Snippet #2563643

Alten had his eyes closed, just trying to keep himself calm as the ship descended through the atmosphere and began it trip towards the city of Ko'val. It was only the two of them and pilots up front, and Alten was close to panicing at this point. Only sheer willpower was stopping him, as he began to recall all the things he had learned back in the Corps; just trying to get himself back into the mindset that helped him get through it. If he could do that, then he could get through this.

One of the pilots poked his head back through the doorway between the cockpit and the sitting area, looking towards the Admiral. "Admiral Xsan, what or who are we looking for?" he asked, his face hidden behind the mask of his helmet.

Arina shifted from her seat and unhooked herself so that she could properly direct the pilot to where she wanted them to go. Coming up next to him, lingering in the door, she looked out the window to the sands that shifted below and the city that was still smoldering in some parts. The buildings looked like hell, torn apart from the fighting hours ago, not to mention old age making it look even worse.

"First, send a quick message into the city. Dont bother encrypting it..." she added as an after thought, "Simply state that Admiral Arina is landing in five minutes just outside of the city perimeter." she ordered the pilot.

At the realization that she was going to soon be with in five feet of the man who had invited her to dinner made her stomach go cold. A twisted feeling curdled in her chest, making her throat grow tight. It took a moment to overcome the strange feeling that had suddenly welled up in her mouth. With that out of the way, she further directed the pilot to where she wanted them to land.

The pilot looked at her, then back ahead before nodding his head. "Alright then, we'll get this bird down in a few." He then turned and went back into the cockpit, sitting down in his pilot seat to do as she asked. Alten simply remained in his seat, quietly waiting for them to land.

His eyes remained shut, and he was taking slow, deep breaths to settle himself. His mouth moved as he spoke, yet he made no actual sound. He simply kept chanting the phrase over and over as the plan slowly came in to land.

After a few moments, Alten jumped and his eyes bolted open as he felt the ship jolt as it came down. He took one last deep breath before he stood up, the co-pilot shouting into the back for them. "Alrighty, Admiral. We are down. What do you want us to do?" He asked as he leaned from his seat so that he could look back at her. Alten was already on his feet and was waiting by the doorway, hand resting on the handle as he looked towards the Admiral.

"Stay here," she answered simply. Turning from the two pilots up front, she headed toward the back before stopping and glancing over her shoulder to the front of the plane, "Oh, and keep it running, just in case," she shouted back so they could hear her.

Grabbing the knife off her seat, she stared at the weapon for a long time, debating on whether she should take it or not. Her hand hovered back and forth between herself and back onto the seat. With a bit of a heavy sigh, Arina tossed the weapon back down and headed to the doors, "Lets try to make this quick. The less time I spend down here the less Major Aigidios will be angry with me," she said to Alten as she guestured to the door that he held onto.

He watched her play with the knife, and then he looked her dead in the eyes. "Take it, Admiral Xsan. Do not leave that knife." He said before he slowly pulled on the handle of the door. The handle moved slightly before he felt and heard the metallic click of the latch being released, and then he pulled as the door slid back and open. He felt the rush of air of slight depressurization, and then slowly he stepped down and onto the sand and immediately scanning every nook and crany he could see.

He could see up on the rooftops, in some alleys, and just along the ground were various people. They were all equipped with various weapondry, all of which looked military in quality. None of them had their weapons trained in their direction, but they kept their eyes on the newcomers. Alten noted that some of the pirates were grabbing the attention of their friends and indicating to the surronding area. Alten looked off in directions they were pointing, but the buildings blocked any chance of him seeing what it might have been they were trying to point out. There was no sense of urgency from them though, so it couldn't have been anything terrible, or it might have just been them trying to get their friends back onto the patrol path.

Alten stepped away from the vessel, though he stopped and looked back to the Admiral, waiting for her and refusing to move more than a foot or two away from her.

"Alten..." Arina hissed to herself and went back to the seat to snatch up the dagger. Tucking it away on her belt, she pulled the front of her shirt down over it to hide it from view as best as possible. Though she had a horrid feeling that being searched and having it found would worsen the situation, she had to admit that having it made things a little easier to deal with.

Stepping from their transport, her boots sunk in the sand a little making her unsteady for just a moment before she caught herself. Once she was righted, her gaze went from one side of the city to the other. That is a lot of pirates... she thought to herself. Catching Altens gaze, she nodded and started for the city.

