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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2015 20:09:45 GMT -6
"Take a merchant ship, they said" Selene stated calmly, though there was perhaps just the slightest hint of sarcasm so acidic it threatened to eat through the hull of the damn boat. "It'll be fun, they said." She DISTINCTLY remembered the 7th fleet commander personally assuring her that the 'pirate issue' was COMPLETELY under control in this area, stating proudly that even a sailboat would make it across safely. "Etruria rules the waters," she continued, nearly ripping the terrified captain in half with an impassive stare.
"Perfect."
There was no mistaking the satisfaction in her voice, the sarcasm and displeasure of a moment before completely evaporated as if they had never existed in the first place. This was wonderful! It was like they were actually greeting her to the Western Isles, and best of all, it was even a completely unfair battle, heavily stacked in their advantage! Selene would have hugged someone... if that was something she did. Instead, she just stood there, arms still crossed, with an increasingly satisfied look on her face as panic spread through the civilian crew.
"You were hoping for this to happen." It was less a question than a statement, the easy familiarity of the words betraying the fact that the speaker was quite at home with her. Selene didn't bother looking at him, too focused on the twin ships slowly approaching them, her eyes as cold as ice as she surveyed them, tried to gauge what she could of each. Besides, she didn't really need to answer him - they both already knew the answer to that question.
"Which of the crew do we have?" Businesslike. Brief. She answered her own question a moment later. "Thirteen, mostly enlisted, two officers. Three of the boarding crew." He nodded. Bardock had been with her for years now; he knew quite well that was simply her thinking out loud. "We hold the weather gage, but have little beyond the ballista and one of the mages... Rath?" Another nod. Rath was fine. He wasn't the most experienced, but he was bright and talented, and he had been so very excited to join her crew. But the Sathanas was in dry dock, and so he had volunteered to join up beforehand and accompany her in the meantime. She liked him. A little clueless to the ways of the world, but a well-meaning young man. She hoped he survived.
A fair few of them probably wouldn't.
If she did not play this well, none of them would.
"Hard to port. We'll strike first. Rouse the men." Selene didn't have to look to see her companion rolling his eyes before he shouted something, probably to the pilot, before turning back to her. "What a surprising tactic. Truly a strange development from the normally timid Selene Au-" "Shut up, Bardock." "Yes ma'am." He didn't sound particularly contrite, but neither was she particularly annoyed, or really at all. That was just how they interacted. The man was more of a sarcastic twat than she was, and she quite enjoyed it. "It will take the remaining ship time to turn, especially against the wind... we won't have much time to finish our work. A few minutes at best. How many of these civilians have combat training?" "Not enough. The ballista operator is the only one we can rely on, ex-mil, the rest are as soft as kittens."
"Well, this is turning out to be a fair fight after all then. We should be grateful." "Not really," he returned. "Oh?" "They'd need at least four more ships for it to be an even battle. Or did you forget how to count?" "Shut up, Bardock." "Yes ma'am."
The ship was already turning, buckling as the wind hit it hard from the side. Such a disappointing vessel. She wouldn't feel bad about abusing it a little here... and she would. These curs would bend and break rather than follow orders when push came to shove, but it would be interesting to see which of them held steel within them that even they might not yet know existed.
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Zahhak Al-Bahar
Dragon
Posts: 34
Profession: Competitive Thrower
Affinity: Thunder
OoC Alias: Ilheod
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Post by Zahhak Al-Bahar on Jul 13, 2015 10:53:20 GMT -6
Living for all of time(Or so it felt) had some major perks. As Zahhak sat there, in the crows-nest drinking a healthy drought of his favorite spirit; he realized just what the greatest one was. He could ignore the humans that annoyed him long enough, and eventually they'd just die. He could already count a fair number that he'd hated dealing with but didn't get a thrill from the notion of fighting because of their weak statures; and was suspecting that he was damn close to feeling that way about all of humanity. With his boot pressed firmly to the wooden barrel he rested within. Both of his arms draped over the sides, fingers loosely curled around the neck of the amber bottle while he leaned back with a bored groan.
the only reason he was even hear was to hopefully break the monotony that his extended life was currently experiencing. He wasn't bored of fighting. Not by a long shot. However he needed to get stronger which wasn't going to happen if he kept beating up greenhorns and pups so new to fighting that they had some egg on them still. The brown haired water dragon lifted his drink to take another healthy swig as he listened to the faint grumblings of people beneath him. These pirates were a crew under captain..er...the fella with the funny beard and half his teeth. That wasn't his name. What had it been? Rob? No. Frank? No. Appule? No. Ehh...humans had stupid names anyway. With yet another swig of his drink, he welcomed the fiery burn that it brought to his throat; even if he couldn't get intoxicated. That...or maybe he could and hadn't found his limit yet? Questions for later.
