I supposed to see that loot if you all turn tail and run?"
Anthal struggled against the cazenax’s hold in frustration. "Get off me you cretin. I’m retreating to keep us alive, but you’ll be lucky to keep yours after thi-" He let out a muted cry of pain. The tingling of acid began to dig into one side of his face, nothing causing significant damage but it was a clear warning.
"Don’t get hasty Anthal, you may have let me live but I’m not the same kind of fool."
Anthal tried to calm himself. He believed Zast. To struggle would mean his death. "You really think you’re going to get away with this?"
Zast chuckled. "I like my odds." With force, he turned Anthal’s head toward his sister. The yasoi man gasped in fear and hopelessness before a tug backwards threw off his balance. Both he and Zast toppled down into the water below.
There was panic on the Blue Adam as it dawned on the crew that Anthal had been taken. Enoxii cried out to the rest of them as she spotted him in the water far from the fleeing ship. They could all see the cazenax who had taken him hostage and forced Anthal to swim away from his family instead of toward them. The pair of them were now closer to the Virangish forces than their own. They had few options and even fewer that were reliable.
Revan, whose seemingly persistent grin had faded, rushed to the side of the deck. He was the best shot in all of Mycormi but it was still a gamble at this distance if he could get a headshot on the green rodent. Not one to accept a loss like this and confident in his abilities, the assassin raised a pistol, aimed, and shot.
The bullet fired true and directly toward Zast’s head. However, the cazenax ducked his head behind Anthal’s shoulder and the bullet plunged into that instead. At this range, the bullet didn’t have the velocity to pierce through and kill the real target. Zast popped his head back and winked. There was no chance the goblin could have calculated that. He got lucky.
The pair were now too distant for another reliable shot. Any more of the assassin’s efforts would be in vain and further harm Anthal. In frustration, he threw the now empty flintlock to the ground.
Anthal Sr. landed on the deck of the ship not too long after. He was quickly informed of the heinous betrayal and rushed to see for himself. His stomach sank. The cazenax, who he believed would fight for the freedom of the seas, had stabbed them in the back and in his own zealousness to fight for that ideal, his son had been taken from under his nose.
But then an odd calm took the captain as he remembered Sanette, his tethered daughter. The distance between the ship and his son was too dangerous for any of them to chase, but it would be like a drop in the bucket to her. Anthal Sr. smirked as he relished in the victory that could be snatched back from the claws of that traitorous sea rat. With him dead, Anthal Jr. could simply swim back to the ship.
"Sanette, stop that traitor’s heart."
Nothing happened.
The captain’s smile dropped.
"Sanette?"
He turned back to see his daughter violently convulsing on the deck with blood seeping from her nose. Jaxan was sitting over her trying his best to stabilize the girl’s condition, he was making progress but it was all too slow. The medic boy looked up to the captain with dread. Even if they managed to save her, there would be no tethered intervention to save Anthal anytime soon.
The captain turned back hopelessly. There was nothing he could do now. With the supremacy of Virang in this battle, he needed to spend the rest of his energy to ensure a successful disengagement. He could try a rescue effort to take his son back and he would probably succeed, but what would become of the ship and the others? In saving his son, he might very well doom the rest of them. All he could do now was pray to whatever gods would listen that his son would be safe.
The waters bobbed up and down, up and down, splashing both Anthal and Zast’s faces with salt water. It got in the eyes. Anthal tasted it all too bitterly as he made his best efforts to keep his head above the waves and able to breathe. He made a passable display of swimming away from the Blue Adam such that he could hold onto his life.
"You knew who I was, Anthal, what I was. You had the chance to make the right decision and take me out but you let your daddy talk you out of it." Cawuio-Zast began lecturing. Anthal tried to make an effort to spit venom back at the cazenax, but his struggle to stay above water robbed him of the ability to form words. All he could do was swim and listen to the vile creature. "You had the choice to do it but you let others dictate your actions. It’s your own fault really. You surrendered your fate to others and let it go from your hands. You gave up your choice so you can’t complain when misfortune falls upon you. These are only the consequences of your inaction."
Anthal tuned out midway through the imp’s blathering. His mind drifted to those on the Blue Adam, the people he loved like family, friends, and even a partner. To struggle was to lose his life and lose them. He wanted to see them again. He really, really wanted to see them again. So for now, he had to swim away. He had no choice.