Seeing as how they hadnt been shot at or shot out of the sky, Arina had to assume that Grimfist got her message. She could only hope that he would meet them soon and hopefully close to the cities edge as well. Going to far into the city was pushing her limits. Clearing her throat slightly, Arina kept an eye out for the man with the tricorn hat and bionic limbs. After all, that was one sight she wasn't about to forget so easily.

Alten walked right behind Arina, still scanning every new place, and then re-checking places he had already looked over. None of the pirates did anything, they simply kept about their buisness. Some who were resting about, playing games, drinking and smoking, or doing whatever on their down time would occastionally glance towards the two of them. Alten tensed up when his eyes would meet the looks of others, and he also would glance when he heard some make cat calls directed to the Admiral, or to Alten in the case of any female pirates.

Once the two had moved a block or so from the transport vessel, Alten looked up to see a group of three pirates come walking towards them. None of them were Grimfist, Alten knew that, and the group consisted of two men and one female. As they walked up, one of the men and the woman broke off and moved to circle the two of them. Alten immediately moved closer to Arina, hand hovering near his pocket though he made no intent to grab the knife.

"Well now, what brings such a beautiful little lady such as yourself here?" The man at the front of the group asked as he openly looked Arina up and down, his eyes never rising back up to meet hers.

"And such a cute gentleman too~." said the woman as he stopped in front of Alten. "No need to be so tense baby, I don't bite."

"I make no promises." the other man said while crossing his arms.

Remain calm. Do not do anything rash, Arina, she reminded herself as the pirates circled around her and Alten. The one who addressed her first put a sickening feeling back into her stomach, an icy cold taste of bile at the back of her throat.

"Captain Grimfist and I are to meet. He knows Im here, if you wouldnt mind..." Arina said, doing her utmost best to keep her tone calm and pleasant. Even so, she couldnt get a smile on her lips. Not with how the two male pirates where watching her like wolves... Ready to tear into her at a moments notice.

"Well, I think your visit with the Captain can wait, don't you?" the man in front said as he looked up to her. The one to the side reached out and put a hand on her shoulder while the female pirate moved up Alten. However all were stopped by the shouting of a slightly synthesized voice not far ahead.

"The 'ell did ya jsut say about me meetings?!" All three pirates immediately moved away from Alten and Arina, stepping back to give room for the Captain as he stomped his way towards them. Alten eyed Grimfist, who was decked out in his power armor, hat upon his head, and bionics in place. Alten eyed the massive arm which occastionaly scrapped any slightly raised bits of sand before he stopped in front of all of them.

Grimfist looked over to the pirates, raising an eyebrow. "Well?"

"Just saying we were gonna get her right to you to make sure the meeting got underway as quickly as possibly, Captain! But ya beat us to it by showing up, as punctual as ever!" The man looked at Arina, looking her up and down one more time. "Good day miss." he said with a wink before turning and walking, Alten flintching as the female ran a hand over his shoulder as she turned and walked off.

"Sounds about right, I'd say." Grimfist growled before looking at Arina, his eyes narrowing as he also decided to look her up and down. After a pause he looked her in the eyes, " 'ow old are ya, lass?"

The Admiral's heart picked up, pounding hard as the hand fell upon her shoulder. Having never been in such a situation before, her body reacted first by stepping back into Alten. Her hand snatched his wrist unintentionally, holding onto Alten as if he were a life boat for her. Even so, she managed not to draw the weapon she had hidden under the shirt.

For a mere moment, Arina let out a breath of relief as Captain Grimfist showed up, making the three pirates scatter by his mere presence. As she turned to regard him though, it seemed the icy feeling in her throat closed her windpipe and she could hardly get words out. His presence was so much different than on screen. It took Arina a little while longer to get her thoughts together as well as keep from grimacing as he eyed her much the same as the pirate a moment before.

Forcing a smile, Arina slowly let go of Alten's wrist, the tremble in her limbs only just being contained, "Captain. A pleasure. Surely my age is not all that important, is it? After all we are here to discuss the planet and your safety in such a dangerous place. Surely you have not forgotten why I have come all this way to speak to you directly," Arina said, her words growing smoother by the second as she regained her confidence.

Grimfist just held his scowl, or what Alten could guess was a scowl considering the man's lack of half his face. Grimfist then looked around, looking to each of the pirates and watching them for a moment before back to Arina, his face softening before he turned and began walking. "This way then, lass. An' I ask ya cause ya look pretty young for someone those 'igher ups would 'ave doin' these kinda things. Ya the daughter of one of them or ya sleepin' with one of 'em?" He glanced back at her, narrowing his eyes again before back ahead. "I'd say fuckin'em if I 'ad ta guess." he said as he began walking forwards.