Bustling activity below drew his attention. One of the "spotters" had picked up on a vessel it seemed. Given the buzz below and how everyone had started jeering and shouting it seemed to be something worth while. Zahhak actually stood up, leaning forwards so the chilled wooden barrel like edge pressed to his abdomen as he leaned over the nest to gaze at the other ship; both hands resting on it while two fingers kept the bottleneck in grip. For a brief flicker of moment he got his hopes up. Pirates? A military vessel? That would've been fun and rare. He directed his gaze towards the ship before frowning in disappointment. He leaned back, plopping back against his make-shift seat with a grunt of distaste. Merchant ship. Or trade ship..of-course it's a damned merchant ship. Gods forbid we try something challenging for once eh?
A voice carried up to him. "Oy! All hands on deck drunkard, time to work!" One more human he wouldn't miss, oh boy. Drunkard? Zahhak sneered with distaste as he finished the bottle and raised back an arm to belt it swiftly towards the vast ocean beyond. He'd probably drink enough to get each individual man on the ship drunk at once and STILL find himself in perfect control. Still..a fight was a fight. Who knew, maybe the guards were worth half a damn on the enemy boat. Hopping over the edge with reckless abandon, Zahhak grabbed the net with a tight grasp to break his fall in small sporadic moments before griping at it a final time and dropping onto the deck with a typical "thump." He walked onto deck While he ignored the buzz; leaning his forearms over the deck railing. At-least..he could only hope. Gods he was tired of being bored...
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Post by Deleted on Jul 15, 2015 18:58:40 GMT -6
Their own ship's turn took time, but in truth there was no other alternative; trying to sail into the wind to escape would simply have doomed them since the pirates were coming from just the right angle to have caught up anyways. Merchant ships simply weren't built for speed at the best of times... even if she just followed the wind after turning and tried to get a head start while the pirate ships turned as well, they would simply use their doubtless superior speed to catch up in short order - and then they would have the option of when and how to engage, likely with one ship pulling up on each side of this merchant junker to ensure they couldn't break off.
At that point - Selene, for all her self-assurance, wasn't fool enough to think she could take them both on at once. There was confidence and then there was stupidity, and while from the outside she might blur the two, Selene took very calculated risks, and almost always ones that she judged as having good odds. Even this whole situation probably looked incredibly suicidal - and yet ironically it was the only real chance they had of surviving. She could hear the captain sputtering, arguing with someone else, and didn't really bother tuning in; the thud at the end that interrupted his tirade suggested that her shipmate had ended the conversation by ramming his head into the wall... again.
She would have done it herself if the prattle had gone on for much longer.
"Crew's ready. Ballista's understocked - damn fools never bothered restocking it after their last adventure - only got a couple bolts left."
Peace.
Selene wasn't some blood-crazed warmonger who wanted to pitch Elibe into eternal war, she understood that most people just wanted to live their lives without fear of being murdered, but peace held a certain dirty connotation to her; peace was simply something that made people go soft, that turned men into sickly soft children, that bred complacency and the bystander effect. The men aboard this ship had succumbed to that very mindset once the waters near Etruria had supposedly been pacified, and now it might well cost them all their lives.
"We'll have to make each shot count then." Her words were cold, hard, clinical. She would grill these idiots later, if any of them survived, but right now it simply didn't matter. "Aye, ma'am." Their voices were somewhat casual, as if they weren't worried about the outcome, but inside her mind was racing through every possibility she could think of - and Selene didn't much care for most of them. There were likely to be a lot of deaths, and it was very possible the ship would be crippled even if they did win, or 'win.' Another attack would probably be 100% lethal.