The crew of the Altın Oğul didn’t know what to make of it. At first, they thought it might have been some kind of underhanded pirate tactic to try and win the battle in a hail mary. But all signs pointed to the contrary. Captain Celik was called to look it over and make the call. At first, he reached for his spyglass before realising it wasn’t needed, the yasoi and cazenax pirates were almost at the ship. The Blue Adam was already well out of range and the pair didn’t look to be approaching with intent to attack. Celik doubted if the Yasoi even knew he was this close to the enemy. The boy was only looking to the distant horizon in between struggles to stay afloat. Celik decided to hold the attack and let the pair come aboard, they wouldn’t be able to achieve an attack with Ren Baykara around anyhow.
Anthal climbed the pilot ladder that was dropped by the Virangish. Every move he took was reluctant and forced but the occasional threat from the person on his neck drove him upward. The once proud yasoi pirate captain-to-be stood harmlessly on the deck of the ship, his eyes cast down from shame and shattered pride.
Just behind that, the face of Cawuio-Zast popped out from the right of his head, escaping Anthal’s direct view. Zast looked straight at Ren with a grin the likes of which few had ever seen. His eyes were wide, manic, as he declared "PARLEY!"
It was hard to interpret the face of the Virangish man that Zast approached with Anthal in tow. There was a mix of the ecstasy of triumph, and an equal amount of disgust directed toward the pirate. He strode forward and kicked Anthal with the heel of his shoe, bringing him to his knees, and an awful laugh filled the night air. Perhaps he would have said more, but his attention was immediately redirected by the filthy green creature who was grinning madly, perhaps even ‘higher’ than he was. How he’d managed to overpower this pirate, and bring him aboard the ship was beyond his comprehension, but he knew that pirates had no honor or code as much as they spouted it. They were creatures of habit, predictable and treacherous. He leaned forward, looming over the diseased cazenax with a confused but curious glare.
”You’re either the dumbest rodent on that boat, or the smartest. I’m leaning toward the former.”
"The smartest student in all Ersand’Enise. I’m a regular bookworm, don’cha know." Zast took one hand off Anthal’s head and adjusted his waterlogged suit. "But I am a student and I have worked ever so diligently to provide you with a pirate. This one is the son of the captain, you catch my drift?" He gave Anthal a strong and unnecessary slap.
Anthal didn’t say anything as he glared at Zast and then the Virangish noble standing before him. His lip turned in disgust at the pair, it seemed he still had fight left in him. “If you have any smarts, you’ll let me go now. The Blue Adam is not a crew you want to cro-” He winced in pain as Zast’s hand once again threatened to melt the side of his face.
"Ah, ah, ah, not until business is done Anthal."
Ren’s malicious grin grew larger and larger as the pair of fools talked. Any difference in height, facial features or race was lost on him. They were both worms, crawling around on the deck of the ship, finding any way out of a lawful execution. One had a trump card of being a ‘bookworm’ of Ersand’Enise and that certainly complicated matters. He’d been aware that there was a knife in the dark, but this was too foolish and he risked too much to come back, especially with a prisoner in tow. The other, however, excited him. He loomed over the pair and spoke once more, his voice practically dripping with a cruel enthusiasm.
”It can talk, I see.” He walked around Anthal, examining him in the same way that a farmer examines a calf. He stopped in front of Zast, and simply smirked at him. ”Business, hm? You can leave your gift and crawl back to the others with your head on your shoulders, Mr. Bookworm.”
"Well, if you recognise me as a student of Ersand’Enise then it looks like we have a deal." A surge of dark magic centred on the small cazenax led some sailor's skin to crawl as he waved a hand over Anthal’s neck and revealed a collar now attached to it. He held high a severely water-damaged contract sent out by the Royal Asper Trading Company. "And you all owe me 100 magus!"
He squinted at the piece of paper, making out the words that were now barely legible on the page. It was legitimate and it caused him to chuckle heartily some more. He’d paid far less for far more, and he was one to honour contracts. Laws were written and enforced by the strong, so for him to disavow them, even in the face of one of the most disgusting creatures he’d ever bore witness to, would undermine his place in the world. He reached into his pockets and threw a pouch on the ground toward the cazenax, not willing to touch such a creature and smiled.
”Keep the change.” he spoke coldly, taking hold of the leash that’d been conjured. How the swamp creature had managed to find such high-quality material was beyond him, but it was more than suitable for his purpose and he didn’t really care. He’d gotten himself a fitting prize for his triumph.
Zast jumped off the Yasoi’s neck and ran greedily toward the pouch. He snatched and picked out a handful of coins, counting all six as they dropped into the bag. It was a token gesture of counting money as if paying respect to the act while not actually caring about the quantity. Ren could have short-changed him 50% for all he cared. It just made each Magus worth more.