Alten watched the pirates again, though he looked at the Admiral, having noticed her grabbing hold of him. He looked back up, and remained close to her. He was certain he'd have no chance of keeping her safe from the pirates, as he would be turned to ground meat just as easily as she would if they really wanted to kill the two of them. But he'd be damned if he didn't at least try. He'd let the Admiral talk to Grimfist, instead he'd just keep his eyes on the surroundings.

"Captain," Arina's tone was different, a sly smile on her lips as she followed after him, "Please, I like to think that I'm a rather refined woman, so no I have not slept with any of the higher ups. I have...relatives, if you must. And if you insist, I'm 24. I'm also well aware of the fact that I am rather young, Captain. However, that doesn't hinder my abilities in the least."

Taking a moment, she glanced around wondering where the Captain was taking them. Putting that dilemma aside, she looked forward again, careful of how she stepped. Not too close to the Pirate Captain, yet not too far back either. There was delicacy in every move she made, every word she said and decision made. Arina was playing it out as a submissive woman, one that would sway at the drop of a pin so that the Captain was fooled by her sweet talking. At least... That was the plan and she was very confident in pulling off too.

"Im just hopeful that we can come to terms on an agreement. One that will satisfy us both, as well as keep you and your own safe -including mine- in regards to this dangerous planet."

"I see then, you young ones only get where ya are by the grace of yer elders." Grimfist said while shaking his head. He kept watching around the area, almost like he was looking for something. "You keep mentioning this place bein' dangerous, yet me and ma crew been 'ere fer a good four years and we ain't seen nothin' we never 'ad ta deal with before." He then looked down to the side, stopping for a moment.

Alten looked ahead to see why, and he nearly jumped as he watched one of the spider-like creatures he'd shown during the briefing a few days ago suddenly go skittering by. It stopped for a moment, turning towards the three of them before continuing on its way, Grimfist watching it go on before continuing to walk.

He chuckled, "Love those buggers. Nuttin' like listenin' ta a grown man scream like a little girl. That and they eat the actually annoyin' bugs. As I was sayin' only dangerous thing we've dealt with are fuckin' bugs and those lizards. Both are easily solved by either a good blast of bullets or with my good ol'grimfist." He said while lifting the bionic limb, snapping the claws together loudly. This close, Alten could see that the arm actually had two elbow joints rather than a single one, probably to allow it more maneuverability given its length.

"So the only dangerous thing 'ere is ma crew and I, and you dumb lubbers who came onto my lawn without askin'." He said before he stopped in front of one of the larger buildings in the city. Alten looked up at it, and near the front door he could see a warn and beaten sign that had painted on it the words, "Captain's" over what Alten could guess was the word city, so that the sign read "Captain's Hall."

Arina kept pace with the Captain and when he came to a stop, like Alten, she too looked for the reason as to why. When the spider rushed by, her heart lurched and she nearly bumped back into Alten. Bugs were not her thing, for certain.

Swallowing dryly, Arina watched as well as Grimfist lifted his arm and demonstrated its movement for them both to see. For a brief, horrifying moment, she had the horrid image of those claws encircled around her, crushing her, or worse, tearing into her and flaying her open. Turning away from the clawed arm quickly, she looked over to Alten for a moment. She was glad he was there, it gave her purpose as well as something to use to help calm down her fears.

Why she was so fearful, though, was a mystery. She couldnt place her unease at all. Something was off, but she couldnt figure it out. It made her feel sick, "Captain," she started, looking away from Alten to Grimfist as they stopped outside of where the man had claimed the building as his own, "As I explained before. I had no information on you and your people being here. If I had known, I would have contacted you before I had sent my men down here to find the enemy that drove out the last civilization that was here. I have no intention of fighting you, I simply need to find what happened here. In order to do so, all I'm asking is for the planet to be evacuated while I thoroughly search Ko'val."

Grimfist looked at her as he stopped at the steps, listening to her. He nodded his head, again looking over towards one of the pirates up on the rooftop. Alten glanced over, seeing the pirate give a quick series of hand signals, Alten narrowing his eyes and moving his hand so that it went into the pocket that contained the knife.

