Sebastian Cromwell's Story

Somewhere in the skies...

A cool morning rested on the sky, with rolling clouds not but teen feet below the Phoenix, gleaming in the early sun, as far as the eye could see, radiating gold with beauty and power that captivated even the thickest of skulls, and the world laid so calm as time seemed to sleep, leaving only peace behind in its tranquil absence. The sun barely rose out from the horizon, creeping lazily up into the heavens with about as much eagerness as anyone in a coma, and all of this was accompanied by a light breeze, just brisk enough to make the waking process quicker but sweet enough to pass through the lungs clearly and painlessly, rejuvinating the soul from its slumber with each breathe. Drifting through the drowsy world without a sound, seemingly if not to disturb the stillness save for its slight hum of the engines, was the Phoenix in all its glory, beautiful more so by its imperfection spread through its small and worn body than its perfection, and the sails fluttered in harmony with the imperfect perfection that was the ship itself. A thin mist was resting among the deck of the boat, lounging about to see the notorious yet gorgeous airship, as some of it poured off like a slow moving waterfall, but there always seemed to be more situating itself comfortably with the Phoenix like old friends.

The crew finds itself tired of this sky, however, and feel as if they have been at sea for too long, so a quick decesion must be made. The only option for any land time to resupply lies to the three close sister-islands of Paradiso, Parada, and Perodo.

Paradiso is the most well known, or rather infamous, of the three, being medium sized, and this is because of its connection to smuggling, pirates, and Opate trafficking (Opate is a drug common in the lower reaches of civilization, just like opium), and this causes it to be dangerous constantly with pirate-lords, drug bosses, and gang leaders trying to take control of the island. Parada is an uncharted and unknown island not but ten miles off the coast of Paradiso, but it is massive and thought to be uninhabited. Perodo is a quaint and small island twenty miles from either of the two island with a Avanessee (a colonial empire lead by a peaceful race of subhumans) colony on it named Canness, but in last few months it has been completely unheard from, causing suspicion of an attack by Paradiso but no records prove.

So it must be. So they must decide...

Rel'Kaz Del Va Hiim

Rel'Kaz sat in front of his workbench, the materials that made up his bullets in separate piles on the table, as well as his molds for his shot on it as well. He also had different bullets in different piles, sorted into the uses they had. One pile had a black stripe going down the middle of the casing, these were the ones he used normally and were the largest of the three piles. The next had an orange stripe going down the middle of the casing, these had a different shot shape, more conical and it had a curved tip. It also had a larger powder charge packed into the same sized casing, propelling the shot at faster speeds and the shape of the shot let it pierce armor better. This pile was the second largest. The next pile was the smallest and also had a peculiar shot shape. It had more of a pyramid shape, with sharp edges and a pointed tip. It had an even larger powder charge, very close to the point that if any more was put in, the rifle's barrel would be unable to hold the pressure. The casing holding all of these components was painted with a red stripe.

He looked over the table, and his dwindling supplies. He hadn't gone ashore in weeks, and he was running low. Even if he had begged Sebastian, which he wouldn't, he wouldn't have gotten more out of him. He sighed as he took up one of the black striped casings and started assembling it. First he put the rounded ball of lead into the insert where it fitted nicely. It wouldn't fall out but it would come out when it was fired. Then he flipped it upside down and poured in the powder from the small pouch he had until he put in the right amount. Then he wrapped a small piece of paper over the open end to make sure that the powder wouldn't fall out. The paper was the most expensive part of the lot. It was strong enough to stay on the casing but flammable enough to burn quickly and with a fairly large flame for its size. This would ignite the powder in the casing and propel the shot at whatever he was aiming at. He assembled five more and then stopped. He still wanted to have some left for his pistols, which did not operate like his rifle. He put some of the cartridges into a small leather pouch that he used to carry his ammunition around in. He counted in total that he had put in thirty black stripe cartridges, fifteen orange stripe and eight red stripe. The rest he put into a wooden chest that he kept under his bed, all in all he had another sixty black stripe, thirty orange stripe and fifteen more red stripe. He put the rest of the remaining supplies into a box that was built into his table, keeping some of the powder into a small horn to pour out from and some of the shot in a small pouch.

Rel'Kaz left the pouches and the horn on the table to bring with him if he went out later. Then he went over to his bed and lay down on it. He'd catch some sleep before he had to go on deck again.