The worth of a man was an interesting thing to Zast. Sometimes a life is valued as priceless by others and other times it is worth little more than a good pair of boots. Today, a yasoi man was valued at 100 magus meaning that for every thought, dream, hope, and accomplishment that Anthal would ever have, a magus was worth one percent of that.
It made a magus very valuable indeed. What joy it would be to spend it all by tomorrow night.
"Pleasure doing business with ya." When he turned and faced Anthal for the first time since the abduction, his manic glare was gone and he simply wore a smug grin. "Kind regards from my best friend, High Zeno Silvestri."
Anthal despised this creature before him. The position he was in, the despair he felt, the friends and family he was wrenched from, it was all his fault. But now that his acid hands were off his head, he had options, he had the opportunity. Anthal lunged toward the cazenax with the intent to kill him. “You fucking bastard! I’ll rip your head off!” The once noble and eloquently spoken pirate devolved into rage, fury, and desperation.
There was a swift yank of the leash by the Virangish man holding it, and the pressure caused Anthal to fall onto his back. The fine material had already played a part, for were it a lesser rope or binding, perhaps he would have had his brief chance of revenge. There was a scowl on Ren’s face as he looked down at the once proud pirate who’d kissed his love on the boat in the midst of battle, now crawling around the floor like a dog, like a worm.
”I don’t recall giving you permission.” he turned and stomped his foot onto the yasoi, pressing the heel of his boot against the man's chest. ”You thought this was fun and games, didn’t you?” he mocked, looking down on him with repugnance
Anthal put both hands on the boot trying to get it off him. He might have stood a chance on physical strength alone if he hadn’t spent the last ten minutes swimming away from all he held dear. There was resistance against the boot at first, then it lessened and lessened as fatigue and hopelessness set in. “You can’t… own the seas. No one has that right.”
There was a massive change in energy as everyone on board took notice of the yasoi drawing in. Some of the weaker and injured sailors fainted at their very soul being sapped away. Anthal drew recklessly and hurriedly as he prepared for one last chance to save his life. Unlike before with Zast, he guessed that he wouldn’t die immediately for the attempt now. It was time for a temporal gambit to teleport out of there. Anthal smirked back at Ren as he flourished his hands to channel the flow of time and flash back to the Blue Adam. And then…
Nothing.
Ren raised an eyebrow in confusion. ”That’s it? The ‘freedom of the seas’?” he uttered derisively.
Zast heel pivoted around at the enormous energy that Anthal drew. He was expecting a grand display of conflict but was left confused equally.
”HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH”
”HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH”
A light left Anthal’s eyes then. It was no use. This was reality.
It was on his walk across the deck that Ren had a thought. A curious experiment he wished to conduct to gain greater insight into an outside factor that had intervened during the battle. He looked back at Anthal, still on the leash, and dragged him across the deck toward Mahal, who’d just come back from under deck with the cephalopod still in her hands. A neutral expression graced his features as he walked forward, holding the handle of the leash forward.
”I’ve won a prize from my efforts in the battle, but I noticed you’re still empty handed.” he looked at her, his eyes dispassionate and calculating her expression as he continued to speak. ”Would you like the honours of breaking it in? You’ve earned that right, given your efforts.” he gestured to Anthal, offering the leash to her. The elf pirate did not look upon them, but his eyes were blank and soulless, the fight had fled from them moments prior.
Diyablos, uncomfortable with the closeness of Ren's presence, curled back. His tentacles stretched and crawled back up to her shoulder. Meanwhile, Mahal took the leash and studied Ren's new acquisition. The weight of it felt strange in her hand. She stepped forward as her head tilted to the side, noticing the vacant expression. The request made her uncomfortable, but not in the way most might assume. Slavery was a part of her life on the plantations and her father owned many. She supervised them in the fields every harvest until last year when she came to the school.
This was different. She doubted this was an act of kindness because he wouldn't waste it on her. Was it a test or something worse? Did she dare reject it? If she did and Ren's ire came back on her, she knew she'd never escape her father's wrath.
"There's no fight in his eyes. Are you sure he's not already broken?" Her head turned to Ren. She had already been subtly drawing energy as a precaution. If he was as fresh as Ren had said, then he might’ve been faking it.
Ren shook his head. It was a response that didn’t give as much as he’d hoped, but he was confident that she wasn’t a slave from that at least. There was no sign of severe trauma. The question is - why did she have that defence mechanism that so many on the plantations held, and not show signs of anything here? And, why did he particularly care? ”Not yet. This böcek has only just come to terms with what it means to lose.” Again, his eyes surveyed her, waiting for some kind of tell that told him what exactly she was.