Grimfist eyes narrowed before he turned to look at Arina, then looked at Alten, around the area, then back to Arina. "Where the 'ell are the rest of ya? Is this the only lubber ya brought with you?" He asked Arina, quirking an eyebrow as he turned full to face her.

Moving, Arina stepped up a bit toward Grimfist, a rather confused look on her face, "Captain? Why would I bring them? This is a negotiation between you and I? He is my attendant. If I had brought the search teams, then it would seem as if I were invading you, would it not? That is not what I wanted. This discussion is between you and I. Theres no need for anyone else," her facial features had softened part way through, her usual smile on her lips, the calm one that she always had.

Grimfist just kept his eyes on her for a long while, irritation beginning to cross his human features before he looked off towards the pirate who had given him a signal only a few minutes ago. " 'ey! Ya catch anybody on the scanners at all?! Ya see any lubbers skulking about or somethin' at all?!"

Alten looked at Grimfist, before over to the pirate who shouted back to the Captain. "No captain! Their ship's been the only thing that's popped up, and we've had the patrols up and reporting in regularly and there's still been nothin' funny!" Alten watched him, before looking to Grimfist. The pirate captain still looked frustrated, like he was annoyed they hadn't tried to stage an ambush against him.

He looked at Arina and Alten, the former marine moving up close to Arina and taking a hold of her arm. He was ready to pull her along and run if need be, even if they wouldn't get very far with this many guns on them.

Grimfist then looked at Arina, a look that showed both confusion and irritation at the same time crossing over his eyes. "Ya can't be real? Really, ya 'adn't brought any back-up? Nothin' to ambush me crew and I?! Ya can't really be that dumb, ya wench." Alten then watched as the large limb of the captain's shot up, reaching up to wrap the claws around Arina's neck. Rather, it wrapped around the lower part of her head, as the claw was too large to fit between her chin and her torso to grab hold of it. Alten reflexively tried to pull her away, but there was not a chance of him beating the strength of the hydraulically powered limb.

Arina's heart lurched into her throat and cut off all air as her head was wrapped up in the metallic claw that belonged to the Captain. For several moments she couldn't get any sound out of her mouth. Shocked into silence, she was frozen in fear. Her fingers reached up to try to grasp the claw, but her body was so unresponsive that all she managed was to barely brush at the arm.

A moment later Alten then felt something smack him across the back of the head, knocking him forwards into Arina before he felt both his arms be yanked behind his back as he was then pulled away by a pirate behind him.

Grimfist was holding Arina out from him, and Alten was frantically trying to break free from the grip of the pirate behind him, Even Arina's knife couldn't hope to reach the captain as he had her at the end of the fully extended limb. "I put up with this stupidity in the 'opes ya'd bring the fight on 'ere!" Grimfist growled and then looked past Arina, "Sink those lubbers she came 'ere with!" he then turned his eyes back to Arina. Alten jerked his head around as a moment later he heard the sound of an explosion, followed by another which he could guess was their transport vessel being gunned down by the pirates. A few gunshots could also be heard afterwards, Alten's eyes wide as he continued his struggle.

Grimfist just kept his glare leveled at Arina, growling; which only sounded more menacing to the former marine as the synthesizer added a distortion to the growl. "Or d'ya actually think I felt for that little battin' of the eye-lashes at ol'Grimfist?! Ya actually think this 'ere Captain would fall fer such a cheap trick?!" This time he brought her straight to his face, so that her jaw was touching the cold steel of his jaw plate. "I figured ya ta be smart enough ta try'an' ambush me crew and I! Ta bring a big fight fer us to 'ave. Instead all I get is a dumb wench and 'er little pet!" He slowly began tightening the claws of his arm, another growl emanating from his mouth. "Ta 'ell with this, I'm gonna get a use outta ya anyways."

Finding her voice finally, Arina gasped and let out a painful sound as he tightened his hold. Clawing at the metal arm then, she struggled as hot tears flooded her eyes, "C-Captain..." gasping and trying to be free, she could feel pain all along the side of her face. Either it was going to bruise or there were lacerations.

He loosened his hold on her, though kept her locked within the grip of the claws as he held her back away from him again. "Yeah, me crew and I are gonna 'ave fun with ya two. That's fer sure. That'll teach ya, ya stupid fuckin' wench!" He shouted at her. Alten tried to fight against the pirate behind him, but he couldn't break free from the tight grip they had on him.