The room that doubled as the captain's room and office was a mess, and was also always dark. The only light in it was a single lap that sat on the great oak desk which grandly stood in front of a window that covered the entire back wall, supposed to be showing the beautiful sky as far the eye could see but instead was covered with makeshift drapes, and upon this desk was stacks of paper built high scattered everywhere, even some on the floor, and the only other furniture of note was the chest in the corner that had clothes pouring out of it, a throne of a chair that sat behind the desk with a child's chair stolen from a nursery in front, and a simple cot bed that was concealed by a wall that was simply more makeshift drapes. The single tiny flame flickered, manifesting yellow lines dancing across the walls and floor, causing shadows to avoid the light, moving where it is not in a very fast and endless chase.

Caintry sat in the large chair with his face down on the desk, half covered by paper, sleeping peacefully, but as soon as the sun found its way into one of his eyes, snaking through the many holes and sending powerful pillars of light even overtaking the flame's, he slowly rose and opened his eyes, a piece of paper still sticking to his face. With a yawn, he took the paper off his face, and he blinked several times so that he may begin to read, and when he finally could see without blur, he brought the paper in front of him.

Notice: Highly Wanted

Caintry Osborne of Denauc

Attention to all true man of Zentril with any zeal, among the many wanted posters we have posted concerning the crew of the ship, The Drunken Waitress, this man should be caught first. His crimes include:

~ Burglary
~ Murder of a Guardsman
~ Exploding a Tavern
~ Bedding the High Dutch's Wife
...

Caintry threw the poster back down unto the desk and stretched, thinking of the past ship where he was a mere cabin-boy with nostalgia, and he strained his memory thinking of exactly how long since that had been. He decided since burglary was on there, it must of been his third time to Zentril, placing about fifty or so years ago, yet it strangely seemed like a more foreign time now for all the events that had happened after that. Between watching his entire crew die including watching his old captain, a burly and cruel man, burn until black, and commandeering his own ship, although some ignorants would call it a steal, much has changed since he visited Zentril, and he decided that it was good. Finally, fully awake with the past fresh on his mind, he fought through the piles of paper for a good three minutes, shuffling very loudly through parchments. Ah ha! Here we are. He pulled out a map of what seemed to be the region he was in and he saw in the corner what looked like three blotches of spilled whine. Was it? No, they were exactly what he was looking for, and he knew that these were his only options. Since they were a small ship, he would have to island hop frequently, lacking the materials for long sky-hauls, and as of now he was pushing his luck being airborne this long as it is. So, now seeing that he had three options on where to go, he weighed them, but eventually he ended that he should bring this up to the crew. Sitting back down into the chair while studying the map in deep thought, he pulled on the string that would ring a bell in the cabin girl's room, signaling her that he required her.

Thinking of the day to come, he waited...

Alex sighed in frustration going over the cooking supplies they had. They were, at this time and to put it lightly, low. She didn't dare ask Sebby for more. Well his real name was Sebastion, but that was too long of a name to say fully unless she was angry with him. Anyway she wasn't going to ask him because she knew better and had gotten all she could until they docked. With another sigh she looked at the requests by the crew. They all wanted a different meals and she couldn't make any of them. And what's worse is she knew that even when they ate, their stomachs were still grumbling and they didn't have their full strength.

Getting angry her ears and tail ticking in frustration she kicked over an empty bucket. "I need more supplies goddamnit!" Throwing her list away, she stormed out of the kitchen and to the deck above. The glaring sun didn't help her mood any as she stormed towards the Captains cabin. "Stupid goddamned bright as ball of sun, I'd skewer ye if I could." she shouted up at it then continued on her way. Unless one was new, she knew none of the crew would pay her no mind, they were used to her by now.

She bursted into the Captains office and slammed her hands onto the desk. "I need more supplies Cainy! and unless you want a grumpy no good fer even swapping the deck crew, YOU need to get us docked to get them! And if one more of these good for nothin sissys complain one more time bout them not gettin enough food, I'll zap em myself! This is RIDICULOUS! Why we haven't docked yet I have no clue! Yer laking in your duties, lacky Mc lackerson!!!" she yelled at him going on her tirade of rants, yet again. Her ears were flat and tail flicking back and forth in iritation. Her golden eyes glaring at him.

Aurea

Wind whipped around Aurea as she hung from the bowsprit of the ship, body upside down as she looked to the endless sky all around The Phoenix. Wood and metal gleamed behind her, the contoured form of the ship cutting swiftly through air towards whatever destination they were going to. Her hood and hair streamed backwards, strands whipping as they were tugged and released. Thrumming from the engines reverberated through her, a calming sensation. Closing her eyes slowly, Aurea simply rested, relieving herself of the stress and boredom that came from constant flying without any form of action or interesting event. With nothing else to do, she thought back to the day she had joined the crew of The Phoenix.