"Then what is the point of breaking him when he's not responsive? It's like beating a corpse." A memory of the pit flickered in her mind's eye, but she kept herself steady. Just a moment of unnatural stillness crossed her frame before she exhaled. "Best option is locking him up and letting him adjust to the new normal. When he starts to fight then the lessons will stick better and it is a good way to show submission is best."
Mahal gave the leash back as she pulled away from the broken man. Her hand came up to pet Diyablos absentmindedly. She still hadn’t fully made eye contact with Ren save for when it was necessary. On the other hand, Ren pondered and he found nothing of note. There was a cold, calculating streak in there and perhaps he was reading far too much into this girl that he was inside his head. He simply smiled. ”That’s a decent intuition. Here, I’ll have to pay a visit to your family's plantation, see if the cattle is well kept as your words suggest.” There was a pause at the end as he contemplated and realized he didn’t know her name, nor her family’s. ”No locking this one up, though. It’s me he fears, not the crew of the Altin Ogul.” he scowled down at the man at his feet, but his face remained unchanged, clearly in a state of disassociation from the matter. And even if he didn’t want to admit it, he did want to boast his toy over the others. It was a natural instinct, to relish in the trophies of victory, even if he thought himself above such things.
"I’m sure father will be honored to host you." Mahal said, but she didn’t give her name. She hoped he would make assumptions and never cross the threshold of their estate. The less attention she got, the better it went for her. Her head turned to note the shore coming into view. "I need to go and find the missing student now."
She began to turn and walk away.
”I’d need you and your father’s name to arrange that visit.” he retorted as she began to walk away. Normally, he’d be annoyed to ask but given her words, this was a simple noble interaction. She’d done well in battle and his mercy extended to the courtesy of court etiquette.
Mahal paused in her tracks. A small moment of quiet passed before she made herself answer, "My father’s name is Ruslan Agha, and mine is… Ceren Agha."
The Blue Adam had fled out of firing range and soon out of sight. The possibility remained that, with whatever coordination these rogues had, they could rally again and try to catch the Virangish forces off guard another day. But Captain Celik was quick to assure the men of the man o’ war around the waters. The pirates would have a difficult enough time escaping with their lives, let alone readying for another attack.
When the cannons ceased and the smoke cleared a graveyard of man and ship was left. The unfortunate of the pirate ships were sinking beneath the waves, the one Mahal blew up was little more than a mast above the water at this point. The lesser Virangish ships didn’t fare much better. Without a noble like Ren aboard, they took the brunt of volley after volley. They were only staying afloat now due to the Altın Oğul’s binders that were sent over after the battle concluded.
As the Altın Oğul pulled into shore leaving its supporting ships to lick their wounds, the sailors were licking their lips in anticipation of the valuable artifacts inside the wreck. They hadn’t shed blood here to uphold some honourable pact to protect these islands from pirates. They weren’t about to leave empty-handed.
But their plans were cut short. The Tarlonese thiis’elaaz had finally taken its moment to strike when Virangish pride and greed had been highest. The Altın Oğul was too close to shore now for strong evasive maneuvers and the impressive display of Tarlonese cannons made conflict a very deadly prospect.
”Listen up, yanii dogs!” A sonic announcement carried over from the enemy ship to all Virang allies in earshot. ”You’ve run out of pirates to fight. That means we have an equal claim to that wreck, which is to say none. I’m willing to fight for it.”
A woman stood at the highest part of the Tarlon ship’s deck with one foot on the rail, her captain's coat was open and flowing in the gentle wind. She carried quite the grandiose posture which came across as cocky given that she couldn’t have been older than 35. Her demeanour poured salt in the wound of the Virangish’s compromised position. Her sailors were fresh and ready for a fight while less than three-quarters of the Virangish forces remained and most were fatigued. They only had the locals as a trump card in this conflict. But they too were regrouping and had pulled back to help their king, who bleed on the shattered remains of a boat some distance away. Tamatoa’s wakas were the only ones on immediate standby to help the Asper Company’s flagship.
It was a stalemate, plain and simple.
Celik was red with anger and fury. After his efforts and his grand success as a captain, these filthy knife ears just swooped in to take the spoils of his labours. To come home with nothing was an embarrassing defeat to end a lifelong career. "Lord Baykara, you can’t let them get away with this!"
Balik looked to the former first mate’s remains then glared at the back of the captain’s head with spite. The crew hadn’t even had the chance to take care of the dead before he wanted to once again throw them into conflict for his selfish aspirations and image. "We need to negotiate, the ship won’t last a volley from that thing." She wasn’t incorrect either. The only thing that kept an even fight was Virang’s surrounding allies, but the Altın Oğul would be wiped out quickly in any such event.