Then a gunshot rang out through the air, and Alten watched as the tricorne atop Grimfist's head fly through the air and land on the ground nearby, a small smoking hole there. The Captain jerked his head to it, then to where the shot came from as the other pirates quickly began moving in that direction. "W'o the 'ell thinks they can just shoot me 'at and run like that?! Ya don' fuck with a pirates 'at!" Grimfist roared.

Alten looked in the direction it came from, and caught a quick glimpse of a rifle barrel vanishing out of sight behind the corner of a wall and into an alley. Several pirates were running in that direction, and Grimfist growled and then suddenly threw Arina to the side, who landed nearby two other pirates. He then snatched up his hat, replacing it onto his head and then looking at the two. "Ya two take that lubber an' do what ya want ta 'er! Just make sure she ain't dead, and leave some parts for me to break! The rest a'ya come with me!" Grimfist then turned and stormed off in the direction the shot had come from, then fired off the jets on his back to launtch himself up into the air and onto a rooftop.

With a sharp cry, Arina went stumbling until she sprawled out across the ground. Flooded with fear, she couldn't quite keep up with the situation. Had their transport vessel just been destroyed? Were they stuck on the planet!? Where was Alten!?

Alten was then ushered along after the two pirates who had picked up Arina, one of them quickly grabbing hold of her arms and pulling them up behind her back. The three pirates dragged the two off to the side and into an alley, where Alten was then kicked down onto his knees. He continued to struggle against the pirate behind him, but to no avail. He looked up though as he watched the pirate who didn't have a hold on the Admiral walk towards her, drawing a knife from a sheath on his belt.

"Captain said we can do what we want with you, so I think we will enjoy what time we have before he gets on back here." he said, a vicious grin on his face as he chuckled. He slowly approached her, careful to avoid any kicks she might throw at him before grabbing a hold of her throat. Alten then watched as the pirate slipped the knife beneath the collar of her shirt and then began cutting his way down the front of it. Once he finished, he pulled the shirt down her arms and looked her over, a smile that spoke volumes of the terrible things he and his friends had planned for her.

"Arina!!" Alten shouted, quickly trying to struggle to his feet as he watched the pirate kneel down in front of Arina to begin pulling off her boots. He jerked his head back, smacking the pirate behind him with the back of his head before he spun around and swung, only to hit air and then feel a fist slam into his gut, dropping him to the ground. He gasped for air, falling to his knees as he held his stomach. He felt a hand grab his hair, yanking his head up before an arm wrapped around his throat as the pirate chuckled in his ear. "Easy tiger, just relax and enjoy the show! Think about it, you watch it on the internet all the time and now you get to see it in person!" Alten snarled and tried to get free again, watching as the pirate grabbed the knife Arina had brought and tossed it aside before he began cutting at Arina's pants to remove them.

Already in fear, panic flooding her body, Arina's scream tore through her lips as she was grabbed and her arms pulled up behind her back so that movement was very difficult. Her shoulders strained as she struggled to get free.

It wasn't until the other pirate was headed toward her, knife in had, that realization dawned and she struggled even more. Eyes wide with horror, Arina's screaming intensified as she lashed out to try to knock her leg into the man only to miss no matter how hard she tried. Tears flooded her eyes then, streaming as she continued screaming. The moment the knife cut away her shirt, her heart nearly stopped.

"Alten!" she couldn't concentrate and his name was the first that came to her. She didn't know where he was, or if he was even still alive. All she knew were the two pirates, one holding her down, the other stripping her.

A moment later though, Alten felt himself be tugged back slightly by the arm around his neck as he then felt a warm liquid spray across his neck. He blinked, then felt the arm loosen its hold as the pirate behind him made a slight, yet muffled noise. The other two pirates were too preoccupied with their game, they didn't they notice Alten and their pirate buddy. As the former marine spun around, drawing his own knife to stab the pirate, he stopped, wide eyed as he saw the pirate grabbing the hand that had a knife plunged into his throat.

He looked at an armored figure, who was hunched over the pirate with a hand over his mouth and tearing the knife across their throat. The figure's armor consisted of light plates that covered its limbs and torso, with none at the joints as it was clearly meant to allow easy and unrestricted movement. It was all dark in color, the poor lighting making it hard for Alten to tell exactly. His entire head and face were covered by a mask, the front of which had two opaque lenses and a balaclava covering its mouth. As the being tore the knife from the now dead pirate, having done so quietly and with little effort, Alten could then see that on the ends of its fingers, integrated into the gloves it wore were metal claws on each one, including the thumb, at least half an inch long. On its thigh sat a large pistol, which was tipped with what Alten could tell was a silencer on the end of it, and on its back was a long, large rifle. He couldn't recognize either model, especially given how dark it was within the alley at the moment.