The job was simple enough: get into this house, plant this item here and take that one there, get out. Something she had done dozens of times before in a seamless fashion. Nobody should have even suspected her. Tales of her escapades usually took time to get out as it would embarrass the target's greatly. Not a soul knew it was here either unless they hired her. She didn't like to leave witnesses, no matter how 'innocent' they may be. The heist itself remained rather trivial, presenting no difficulty to one such as her. Returning to the house of the family who had hired her, she found, much to her chagrin and panic, almost the entirety of the city's police force gathered. Fleeing through the alleyways, roof-tops, and crowded streets, Aurea eventually found herself near the docks of the city. Having escaped for the moment she knew it was but a matter of time before the police cornered her. No one could have known she was here. She left no trace when she left a city, disappearing into the night without a foot-print to mark her. Someone had obviously been tracking her for some time. Her family? Perhaps.

Finding a poster requesting crew members for a ship- The Phoenix- she hastily signed up, eager to be underway. And that was how she ended up here, dangling over a bottomless drop with only her legs to support her on a smooth piece of wood. Wonderful. Swinging upwards, Aurea grasped the bowsprit and swung her legs around, turning to face the ship once again. Adroitly making her way to the deck of the ship, she dropped next to her Aether rifle which rested against the hull. A most wonderful weapon that her family had possessed. Deducing the means of manufacturing the aether for powering the weapon had taken years but she knew it by heart now. All she needed was more ingredients. Looking up as footsteps sounded heavily on the deck, Aurea saw Alexandria storm into Captain Osborne's cabin. A most interesting former-pirate, Alex. Restoring her hood to its place over her head she returned to her cabin and shut the door.

Sparsely furnished, the only piece inside were a small table, a closet, and the bed plus a small chest under the bed. All she needed to survive. Returning the rifle to its place inside the closet, she checked under her pillow to make sure the pistol remained there. It did. Good. Stepping outside once again with the small weapon tucked into the folds of her voluminous cloak, she began to prowl the ship, boredom driving her to activity.

Boredom. No other word could describe the feeling the held Varsh in its iron grip. He was sitting on his hammock, cleaning his mighty blade for the umpteenth time, running a bit of rag down the steel over and over. With a growl of frustration he set the sword aside and began going through the Tes'Ar, a series of movements that Hashari warriors perform to prepare their muscles for action. He planted his feet shoulder width apart, and stretched, hands touching the ceiling of the small cabin he called home. Then, he moved into fluid motion. Rapidly going through a series of movements, mimicking the actions of war. At the end of it he leaped forward, slamming his bulk onto the floor and letting out a mighty bellow. He was lightly sweating as he sat down once more, and then sighing. How he longed for something to test his strength against! Then, he remembered the bottle of ale that he had kept in his chest. Here was something to test his strength against! A hard liquor said to defeat even the strongest of men with a few swallows. Eagerly pulling the chest into his lap, he pulled out the bottle, tearing the cork out with his teeth, and beginning to drink. After a few chugs, he was feeling rather boisterous. Thus, he decided to sing.

"Vish, so rask. Ha! So vir! Ha!
Torosk so! Ha! Me so! Ha!
Tulero da! Ha! Te do! Ha!
Amras ba! Ha! Qir lo! Ha!"

With each "Ha!" he would stomp his foot, his basso voice rumbling out in a tidal wave of sound that permeated the ship.

The supply room reeked of burning metal and rotting food. With the low supplies the Sebastian had to make due on some of the items. Scrap metal from junk was being melted using a slow burner he had made, filling the air with rustic odors, to form into bullets. Current virgin stock was only about fifty bullets, which spread between the entire crew, was nothing. He counted up the amount of recycled bullets he had made. Ten. There was enough gunpowder that he made the previous day to make another twenty. He put five cartridges, thirteen steel balls, and a small amount of gunpowder into a sack.

He turned his attention to the food being churned on the next table. He had been converting the kitchen scraps into a biofuel for several weeks, filling the air with a foul smell. It would be worth it to have extra fuel to keep both the ship and the Quartermaster running. Only a few more days until the barrel was finished. Lastly he turned to the food rations.

They were meager at best. There were several sacks of flour and salt, but little on terms of meat. A dozen potatoes, nine onions, one bulb of garlic, and four apples. Sebastian made sure that the supply room always had a few caged animals that could be slaughtered in emergencies. Once the crew stops getting a full meal, they start to question how much is actually available, once they find out the actual amount, problems start. He picked up a knife and looked the last swine in the cage.

After the squealing from the slaughter, Sebastian stuffed the pork into a sack along with half of the potatoes and all of the onions, apples, and garlic. He tossed a vile of olive oil and some rosemary too. That would be enough to satisfy the crew. He walked through the ship with the two sacks on his back. He stopped by the kitchen only to find that Alexandria wasn't there. So he left the sack in the kitchen and continued to the gunners quarters.