Mahal had no time to think. Her anger and fear chained her down in the main conflict, spared from the worst of it by keeping close to Ren. She knew he didn't need her help, but straying away risked complications. As planned by the students, the Talonese ship approached with its cannons ready and armed. The threat was clear even for her.
She reflected on the students' earlier plan. Would Ren accept it or simply let the slaughter continue? A part of her feared the latter, but she had to make this work. Still the idea of speaking to him made her skin crawl. Diyablos squeezed her hand again, reminding her of his presence.
She forced herself to step forward and speak. "It is clear that if another battle breaks out, both sides are gaining losses. Not just between themselves, but also putting the wreckage and what we can learn at risk."
Mahal continued to focus on the matter at hand. "Maybe it is better to have the wreckage be a site to study for Ersand'Enise students. Any findings can be shared equally as long as both parties agree to keep away from it."
Ren shook his head in clear disappointment at the situation. Vultures would always come out to play, and as strong as he was, he couldn’t stop a ship exploding for weaklings. There were trump cards to the situation that he could play, and Mahal had raised one in good faith. His initial thoughts were to provoke the Tarlonese, they’d not risk all out war with Virang by engaging a man of his status, surely? But, this… was surprisingly cleaner. It allowed more room to operate, and quite frankly, denied the cowardly knife ears spoils of worth from the wreck. He nodded at Mahal, and then turned to Celik and Balik.
”I won’t let them get away with it. The girl's suggestion is apt. I am, in fact, a student of Ersand’Enise, and if we engage in a battle, we’re just going to lose the Altin Ogul.” but there was a pause of frustration. A willingness to die for trinkets and baubles was not something he at all respected, but the game had to be played. ”If the vultures come for the carcass, let them have the bones. I’ll ensure we walk away with prizes to match the glory we won today.” then, he looked to Mahal.
Mahal had held her breath the whole time while she waited for Ren's reply. A small part of herself doubted he listened, why would he? She was a stupid, worthless girl... the voice stalled out when the man broke her train of thought. A flicker of surprise entered her eyes before she relaxed.
"One step at a time," A bit of courage started to flow in her voice, "The ships should likely remove themselves from the area of the wreckage."
There was a look of acknowledgement before he turned and stood on the railing of the boat, enhancing his voice with his own kinetic magic so that all could hear. ”I am Ren Baykara, Emissary of Virang and Student of Ersand’Enise. You will hear my proclamation.” there was a pause as he glared at the yasoi captain. He’d taken one dog today, but he wished he had the free reign to take another. He rolled his eyes as he was forced to resort to pure diplomacy. ”The wreck is under the authority of the school, as a neutral site. If you’re willing to die for nothing, then so be it. Know that disputing this claim means a declaration of war, haşarat.” he finished his declaration, before turning back to Mahal with a smug expression.
Captain Celik, for all his pride and high self-esteem, for all his desire to stake the ship on the promise of a career defining glory, simply bowed his head to Ren. If it was the noble’s will, he truthfully had no say in the matter. The only chance of victory was with the paradigm-to-be’s power. The second mate bowed her head in turn as well, she agreed with Ren.
The Tarlonese captain could be seen swearing to only the most eagle-eyed of the Virangish side. It hurt her pride to let an insult like haşarat slide. But a deal was a deal, she would get rewarded if she played the part. Plus the threat of destruction was certainly mutual; the local forces were mustering again and they would be at fighting strength before too long.
She called across the sea. ”I believe neither of us wishes to die for nothing. The rule of neutrality is to be respected, but the rule of might must too. A certain tax for the Tarlonese protection of your ‘study site’. Much like I’m sure the Royal Asper Company will expect.’”
Zast was bored by the whole thing. What did he care for things like plans and treaties? The Virangish sailors were also staring daggers into him while clearly being too cowardly to do anything about it. He walked to the side of the ship and hopped of the edge; proceeding to the wreck early.
There was an audible sigh from Ren Baykara, but not one that could be heard by the Tarlonese ship. He’d barely waited for an answer before he’d turned to Mahal once more, but her comments caused a look on his face that practically spoke to his lack of care toward her comments. A man like him didn’t need to pay heed to the words of a vulture, or a rat with wings. He focused on what mattered - the path ahead.