But they would burn that bridge when they came to it; for now, they had to survive this fight first. "No explosive bolts I assume?" "Not a one." Of course. She hadn't been expecting an affirmative answer - that was military-grade equipment. Not impossible for merchants or pirates to possess, just very expensive and very dangerous - to everyone involved - if not handled carefully. "Rath is ready?" "Yes, Admiral," another voice piped in, the man in question appearing out of the edge of eyesight, still pulling his cloak on as he prepared himself for combat.
Selene stroked her chin as she envisioned the possible sequences of events - fast-forward visions of potential, constantly fracturing as myriad possibilities sprang into new timelines. They HAD to split up the enemy ships immediately, no other options there, and they had to neutralize one before the other could recover. Those were absolutes. If only Rather was more powerful, or if they had more mages, she might have been able to manage more... but they didn't, and so she couldn't.
Strike first - to the port of the left ship or starboard? Starboard would make it harder for the other ship to board, but expose her ship to a potentially murderous hail of bolts... no, this ship, and her limited crew, couldn't take that kind of punishment. And if the other ship had any mages, they could finish the battle without ever once coming close. No, better to use the first victim as an unwilling shield. Could they interfere with the other? An accurate fireball to take out the sails, a ballista bolt to the navigator... all sounded good on paper, but it didn't even take a mental preplay to know they were both terrible ideas in terms of reliability. Better to save that firepower for their initial strike. "Twin-linked ballista, right?" "Yes ma'am."
Hmm. That doubled their initial firepower, but actually reloading took twice as long... more, actually, considering the setup. "Alright. Here's the plan." Bardock and Rath both perked up, Rath leaning in a little unconsciously - he seemed to idolize her where Bardock just had his usual quiet respect, knowing she was a person rather than an ideal or a hero. "We'll angle in and hit 'em on the port side to kill momentum. Rath hits the sails - by the book." He nodded. That meant three fireballs set to wide dispersal, to cripple the enemy ship's mobility entirely and remove any chance of the wind pulling them away.
"Ballista strafes the enemy deck as we approach - aim for large clusters, break formations, the usual. Have him stay with it after we board, more important to hold off the second ship for a few more seconds than to fire into a melee. I'll take the men on board for a shock action, do as much damage as I can. Rath, stay back and try to close entrances - don't worry about the fight unless you have a clear shot. We don't have to kill everyone, just neutralize them in time for the real battle with their buddies."
They both nodded, with Rath swallowing his throat a little nervously. This was his first real fight wasn't it? Selene just grinned, clipping him on the shoulder as her smile only grew. "We'll make a man out of you yet. Just stay alive and don't do anything stupid." He nodded again, leaving to prepare for his part. The enemy ship was rapidly approaching, clearly not sure how to react to the idea that her ship was going to pass them... or so they thought.
When they struck with the screaming of tortured wood and the loud twang of the ballista, Selene's smile was nothing short of feral. Put THAT in your pipe and smoke it! The sight of one pirate impaled to the mast on a massive bolt was salve to her eyes much as the burning of the mast itself was music to her ears, and the confusion among the pirate ranks was clear - they had been expecting a cub, not a wolf.
"COME ON, YOU SONS OF BITCHES," Selene's voice rose above the din with a roar that pierced the din and carried to every end of both ships as the now intimately embraced ships drifted, already charging towards the edge of hers and the entrance to her destination with a sword in her right hand, slightly upraised, and the tomahawk in the other. "DO YOU WANT TO LIVE FOREVER?"
And then she was over the railing, brushing away one sword with her own as her tomahawk sank deep into the skull of another man, and the roar of her crew behind her and the shouts of those before her filled her ears and the din of battle overcame the silence.
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Zahhak Al-Bahar
Dragon
Posts: 34
Profession: Competitive Thrower
Affinity: Thunder
OoC Alias: Ilheod
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Post by Zahhak Al-Bahar on Jul 16, 2015 8:30:54 GMT -6
Waves crashed against the second ship and rocked the hull. The wood groaned in protest as the roaring waves raged on. Men stood around the railings of the deck watching as the "merchant" vessel turned. Zahhak's gaze narrowed as he tuned in more acutely than before. He leaned forwards, hands cupping the slightly wet wooden railing. The spray of oceanic waves rose like mist as the tides broke against the hull, and yet it only complimented the rise in pulse. He heard faint mutterings above the rest of the pirates, as to concern for that vessel. That certainly wasn't a common merchant vessel they muttered. Some exclaimed as the crashing of the two ships could be heard even to them. The sight of water caught between the two bursting up in plumes only to scatter outwards. The sound of the wood giving way to colossal forces of momentum. It was a beautiful sight. One man exclaimed with uncertainty at the display. "Hells be good, damned crew' gone lost their wits! What merchants do that?"