He came to the room that Rel'Kaz was in, knocked, and entered. The man was on the reloading bench. Smart. Sebastian set the sack of ammunition on the table. "Use it wisely." He nodded the the gunner. He left the room to find the captain.

When he got to the captains quarters, he found Alexandria in front of Caintry. No doubt about food rations getting low. He coughed a bit to make his presence known. "Captain, I need to talk to you about supplies. Alex..." He turned to the cook. "I've left some pork along with other things in the kitchen for you."

Caintry was thinking on what island he would be most likely to choose and waiting patiently for his little friend to come to his biffing when, rather rudely, Alexandria barged in to his cabin with a looked that readily helped him predict the rant coming, and he sighed as he prepared himself for the girl's latest complaint. Thinking on the first time he met her, he often forced himself to forgive her insubordination, seeing as a pirates do not demand the most discipline, but the outbursts that near challenged him could not be stood for. However, he could not help but to get attached to the small things that they do, just like the rest of the crew, and thinking on all the times he has gotten attached suddenly brought him into a pensive mood, remembering all the crew he has lost over the years, but he was soon snapped back into reality by the banging of a fortissimo voice on his barely awake head.

"I need more supplies Cainy! and unless you want a grumpy no good fer even swapping the deck crew, YOU need to get us docked to get them! And if one more of these good for nothin sissys complain one more time bout them not gettin enough food, I'll zap em myself! This is RIDICULOUS! Why we haven't docked yet I have no clue! Yer laking in your duties, lacky Mc lackerson!!!" Caintry winced as she spoke in a tone entirely to hostile and far too informal to be talking to a superior, but what he found the worst in all of that sentence was the nickname that she had placed for him, Cainy.

Just as he was about to speak sense into the former pirate, his door creaked open once more, but this time the intruder was entirely welcome. Markel, being carried by the padding of his small feline feet, walked in the room for being summoned, and Caintry could not help but gleam smile at the young Khajiit. Denacmen live a very long time, but not forever. So, he would need a successor to his throne as captain when he decided to retire, no doubt he could choose to out-live the boy if need be, and he could not of hoped for a better piece of clay to happen upon, to mold into what he would want out of him. Sure, there were more serious, less idealistic, and just smarter choices, but Caintry saw the fire that burns for wander-lust and adventure in young Markel's heart that he had in his heart as a boy and still now, upholding the Phoenix's reputation of finding twice as more trouble than gold and liking it that way. Although he had many years to go, Markel would make a fine Captain one day, and Caintry thought to give him another lesson, how to assert authority.

"You called sir?" Markel asked, his bright eyes gleaming as he looked to the man before him. Good lad, thought Caintry.

However, just as he was going to try a second time to talk to Alexandria, his door opened a third, and Sebastian strolled in rather official. He looked upon the man, or automaton he guessed, with pride on the old friend that assisted him in making his dream of captain come true, but to Caintry, he could still claim senior. For all he knew, Sebastian could have been older, but he is technically dead so Caintry has been alive longer, thus his loop-hole.

"Captain, I need to talk to you about supplies. Alex..." He turned to the cook. "I've left some pork along with other things in the kitchen for you." Good, now she can leave to let the headache heal, but first to make an example. Only half the ship is here! He politely gave him a genteel smile, but he was already well aware of the supply problem. Out of the keenness of his ear, Caintry thought he heard Varsh in drunken dance, but he waved it off by determining no one is brain dead enough to be drunk so early.

Then, now unexpectedly so, another soul found its way into the Captain's cabin, but at least it was another official he actually needed to see, his first mate Mitsuhide, who seemed to be as jolly as ever. It did not take Caintry long to deduce that was a false front, for if everyone else was so agitated, it too odd for him to be merry, but Caintry would have to bring it up later. He would need the reliance that he put on Mitsuhide for only until the ship reached shore, Caintry depending on the rock that he has always trusted, and it actually heavily distressed Caintry to learn of something wearing on the man.

"Forgive my intrusion, I heard some shouting... ?". Mitsuhide began, but scanning the room seemed to want to retract his statement.

"Oh my, I am not interrupting anything am I?" He said with genuine concern. Nothing really important.

Caintry paused for a moment, expecting another entrance, but after a few moments he deemed it safe to continue. Holding up a finger to everyone but Alexandria, signifying to wait, he he pulled out his pistol. Dramatically and histrionically, he made a great deal of checking his gun, inspecting the down the barrel, and the sarcastically pointed it at Alexandria, a stern face that he wore as a mask. Caintry spoke with power and authority, but also with light humor.