It looked up at Alten, then quietly walked over to him. Alten held his knife back, unsure what to do but then he watched as the person held up the hand with the knife, palm facing down as if offering it. Alten blinked, then watched as the figure dropped it onto the ground. It then spoke in a low, hushed tone, and it's words were muddled by a very guttural accent. "Kill gordarns. Survive" It said, pointing to the pirates who had Arina before it then turned and bolted.

Alten, stared confused about what had just happened, watching as the person vanished into the shadows and out of sight. He then looked down at the knife, now getting a good look at it. It was a high-frequency knife, as he could tell by the switch that was located on the handle, and it was also rather large for a knife. It was of a sleek, low-profile design. He turned around to the two pirates and Arina, then he quickly picked up the knife, flipping the switch on.

The pirate was now sitting over Arina, chuckling as his friend helped to hold her down. He grinned, now going to remove the last pieces of clothing in his way. He had no idea what hit him though as Alten slammed into him from the side, jamming the knife straight through the side of his head. The two fell to the ground and tumbled for a few feet, Alten losing hold of the knife. Worse yet though, his glasses had fallen off his face as he had rolled across the sand, and now in the darkness he couldn't hope to make out anything other than the sand and then where it ended.

Frantically he looked around, futily trying to find the knife that was still plunged in the side of the head of the pirate he had just killed and was lying nearby. Instead, all he felt was a boot to his side as the pirate that had been holding down Arina's arms had gotten up to take care of the former marine. Alten shouted in pain as he fell to the side, rolling for a moment while holding his stomach. He then curled up into a ball, trying desperately to grab hold of the attacker's foot as the pirate stomped and kicked the blind man. "You mother fucker! Now i'm just gonna gut you then fuck that bitch! Captain didn't say we couldn't hurt you!" He said while laughing, delivering a hard kick right to Alten's stomach with the toe of his boot, Alten managing only a cough as he then just curled into a ball to try and shield himself.

"Alten!" Arina's voice cried out the name again, mixed in with wordless screams of terror. Nearly stripped of all clothing, her trembling was uncontrollable. Then the man atop her was suddenly gone. Something or someone had taken him off of her. For a moment her screaming stopped as she watched him tumble and with him Alten went as well.

The pirate holding her down released her and she was left to lay on the ground in stunned silence. It wasn't until the man who had been holding her landed a heavy blow on Alten. Trembling still, her fingers searched for something, anything to get the pirate away from Alten who was no longer fighting back for some reason. Was he hurt too badly to do anything? Arina almost couldn't stomach that realization.

Frantically searching, her fingers came upon the knife that she'd had. With her clothes gone, it was lying in the sands to her right side. Snatching it up, she forced her body up off the ground and lunged at the pirate. Slamming into him, she slashed out with the knife, cutting across his chest and shoulder as they went tumbling to the sand.

The pirate gave a rather animalistic growl at her and she found herself under him as he launched his own strike at her. A heavy blow to the ribs knocked the wind from her lungs, a second time and she was blinded by pain. The knife in her hand shook wildly as her heart pumped what seemed to be a thousand gallons of adrenaline through her body. Panting heavily, she was expecting another strike, but it never came.

Taking a moment to try to regain her sense, she watched as the pirate over her slowly slumped forward and a heavy weight dropped down on her. What... struggling to breathe, Arina groaned heavily as she rolled just enough to get him to fall over. As he fell away from her a sickening sound cut into her ears and drew her eyes to the reason why he had stopped assaulting her. The blade in her hand was slick with blood, coating her fingers as well.

Where had she struck him? When did she put the knife through him? The weapon slipped from her fingers and she crawled backwards, away from the pirate, staring in shock and icy cold fear.

Alten coughed repeatedly, he had noticed that the attack on him had ceased. He heard the sound of the pirate letting out a pained sound as well as the sound of two bodies smacking into one another and tumbling to the side. The only moving he did though was to curl up into a ball, holding his stomach as he grimaced in pain. Taking a moment to recover his senses, he let out a ragged cough once more before he slowly got up onto his hands and knees, taking another breath of air.