”It seems I've got more to do. As for you…” he paused, clicking his fingers to Mountain Goat who came lumbering to Ren’s side. ”What will you do?” he asked, more as a challenge than an affirmation of interest or curiosity. Truth be told, he didn’t care what she ended up doing, but wondered as to who this blank slate would do? Would she follow behind him, as the others did, or come up with another crafty scheme.
After Ren's little display, Mahal's eyes wandered. She glanced toward where the boats were gathering about their wounded king. She spotted Tamatoa before the snap of fingers caught her attention again. She noted the Ogauraq slave then answered. "Right now regrouping with the others. After that, there's still one unaccounted for and he's from our Zeno group. The school will want to know what happened if he doesn't turn up."
He looked surprised at that. Those words gave more away than she’d previously let on, and that was that she knew where they were, and what they were up to. Either way, that didn’t matter now. What did concern him was a premonition of a traitor. Zast, or whatever that creature's name was, couldn’t have been it, else he’d have not been so brazen in his approach. This.. unaccounted for student however, could be a problem down the line. ”I suggest you go and find him, then. We should have all heads accounted for.” he spoke to her, a degree of authority to his tone. He’d been fully intent to let her choose her own decisions so far, but this was something that needed immediate fixing.
Mahal cursed inwardly at herself. A contradiction and a dangerous one, but the words were out already. She couldn’t take them back. The authority in his voice drew a memory to the surface and she became eerily still. She nodded then pivoted on her heel, eager to be away from his unsettling presence.
When the cannons ceased and the smoke cleared a graveyard of man and ship was left. The unfortunate of the pirate ships were sinking beneath the waves, the one Mahal blew up was little more than a mast above the water at this point. The lesser Virangish ships didn’t fare much better. Without a noble like Ren aboard, they took the brunt of volley after volley. They were only staying afloat now due to the Altın Oğul’s binders that were sent over after the battle concluded.
As the Altın Oğul pulled into shore leaving its supporting ships to lick their wounds, the sailors were licking their lips in anticipation of the valuable artifacts inside the wreck. They hadn’t shed blood here to uphold some honourable pact to protect these islands from pirates. They weren’t about to leave empty-handed.
But their plans were cut short. The Tarlonese thiis’elaaz had finally taken its moment to strike when Virangish pride and greed had been highest. The Altın Oğul was too close to shore now for strong evasive maneuvers and the impressive display of Tarlonese cannons made conflict a very deadly prospect.
”Listen up, yanii dogs!” A sonic announcement carried over from the enemy ship to all Virang allies in earshot. ”You’ve run out of pirates to fight. That means we have an equal claim to that wreck, which is to say none. I’m willing to fight for it.”
A woman stood at the highest part of the Tarlon ship’s deck with one foot on the rail, her captain's coat was open and flowing in the gentle wind. She carried quite the grandiose posture which came across as cocky given that she couldn’t have been older than 35. Her demeanour poured salt in the wound of the Virangish’s compromised position. Her sailors were fresh and ready for a fight while less than three-quarters of the Virangish forces remained and most were fatigued. They only had the locals as a trump card in this conflict. But they too were regrouping and had pulled back to help their king, who bleed on the shattered remains of a boat some distance away. Tamatoa’s wakas were the only ones on immediate standby to help the Asper Company’s flagship.
It was a stalemate, plain and simple.
Celik was red with anger and fury. After his efforts and his grand success as a captain, these filthy knife ears just swooped in to take the spoils of his labours. To come home with nothing was an embarrassing defeat to end a lifelong career. "Lord Baykara, you can’t let them get away with this!"
Balik looked to the former first mate’s remains then glared at the back of the captain’s head with spite. The crew hadn’t even had the chance to take care of the dead before he wanted to once again throw them into conflict for his selfish aspirations and image. "We need to negotiate, the ship won’t last a volley from that thing." She wasn’t incorrect either. The only thing that kept an even fight was Virang’s surrounding allies, but the Altın Oğul would be wiped out quickly in any such event.
Mahal had no time to think. Her anger and fear chained her down in the main conflict, spared from the worst of it by keeping close to Ren. She knew he didn't need her help, but straying away risked complications. As planned by the students, the Talonese ship approached with its cannons ready and armed. The threat was clear even for her.
She reflected on the students' earlier plan. Would Ren accept it or simply let the slaughter continue? A part of her feared the latter, but she had to make this work. Still the idea of speaking to him made her skin crawl. Diyablos squeezed her hand again, reminding her of his presence.
She forced herself to step forward and speak. "It is clear that if another battle breaks out, both sides are gaining losses. Not just between themselves, but also putting the wreckage and what we can learn at risk."
Mahal continued to focus on the matter at hand. "Maybe it is better to have the wreckage be a site to study for Ersand'Enise students. Any findings can be shared equally as long as both parties agree to keep away from it."