"While we may be running out of food, I seem to have plenty of bullets, so I would watch your tone with your captain. First of all, my name is not Cainy, it is captain, or Mr.Captain, or God of the Skies for all I care. Not. Cainy. And second, insubordination can get you the plank, and most say Hell is the only thing beneath those clouds. Finally, while I will not be making you take the long jump for your out-burst, your welcome, I will be stripping your right of say in the upcoming vote. You are dismissed." With that, he waved her away.

Now, turning towards Markel, he spoke soft and fatherly, yet with a firmness that showed some strength. "Markel, go fetch Blue; I have many things to discuss with her."

Then he turned to Sebastian, knowing the turmoil of the ship's supplies ,and replied, "Thank you Sebastian, I am informed. If you would be so kind as to wait on the deck; I am going to be making an announcement."

And finally, he turned to Mitsuhide, speaking as gently as possible in fear of him being fragile, but that was somewhat of an awkward thought for Caintry. "Mitsuhide, assemble the rest of the crew to the deck as well, Alexandria may be present but I need to speak to Blue first. I would much appreciate it."

With that, he sat back down. It is going to be one hell of a morning.

"hmmph" was Alex's only response to the Capt.'s display of authority, She hadn't expected everyone to show up, and hear her shouting. Looking around her eyes rested on Sebastian.

"Thanks Sebby, I'll get to work prepping it right away." as she stalked out of the the Captains quarters she patted the top of Markel's head and leaned in to whisper to him. "You got a good teacher there lad, learn well from him" she said and smiled at him.

Once she was back on the deck and out of earshot she burst into laughter. "Oh Cany, good show good show!." she whispered to herself. I have to apologize to him now, no one was supposed to show up. she thought to herself.

Walking into the kitchen she went through the supplies in the bag Sebby gave her. "Oooh A little spice!" she shouted happily. She sat down and snapped her fingers watching as everything was removed from the bag and being prepped. "Ah the joys of magic!" She then propped her feet up and began singing a soft tune smiling all the while. She poked her stomach, she didn't even feel the hunger anymore. She figured so everyone could have a little more she would share her portion with everyone. She had been doing it for the past 4 days but she wouldn't tell anyone that. She loved her crew and was willing to sacrifice her happiness for theirs.

She flicked her ears, waiting for when everyone was out of the Capt.s cabin. She wanted to apologize but she didn't want anyone there when she did so. Seeing as everything was prepped she decided to make it into three meals instead of one, so as the crew had food throughout the day instead of one meal. As she cooked she thought, about her past and how far she had come. "At least from that experience I know how to take a little and make a lot.

Once the first meal was done, though she used her magic to get it done fast, she divided it out and put the bowls on the platter. She first went to the door to the engine room and placed the bowl on the shelf she had installed for Amelia and picked up her communication horn, "Am Am,your food is out here" she then went to Blue's room to discover that Selitos was there to. "Well here you guys go, pork stew. Odd to see you here Seli." whistling she place their bowls on a shelf that wasn't covered in maps and continued on. Opening Varsh's room she wrinkled her nose "If I didn't know any better I would say you were a Pirate drinking this early!" then she placed his food on his small desk. The last person she visited below deck was Rela Kaz. "Here Kazie! your portion." she said and whisked to the top deck, she had seen Elwise waiting and Aurea pacing, "Here guys meal in done." Then she sighed and entered the Capt.s cabin once more. "Here ya go Sebby, Mitsie, young Markie, and Capt." she set his bowl on his desk. Tucking the now empty platter under her arm she smiled. "Breakfast is served, enjoy." she went back to her room to lay down.

Varsh's drunken revelry ended with the entering of the cook with a bowl of food whose scent triggered a ravenous hunger that had been hiding. At the end of Alexandria's comment he responded with "Nothing else to do on this ship. Might as well drink to pass time." His words were slurred, and he tottered over to the desk, slamming his bulk into the seat and quickly snatching up the bowl, devouring the food within a matter of a minute or three. Then, he decided to leave his cabin to get some air. Moving onto the deck, he quickly breathed in a few breaths of the clean fresh air of the open sky. The drunken haze with which he viewed everything faded somewhat, and he decided to visit the captain to see about when they were going to get to kill something.

He knocked on the door frame (Missing the door) and then moved in. Varsh made it to the captain's desk and said "Captain. When we going to fight something? My blade thirsts for blood! I need battle! This endless sailing grows dull fast!" As he spoke, a huge waft of alcohol stained breath hit the captain directly in the face..

As Sebastian was handed the stew by Alexandria, he observed the others as he began to consume. The Captain was going to put forward a vote for where to land. One that really only had one logical conclusion, yet this was not a ship filled with logical persons. It was filled with emotion driven folk who based all decisions on what they were either feeling immediately or had strongly felt in the past. He lifted the spoon to his artificial mouth a third time, only for it to drop to the floor due to a jerked finger. His finger then went limp along with his thumb. It must have been a wire that fried. He set his hardly touched bowl of stew down and set off to see Amelia.