Zahhak had stopped caring about "merchants." Someone was calling the shots. It wasn't a damned merchant either. His adrenaline began to race as a wild grin spread upon the dragon's lips. Part of him felt this urge. A wild urge that battle-lust tugged at, and a desire to simply swim to the combat. He wrapped his fingers around the rope net secured to the mast and leaned forwards with one foot rising to prop against the railing. Most would have confused this as an attempt to get a better view. Oh no. He was making sure he didn't jump off. The net's links were coiled around his wrist partially as well with his fingers locking it in place. He opened his predatory maw with an exclaimed hiss of anticipation as he gazed towards the ship. The pirates on his ship were losing moral. Bah! So few humans had a love for a good damn fight. He had to. Just a bit. Just a little bit, just to get ready. His eyes eased shut for a brief moment. The gemstone within his necklace pulsed a wraith like essence as a hidden flame came to life. Zahhak opened his eyes, his pupils thin and slit like within the devilish oceanic hued gaze. Once more he hissed with glee as he observed the carnage, his first canines on either side of his top jaw were now elongated and razor sharp. Much like a snakes twin fangs. His entire body was on edge.
Muscles began to tighten as he tugged at the rope further slowly. The stretching sound was drowned out however by the sound of waves and then..he heard it. The angelic symphony that was sounds of battle reached his heightened senses. Zahhak couldn't contain it any further. He started laughing. It was not a jovial sound, for his savage voice held a love for combat in it and excitement towards battle that was almost ecstatic.
"Gwahahaha...HAHAHA..HAHAHAHA! WHAT ARE YOU BAWLING ABOUT? TODAYS A DAY WORTH LIVING FOR!"
His accent was heavy. The humans language did not have as many sounds and noises as his native one that he was used to. However as their ship sailed against crashing waves to the battle, Zahhak felt his lust for combat growing wildly. His savage grin flashed the deadly bleached fangs even as others gazed to him with mixed reactions. Concern, fear, inspiration from some even. Either way, it was obvious that it was too late to turn back. Zahhak cared not though for the lives of these fools. On that boat, was at-least one person worth fighting.
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Post by Emil Aurion on Jul 23, 2015 22:14:07 GMT -6
Emil had been having trouble adjusting to this new life since he 'turned a new leaf', whatever the hell that meant. One thing he knew he'd never give up was his drink of choice, rum. He knew the woman that he once called his sister when they were little was an uptight bitch, he figured she'd throw a fit and have his rum thrown overboard if she knew he had it so he decided to sneak it on board the ship. Once he was aboard he went down to the cargo hold and scoped it out, to see if there was any place he could hide to enjoy his beverage. He noticed if he could shift around a few crates where they didn't look suspicious he had his hiding spot so he began to get to work as the crew was getting the ship to set sail. He didn't dare to touch it right away in fear of somebody catching him and ratting him out so he spent some time just watching everybody.
After a day or so he couldn't resist the sweet nectar of his rum, that night he climbed into the small opening where he had hid the bottles and cracked the first one open and stuck the opening to his nose catching the scent of the alcohol. It didn't take him long to down the whole bottle before passing out. He had awoke a few times as he heard people making quite a bit of noise up top but quickly drifted back to sleep, then suddenly he was smacked up side the head with his own bottle as it quickly rolled towards him when the ship changed directions abruptly.
He sat up rubbing his head "What the hell is going on up there?". On top of being hit with his own bottle he had a massive headache, the hang over was totally worth having a drink again. Emil carelessly crawled out of his hiding spot, luckily there wasn't anybody to see him. He went to the deck, he saw Selene pretty quickly and walked towards her, ignoring what was going around the ship, to talk to her. Half way to her he saw another ship out of the corner of his eye, he stopped in his tracks to take a look at it. "Well damn, if I knew we were having a play date I would have brought my toys up with me."
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