Ren shook his head in clear disappointment at the situation. Vultures would always come out to play, and as strong as he was, he couldn’t stop a ship exploding for weaklings. There were trump cards to the situation that he could play, and Mahal had raised one in good faith. His initial thoughts were to provoke the Tarlonese, they’d not risk all out war with Virang by engaging a man of his status, surely? But, this… was surprisingly cleaner. It allowed more room to operate, and quite frankly, denied the cowardly knife ears spoils of worth from the wreck. He nodded at Mahal, and then turned to Celik and Balik.
”I won’t let them get away with it. The girl's suggestion is apt. I am, in fact, a student of Ersand’Enise, and if we engage in a battle, we’re just going to lose the Altin Ogul.” but there was a pause of frustration. A willingness to die for trinkets and baubles was not something he at all respected, but the game had to be played. ”If the vultures come for the carcass, let them have the bones. I’ll ensure we walk away with prizes to match the glory we won today.” then, he looked to Mahal.
Mahal had held her breath the whole time while she waited for Ren's reply. A small part of herself doubted he listened, why would he? She was a stupid, worthless girl... the voice stalled out when the man broke her train of thought. A flicker of surprise entered her eyes before she relaxed.
"One step at a time," A bit of courage started to flow in her voice, "The ships should likely remove themselves from the area of the wreckage."
There was a look of acknowledgement before he turned and stood on the railing of the boat, enhancing his voice with his own kinetic magic so that all could hear. ”I am Ren Baykara, Emissary of Virang and Student of Ersand’Enise. You will hear my proclamation.” there was a pause as he glared at the yasoi captain. He’d taken one dog today, but he wished he had the free reign to take another. He rolled his eyes as he was forced to resort to pure diplomacy. ”The wreck is under the authority of the school, as a neutral site. If you’re willing to die for nothing, then so be it. Know that disputing this claim means a declaration of war, haşarat.” he finished his declaration, before turning back to Mahal with a smug expression.
Captain Celik, for all his pride and high self-esteem, for all his desire to stake the ship on the promise of a career defining glory, simply bowed his head to Ren. If it was the noble’s will, he truthfully had no say in the matter. The only chance of victory was with the paradigm-to-be’s power. The second mate bowed her head in turn as well, she agreed with Ren.
The Tarlonese captain could be seen swearing to only the most eagle-eyed of the Virangish side. It hurt her pride to let an insult like haşarat slide. But a deal was a deal, she would get rewarded if she played the part. Plus the threat of destruction was certainly mutual; the local forces were mustering again and they would be at fighting strength before too long.
She called across the sea. ”I believe neither of us wishes to die for nothing. The rule of neutrality is to be respected, but the rule of might must too. A certain tax for the Tarlonese protection of your ‘study site’. Much like I’m sure the Royal Asper Company will expect.’”
Zast was bored by the whole thing. What did he care for things like plans and treaties? The Virangish sailors were also staring daggers into him while clearly being too cowardly to do anything about it. He walked to the side of the ship and hopped of the edge; proceeding to the wreck early.
There was an audible sigh from Ren Baykara, but not one that could be heard by the Tarlonese ship. He’d barely waited for an answer before he’d turned to Mahal once more, but her comments caused a look on his face that practically spoke to his lack of care toward her comments. A man like him didn’t need to pay heed to the words of a vulture, or a rat with wings. He focused on what mattered - the path ahead.
”It seems I've got more to do. As for you…” he paused, clicking his fingers to Mountain Goat who came lumbering to Ren’s side. ”What will you do?” he asked, more as a challenge than an affirmation of interest or curiosity. Truth be told, he didn’t care what she ended up doing, but wondered as to who this blank slate would do? Would she follow behind him, as the others did, or come up with another crafty scheme.
After Ren's little display, Mahal's eyes wandered. She glanced toward where the boats were gathering about their wounded king. She spotted Tamatoa before the snap of fingers caught her attention again. She noted the Ogauraq slave then answered. "Right now regrouping with the others. After that, there's still one unaccounted for and he's from our Zeno group. The school will want to know what happened if he doesn't turn up."
He looked surprised at that. Those words gave more away than she’d previously let on, and that was that she knew where they were, and what they were up to. Either way, that didn’t matter now. What did concern him was a premonition of a traitor. Zast, or whatever that creature's name was, couldn’t have been it, else he’d have not been so brazen in his approach. This.. unaccounted for student however, could be a problem down the line. ”I suggest you go and find him, then. We should have all heads accounted for.” he spoke to her, a degree of authority to his tone. He’d been fully intent to let her choose her own decisions so far, but this was something that needed immediate fixing.