The engineer deck was as steaming and loud as it was expected to be. He wandered over to where he would think the engineer may be. Bed. Indeed he was correct when he found her in her hammock.

"Nova!" He spoke loudly. "I need some help with my arm, I think some wiring got fried when I was working with a battery earlier today." He told her.

 Mitsuhide heard all that was said and noted the changing tones in Caintry 's voice, how gentle he was when addressing him. It struck him as odd but if something was amiss he knew Captain Osborne would tell him sooner or later. Upon receiving his orders, Mitsuhide bowed but before he exited Alexandria entered with a bowl for him. Mitsuhide was not hungry, his appetite had been ruined simply because of the day it was and what had occurred on this day so long ago. However he thought it rude to decline the food and so he bowed and accepted it. "Thank you."  He said plainly before exiting and going below decks to muster everyone on the Deck for his announcement, but not before dropping off the food in his own room.

 Much like the captain, Mitsuhide's room had a "can on a string" comms system. It was not very clear, he honestly preferred to go door to door, knocking, and to search the ship but despite this, he wanted this all to be done quickly so he could return to mourning the memory of those he had lost.

"All hands, all hands, this is the First Mate speaking. Report to the Deck at once for an important announcement from your captain. I say again report to the deck for an important announcement from your captain.".

 He spoke loud and clear but knew that it would still be come out as if he had his hand over his mouth. With that he exitted, not even looking at the food he had been given and stood at the deck, ready to give clear instructions to anyone who came up to the deck, and ready to go and fetch anyone who paid no heed to that obnoxious horn in their mind. As he waited he decided to remove the hair pin from his katana 's guard and just stood there at a daze for a few moments, the sorrow showing on his face momentarily before he came to and collected himself.

After some formalities, most of the people had left the room; all save for Blue and Varsh.

Caintry could feel his skin crawl as the stench of alcohol filled his nostrils, causing his stomach to lurch, and he gave a face of disgust when he looked upon Varsh. He had remembered the day when he first met Varsh, he indirectly saved him from slavers and saved his life, and he had proven to be the most handy of a comrade in a multifarious array of brute ways. He may of even been First Mate if it was not for his stupidity , and not just that but his endeavor to not even learn another wrinkle into his brain. Also, Caintry thought that Varsh and he could have been good friends, even though Caintry likes to think he is at least a pleasant companion to his entire crew, but he would not socialize with a drunk. Caintry despised drunks, not understanding why anyone would sacrifice the clarity of their mind to just have the ability to be slurred and make stupid decisions, and he was thankful that his people back home were pushing for deeming alcohol illegal, although he never did catch up on how things were doing in Denauc since he left. There was not much information on a nation that prefers isolation, but then suddenly Caintry’s deep thought was interrupted by the entering of Markel.

He watched as Markel escorted the walking stench of whatever intoxicator he drunk out of his cabin, and he thanked the Muses, a common saying that popped up in Denauc, that Varsh was gone. And here I was, afraid I would have to shoot someone.

Now, Blue and Caintry were alone in the shaded room, the lamp throwing flashes of red and yellow light on and around them, and Caintry let silence fill the space in between them, creating a heavy haze that was building like a growing blanket. It almost seemed like one could touch the silence, the lack of noise, and without causing a sound, he took the papers and set them down on the desk as he started to stand.

“Thank you,” his words were kind but the potent silence made his voice cut through the air with power and immovable authority, “I will look at these later, but I have something I would like to speak with you about.”

Caintry slightly strode towards Blue with a grace that seemed off put by the mood, and his face held his signature smirk. However, his smirk seemed more intimidating than welcoming, and he began to speak again with the powerful kindness.

“I trust you, Ms.Samson, but you hold more power on this ship than you probably know. I hold the wheel that steers the ship, I command the crew, I am the Captain, but you, Ms.Samson, you are the one that could easily…” Caintry paused as if carefully choosing his next word, "mislead me. Now, I have been to the Islands of Sharnown, and the Togani are peaceful people.” Caintry now spoke softer and slower, “However, the people do not make a person, I am a prime example of that, so I must know. Will you mislead me?”

Caintry left the last sentence with a warm tone, but that would not help the ominous tone that he had used. The room’s dimness seemed darker, and the shadows the single light casted seemed more menacing. He looked at Blue. Gods, what a beauty! She looked sweet to Caintry, innocent in a way, but he had the lives of many in his hands. While that would not stop him from getting in a wonderfully dangerous adventure, he could not let self interest get in the way of such an important job such as navigator, the entire reason he did not take the role himself. Well, that and he would hate the extra work. He hoped to become better known to Blue, however, so he decided that his usual smirk would be a warm smile.