His body hurt all over, from his stomach to his arms, his head, neck and legs. Groaning in pain again, he kept an arm around his stomach when he realized it had gone somewhat quiet. Lifting his head up, he cursed under his breath as all he could make out was the black blob that was a building. "Arina..?!" He called out, his voice dry and raspy from the amount of sand that'd been kicked up into it. He coughed again, trying to scan the area and get an idea of where people were though it was a futile effort. "Arina?!" He called again, though he was trying to keep his voice hushed as well. He didn't know if there were other pirates nearby, and he did not want to alert them if they hadn't noticed the struggle yet.

Alten slowly began moving about, running his hands through the sand to try and find anything. He jerked to a stop when his hand met something solid and warm, and patting it down he recognized it as a pirate body. Slowly trailing up it, his hand stopped when he felt the familiar feel of a knife handle stuck in the head of the body. Grabbing the knife, he tore it free, making sure that the power switch on the knife was off before he went back to his blind searching. "Arina?!" he called again.

The sound of her name didn't register to her until the third or fourth call, she wasn't even sure she'd been hearing it right at all. With her heart pounding loudly in her ears, her ragged breathing also echoing each beat in her chest. She stared at the corpse she'd just killed before she even turned to Alten's voice calling for her. As he looked around, hands stretching out across the sands, it occured to her that he was without his glasses.

"A-Alten..." her voice was cracked as she called to him, shaking as her body started trembling too. Her gaze searched the sands for the pair of glasses that he'd lost. It took her a while but when she spotted them she called to him again, not trusting herself to move as she curled up in on herself, "L-left... Alten... Your glasses," a sharp breath pulled into her lungs and she winced. Still crying, she was in utter shock as well. For the moment, though, she hadn't broken down completely, yet.

Alten jerked his head in her direction. Though he couldn't see her, he was at least able to move his head to look in her direction. He slowly began crawling his way over there, making sure not to lead with the knife in his hand. Now he could make out the sounds of her breathing, or rather crying. As he came close, his hand felt the warm flesh of a foot, and his heart skipped a beat as he found her. Quickly he moved over to her, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her into him.

He just laid his head against her's, relieved that she was alive. He didn't register her state of undress, he just dropped the knife onto the ground and wrapped both his arms around her. "Oh thank god..." was all he said, not having attempted to retrieve his glasses either. "Arina..." he just said while sitting down next to her.

The first touch made her flinch, but as he wrapped her up against him, Arina's breathing shortened drastically. Shuddering breathes clipped in and out of her lungs as she cried harder in his grip. Reaching up, her fingers curled tightly into the shirt of his uniform, clinging to him like a life line.

It burned, breathing, but she couldn't stop the pain, nor could she stop the tears that streamed. Crying hard, she curled in on herself as she tried to get closer to him, "A-lten..." her voice choked on his name with the sobbing, "S-orry! I... Should have... l-istened," she hiccuped the words, forcing them out between her cries.

To add to the mix, when Major Aigidios found out... She knew he was going to be insanely pissed off with her. He might even suggest her removal from the vessel for making such an idiotic decision, and more importantly, for defying his orders.

He didn't say anything as she sobbed against him, though when she began to speak it brought his thoughts back to reality. He blinked, then looked around for a moment despite not being able to see. He then looked around for where she might have put his glasses. "A-Arina, I need my glasses." he said quietly while reaching over to where he had set the knife down. Picking it up, he held onto it tightly while he slowly pulled back from Arina, at least enough to "look" at her.

"Arina, we need to keep moving. We aren't safe yet, we are still in the middle of the pirates and there's not telling when they'll come looking for us." his voice had returned to its usual softness, yet it still held a sense of urgency. "We need to find a place to hide, then work on getting our way out of here." He glanced around, though he still was not sure why he did so. He was trying to think of what the dead pirates might have for them to take.

Worse yet, he had no ideawhere they were in the city at this point. He'd been panicing far too much when they were dragged away, so now they were lost and had to figure out where to go. Of course, that was also while trying to survive the cold of the night and the hounds that were the pirates. Alright Alten, you were trained for this...you can do this, you've got this.

When he pulled away a little, Arina's fingers tightened on him, a gasp of utter terror in her throat, "Alten!" for a moment she'd thought he was being taken away from her, but as his voice continued she realized he'd just moved.

Looking up at him, she tried to make sense of his words. They were lost. They were in the middle of pirate territory which was very hostile, not to mention that Grimfist was still around as well. At the thought of Grimfist, her eyes widened a little and she went still like stone. It took her an even longer time to get coherent thought through her mind.