Mahal cursed inwardly at herself. A contradiction and a dangerous one, but the words were out already. She couldn’t take them back. The authority in his voice drew a memory to the surface and she became eerily still. She nodded then pivoted on her heel, eager to be away from his unsettling presence.
He strode up the shoreline toward the beach, ignoring the Virangish outpost and eyes fixed on the wreck before him. His steps were slow and drawn out; presenting to a procession that eagerly awaited the coronation of a new paradigm. This was the first step out of many that would leave the conquest and dominion over lesser men and women in his wake.
Behind, the yasoi slave was dragged. He was a man the students knew. A man who once stood so tall and smiled at the world was now brought low and forced to bow. He was not allowed to walk nor would pride allow him to crawl like a lowly mutt so his mind dissociated from the world around him as his weakened body was dragged. His shins and knees were scraped and bled, fell victim to the rocky shore. As his new owner came to a stop outside the wreck, he was dragged further forward and brought to the forefront.
Ren Baykara, the man who stood before the wreck, was not only a man or a fellow student. What couldn’t be seen but was all too visible was the weight of imperial power and retribution that stood atop his shoulders. His posture was proud and his chin was held high. He was untouchable and stood inviting the traitorous students who stood below him to dare.
A large bloodstain on the sand soaked the beach not far from the wreck’s entrance. It was a little out of the way and hard to see, perhaps the Cawuio-Zast was the first to spot it. Consequently, he felt compelled to check it out while Ren was still getting his worms in a row for the wreck.
Zast picked up the severed foot that was detached from a body nowhere to be found. He recognised the shoe and gathered that there wasn’t much left of the boy to whom it belonged. He was no longer smiling.
A vision flooded into the Cazenax’s head where he was a kindly grandmother tucking in her rowdy and rambunctious grandson, who was also a rat. He was a handful now, but he would grow into a strong, young man if he got enough food and proper rest. But all that could be done for the evenings was to tuck him in snug and hope he dreams wonderful dreams.
Zast’s heart beat a little faster as he shed a single tear. Perhaps he cared for that boy like a grandson.
Looking back down he grabbed the severed foot and threw it carelessly into the water for thresher food. He then affixed the leftover shoe to his belt. He wondered if he could still get half price if he only had one shoe. No, he could probably get more if he sold it as a ‘speciality item’ to someone with one leg. Profits were profits.
He began walking back to join Ren and get his rightful loot from that wreck.
With much of the tensions dealt with, Mahal sought to distract herself. Fiske still hadn't been found and deep down she felt like no one cared. Instead of letting her stormy emotions overwhelm her, she began to seek out the green midget. The one that had come from the pirate ship. He'd know if Fiske had been there or not.
"You! Wait for me." Mahal hollered when she spotted the green thing, the form bent and strapped something to his belt. After she closed the distance, she then added. "When you were on the pirate ship? Did you spot any other student? One of our group is unaccounted for and I didn't see him on the Asper. Name is Fiske, pale and dark hair."
”You’re looking for Fiske?" Zast turned and looked back to the bloodstain that once was the boy. The Cazenax chuckled. ”Yeah, I’ve seen him here, there, and everywhere." He lay one hand on Fiske’s shoe and sneakily lay the other on his flintlock just in case. Would he really shoot a girl over selling rights of a dead boy’s shoe? Yes.
Mahal stopped a good distance from him. It was enough for conversation without shouting, but it gave her some reaction time. Her paranoia had served her well, keeping her alive all this time and she had no reason to distrust it now. Her eyes shifted, noting the subtle evidence, when he mentioned the remains of Fiske. A flicker of pity or softness entered them, but she said nothing. Once more they hardened into a dull, cold stare.
Her face betrayed nothing of her thoughts as she spoke. "I see... The threshers must've gotten him while we were all distracted, I suppose."
She knew logically the Cazenax couldn't have killed the boy. No one had the magic to be in two places at once. With a deep breath, she turned away. She needed to report back. Mahal didn’t look forward to being the bearer of such grim news, but life was cruel and unfair. Something she knew better than most.
- Zast betrays the Blue Adam crew after they surrender and abducts Anthal.
- Zast sells Anthal to Ren for a relatively small amount of money.
- Ren enslaves Anthal.
- Ren approaches the ship with Anthal in tow.
- Zast sells Anthal to Ren for a relatively small amount of money.
- Ren enslaves Anthal.
- Ren approaches the ship with Anthal in tow.