Amelia had just about nodded off to sleep when there the echoing voice of the ships cook came in from the horn, signalling that food was ready. Rolling over in the hammock she grumbled a little to herself and ran her fingers through her mess of hair before staring a little blearily around the room. The creaking and clicking of the door into her chamber locking in place and the engine room one swinging inwards caused her to blink the last vestiges of sleepiness from her eyes and focus on the new arrival in her domain. His voice louder than needed and causing her to start a little.

"Nova! I need some help with my arm; I think some wiring got fried when I was working with a battery earlier today."

”Ya divena need to shout! I’d offer you a brew but I just been about to get some shuteye till you woke me.”

She chuckled a little, her voice somewhat annoyed but friendly all the same as she hopped down, still wearing her clothes and most importantly her boots which made a resounding thud on the reinforced metal and oak flooring. The engine room itself was both an unstable concoction of forces all vying for control over the others, and into this Amelia had added even more and built a forge in the middle of it all to top off the madness. So she’d made sure to add additional layers of protection from the outside world so that very little could actually dent the walls let alone pierce them, resulting in making sure the ship wasn’t in any danger from within but that didn’t always extend to without. She shook her head a little and walked over to one of the benches around the edge of the room and cleared some of the mechanisms in progress to the side before turning and beckoning Sebastian over to her. Turning back to the bench she reached into a drawer and pulled out a small box containing several small tools for finer work than some of her heavily implements. Each of them was made of mithril, with one or two having gemstones tapering to a point for their tip. Shaking her head she made him sit next to the bench and laid his arm out on the wooden surface. She carefully inserted one of the tools into the skin and drew a line from wrist to elbow in the inside of the arms curve before lifting up the skin itself to have a better look at the inner working. She quickly reached over and picked up her goggles, which were rarely off her head but she’d thrown them to one side after getting in from working under the ship.

”Seb, you’ve managed to ruin half the wires in your forearm. What exactly were you fiddling with to cause this, must have been a mighty battery. Since your skin isn’t that conductive from what I remember.”

She raised her eyebrow slightly before looking down and continuing her work, setting down the first tool and picking up one of the ones with a ruby set into the point and gently squeezed it. The tip sparked and burst into flame for a moment before dying down to a fine prick of light which she ran along the artificial tendons that had been ruined and began to weld them back together and disconnect those she couldn’t repair. After removing the damaged ones she reached up and opened one of the drawers set against the wall behind the bench and pulled out a wheel of thinly spun gold wiring. She slowly unwound small lengths and cut them to size before inserting them into the forearm and once satisfied that the new wiring was in place and firmly connected she picked up one of the sharper implements and prodded Sebastian’s fingers and palm to make sure there was feeling and movement again.

”Perfect. And seeing as I’m awake I might as well go get me serving of broth that our cook graciously decided to wake me up for. Moments before you did much the same I might add.”

She carefully placed each of the tools away within the box before slotting it back into one of the many drawers. Standing up she stretched and yawned a bit and lifted her goggles up to rest on her forehead before shivering a little from the yawn.

”Up and at em lad, haven’t got all day. Don’t want people to start talking about a fine gentleman in a woman’s room, do we?”

She gestured towards the still open door with one hand, grinning a little at her joke for a moment before walking over to her coat and pulling it on. Rubbing her eyes a little as sleep was beckoning, which initiated another yawn as she reached down to pick up her wrench to sling it across her back. After ushering the quartermaster out of first the engine room then her quarters she walked towards her food, feeling a faint grumble in her stomach as she entered the galley. Just as her fingers reached for the bowl she groaned a little as the echoing voice of the first mate filled the room, requesting all hands for the captain’s attention. Grumbling a little she picked up the bowl Alex had left on the side for her and grabbed a few slices of crusty bread.

With all in hand she walked up stairs onto the beam of the ship itself and sat, cross-legged on the starboard bulwark with her food in hand and began to munch down the food while waiting for the others to make their arrival known. She wondered a little if this would be related to their destination, and if they actually had one. She could probably keep them flying for a good while yet but nothing lasted forever and a few parts of the ship needed work that even she couldn’t replicate without the proper material. She became somewhat lost in both her food and mental calculations of what materials were still available and what could be turned to fuel if all else failed while she waited on the stragglers to arrive.

”Seb, you've managed to ruin half the wires in your forearm. What exactly were you fiddling with to cause this, must have been a mighty battery. Since your skin isn't that conductive from what I remember.” Sebastian smirked. The battery burst while he was patching it up, splattering acid onto his forearm. He had thought that it was fine, but as it turned out, it wasn't. He messed around with his arm after Amelia left, until he heard noise above deck. He thought it be a good idea to check that out.