She had to focus. But it was so hard. She'd killed a man. They'd nearly succeeded in raping her, nearly accomplished killing Alten, and the negotiation with Grimfist was an utter failure. Arina'd never tasted failure before and of all times, in such a way as the situation she found herself in.

"G-glasses," she repeated his request for his glasses and slowly, she pulled her hands off of him so he could find them. Arina didn't trust herself to move up to her feet just yet, "Behind you... to the r-right now..." she said, trying to direct him as she curled in on herself, knees dragged up to her chest. An arm wrapped around her legs while the other curved along her chest behind her legs.

As for where to hide, she hadn't the slightest clue. Hell, she couldn't even think straight. How was she to find a place to hide? Or better yet, get a way out of Ko'val for them? Their transport ship had been destroyed and her mind was a muddled mess, still filled with those horrifying images.

Alten patted around where she mentioned, and he almost felt like cheering when he felt the familiar frame of his glasses. Almost, as he had no desire to alert any nearby pirates to their presence. He picked them up, shaking them free of sand before he quickly put them on, the world now coming back into focus. He blinked a few times, before looking to Arina. He paused, and his features softened as he looked at her. She was wreck, this was not a situation she was use to or had been ready for.

He then looked around the area, looking down the alley they had been dragged into. There was no telling where it went, but the first thing they needed to do was find some high ground to get a view of where they were. He looked back to Arina, looking her over before he quickly pulled off his jacket and then draped it around her. It was hardly much, but it was better than what little she was left in.

He then reached out, taking a soft hold of the hand that was wrapped aorund her legs. "Let's go, Arina." he spoke, slowly standing up and guiding her to stand up with him. "We'll get out of this, we will Arina." Though even as he said the words, he himself wasn't very sure of them. They were stuck behind enemy lines and neither of them were soldiers. Sure Alten had plenty of training when he'd been in the Marines, but that was over six years ago since he'd left, and even longer since he'd had to use the skills he needed now. He needed to sound confident though, for her and himself. He had to convince them both they'd get out of this alive, because he knew full well that it was the only way they were going to make it out alive. "I promise you." he finished, forcing his voice to exude a certainty to it.

As the jacket fell over her shoulders, she jumped slightly, having not noticed Alten's return to her side. Arina looked up at him slightly. Taking her hand, she felt him pull gently and she was brought up to her feet rather unsteadily. With one hand, she closed the jacket around her frame though it just barely came down past her hips.

Though she wanted nothing more than to curl in a heap and let herself drift off into a never ending sleep, she was brought to reality by Alten's words trying to coax her into moving. They couldn't stay. That was for certain. When Major Aigidios and his men would come down she didn't know. All she knew was that he was launching an attack. Wait... Had she said that to Alten? She couldn't remember.

"M-Major Aigidios..." she muttered, her words muddled by slight hiccups and shaking breaths, "H-he's coming..."

Alten looked at her, a small smile crossing his features. If the Majora was going to come down, then that was a chance for them to get out of here. However, they needed to get hide now because there was no telling when the Knights were going to arrive. "Alright, good to know. Let's get moving." He said while keeping hold of her hand.

He began going down the alley, the knife in his other hand as he walked. He moved at a slow pace, making sure to stay as quiet as he could as he moved along, eyes scanning every nook and crany once again.

"We'll find a place to hide, and then we'll look into getting a hold of the Major and his Knights. If they are going to attack the city, then I'm certain we'll hear them." As he spoke, he kept his voice quiet and soft. It wasn't just to try and help keep Arina calm, but also so as not to alert anybody who may be nearby.

Arina didn't answer him as they left the area in the alley they'd been brought to. She hardly could recall being moved as it was from where the Captain had taken them. With her fingers securing the jacket closed around her body, Arina kept her eyes on the ground and her other hand tightly closed around Alten's fingers. Trying to concentrate on moving one step after the other, the Admiral wasn't paying attention to anything else around her aside from keeping up right and staying with Alten.

She'd stumbled a couple of times. Her bare feet hitting a few sharp rocks here and there that made her lose balance for brief moments. As her adrenaline started to subside, she grew tired. Arina's head pounded with an awful headache that she was sure was a mix of all her fear, her crying and having her face nearly crushed by Grimfist. The overwhelming urge to sleep was nearly too much to fight off. The ground swirled often, making it increasingly difficult.

Arina looked up to Alten's back. It was her fault they'd gotten into such a dire situation. Fresh tears streamed along her face. Because of her, Alten was going to suffer as well.