When he came to the top deck, the bright sun glared into his lenses. He tapped out his current lenses for new ones that adjusted to the light almost immediately. Nearly the entire ships inhabitants were there, were with the exception of the rats. They were going to vote. A vote that could, rather would determine whether or not they would survive another voyage or die at sky. He walked over to the edge of the ship and leaned against the wall, waiting for the vote to start.

"Oh, one more thing. Please promise the crew will be kept safe?"

The question caught on Caintry as he prepared to leave, stalling him halfway through the door, for he did not know if he could promise that. In the many years he has spent on this planet, he has seen many die, and he remembered one of the many times as his memories came flooding in.

“Come boy! Do you want to live or not?” The man, his former captain, was tall and rough, towering over the younger Caintry who was shorter and skinnier, and his voice was a booming coarse shock wave that could cause even the most iron-statured man to shudder. All around them, the smuggling ship burned into an inferno, the screaming of several men and some women in complete agony shot through the fires, and sweat bulleted down both of their faces, drenching their shirts. Suddenly, like demons appearing out of a void beyond scorches in existence, twelve or so pirates swung onto the deck, swords and smug looks drawn to the ready, and the captain drew his own saber in a screeching scraping of metal against metal.

“Which one of yer wants to be sent to the Hell beneath the Skies first?” he shouted with the confidence of a charging bear, but he turned round with a concerned look to Caintry for an aside.

He softly spoke, “Run and get cover boy, I still need a legacy.” Caintry’s boyish heart sank as he realized the meaning of those words. Out of nowhere, the first pirate lunged and-

Caintry turned to reality once again as the soft sobs of Alexandria brought him back, and he thought what curious creatures Nekos are, one minute mad, then energetic, then apologetic, and finally sad. He thought of his past, and finally decided he could not promise something he could not keep. So, with a new grimace on old wounds, he turned without a word heavily to begin the vote, and he finally reached the above deck. Examining the grounds, he saw Varsh about to begin telling Markel a story, and he sighed for his concern that that man might bring down Markel’s intellect down to his own level. He strode over properly as a captain should.

“Varsh, we all do so indeed enjoy your tales, but Markel must take my side.” he turned to Mitsuhide, “As well as you First Mate.” He spoke friendly to both, and he walked up top the upper-deck so he could look down onto all the others and be heard by all, expecting the two to follow.

“Attention! As all of you can clearly see, we are in dire need of land, sooner rather than later. So, we have two possible courses, Perodo and Paradiso, and you no doubt have knowledge of these places already and pre-existing opinion. Since I am from Denauc, I am familiar with the notion of Democracy, so I will rule as my forefathers did! Let me hear your voice and your opinions! I will listen!” He spoke powerful, unusual to his usual formal and genteel voice, but as captain he has his duties, even if his duty was rabble-rousing.

As he looked at his crew, he thought At least I love my rabble, so he waited eagerly for their opinions.

Rel'Kaz Del Va Hiim

Rel'Kaz watched as Guldor approached Mitsuhide, and he cringed inwardly at the blatant show of disrespect. If he had been the First Mate, he'd have given warning to him. Still, he approved as the first mate turned on his heel and nearly hit the Advisor with his sheathed sword. He stepped back and put his back against the railing the covered the edge of the ship, except for the spot where the crew would embark and disembark. He watched as Guldor stormed towards the Captain's cabin as Varsh was lead out by the cabin boy, Markel. He smiled inwardly as the difference in stature between the two was amusing to him. As the rest of the crew gathered out onto the deck, he surveyed them. Then Caintry came out onto deck and made his speech. He had heard of these islands before, having traveled to both once in the two years he's been a fugitive from the Alazari Empire. He knew which he would choose out of the two choices he had.

"I say we head for Perodo. As I have told most of you before, I have a bounty on my head, and none of you have tried to kill or capture me yet, so I assume you will not try to do so in the future. As to my knowledge, Paradiso is a island full of the scum of the skies, no offence intended if you think differently, and no doubt a place where prospective hunters will find it rather easy to catch their prey. That is all I have to say."

(OOC: Rel'Kaz has given a fake reason to the crew as to why he has a bounty on his head, since the Alazari Empire did not send posters and flyers around, rather they had picked the bounty hunters, so you can bet your prized possessions that they're good at their job. Rumors have been floating about though, so even people who haven't been called by the Alazari Empire may know a little about the bounty's details. If we do end up heading to Paradiso, then if any characters that wish to know more may want to inquire about this. In character of course.)