forum The Harbinger // oxo // OPEN

Started June 21, 2019 by @croccin-champagne

tune

"I don't appreciate people sneaking onto my ship," Iniko said. "And I won't hesitate to throw you into space. I've been known to do it before. So, tell me. Why should I let you stay on the ship? I don't need to."

"'Cause it's rude?" Morrigan suggested, knowing full well that being cheeky could get her killed. Well, maybe not. These men had no way of knowing who she was, or what she was capable of. "A'ight, a'ight. I jus' need t' get t' the next port. The guys tryna find me think I'm on a cargo ship headed t' Hyvar."

"Hyvar is on the other side of the system. We are headed to Cargarven, but you won't be. Convince me why I shouldn't call the authorities and rat you out. It's either that, or you're gonna get tossed into space." He waited for an answer. Blue hair fell in front of his face, and he blue it away.

"Fine. Ya wan' a reason?" While part of her really didn't want to let this slip, she also really didn't want to be thrown into space. Surviving that ordeal and escaping, only to die because she'd gotten caught stowing away? Well, it would be right down her alley, but not if she had anything to say about it. Morrigan pushed off of the wall, her red hair catching the light and almost glowing as she placed her hands on the top of the desk, hoping he wouldn't notice the metal. "'Cause ya call them, an' you an' your whole crew'll be taken in as kidnappers, despite it no' bein' true. An' nothin' you or I'll say'll do anythin'."

Iniko looked at her, not saying a word. "Take her to a holding, Nico," He said. "We'll toss her out tomorrow morning." Nico walked over and grabbed Morrigan's wrists together, his grip so hard it could break her bones. He started to walk her out, then paused. "I'm gonna give you one more chance. Why should we let you stay?"

Without warning, Morrigan twisted her metal arm to grab the man holding her's wrist, and flipping him around to slam him against the wall. Her eyes blazed with a fire that said she definitely wouldn't be going down without a bloody fight. "Because last I checked, it was treason and assassination to throw the Princess of the Euphorion Star System out into the exact conditions needed to kill her." She said, the rough street urchin accent she'd developed falling away, replaced by something very definitely powerful and of royal origin.

Nico remained calm. It was nothing compared to his father. Morrigan was suddenly doused in water, summoned by Iniko. This made Morrigan let go and Nico tie her to a chair with metal. "Last time I checked, it's illegal to impersonate the Princess of the Euphorion Star System, especially because she's dead. So, now I have more evidence against you due to the recorder that allows us to look back on meetings."

Morrigan, visibly somewhat panicked at being tied up, yanked at the metal with as much force as she could, bending it bit by bit. Don't lose it. Don't lose it, or you'll kill them. Despite the mantra, flames still flickered throughout her hair, and she almost looked to be smoking. "First of all, it's only illegal to impersonate me with the intent to sabotage the Court. I was there when the law was set in place. And second, Morrigan Cadeyrn does not impersonate anyone, least of all herself." Cool it, Cade. Deep breath. So that's what she did, the flames dying out as the metal creaked. "The Royal birthmark. Terribly cliche, but it looks like the damn thing will come in handy. The shape of a star, on the shoulder that is still my own."

"I don't think it would make much difference when the King sees you," He said, dropping more water onto Morrigan, extinguishing the fire. "You'll put so much hope into his heart, and then he'll drop dead when you're not the Princess. And then…then you'll be killed." He sighed. "And that 'birthmark'? Could be a tattoo. That's so easily done. Everyone knows what it looks like. Wouldn't be too hard."

Morrigan couldn't even be bothered to shake the water off, as something like heartbreak took a place on her face. That was the second change from the trouble making criminal she'd become, now looking very much like a girl who missed her father, and had been ripped away from the life she knew. "Oh, stars. Dad." She whispered, looking down at her lap. "He probably blames himself." She grew quiet, biting her bottom lip as she thought. She needed to get back, didn't she? She'd seen first hand the state the Star System had fallen into, and stars, she missed her father. "I have one last thing that might convince you I'm telling the truth."

"It'll have to be a fucking good thing," He swore at her. "Because right now, I'm tempted to throw you out right now." He waited for another answer. "And, one more thing. The more you try to do that fire thing, the more water you'll have poured on you. There's enough moisture in the air for hours. Take your pick."

"I get it. I can't control it all the time, but I'll do what I can." She said, lifting her gaze to his. Despite her words and soft tone, her eyes were bright and defiant. She was in no hurry to become somebody else's toy again. Twisting her metal arm sharply, the weakened metal snapped, and she reached up, pulling her necklace up to be more visible. "My mom gave this to me, before she passed away." It was very obviously painful for her to even mention her mother, but she knew she had to. "It's…all I've got left of her. The crest of the Royal Family is on one side, and on the other is her name, in her handwriting. The crest has a serial number, unique to exactly one stamp, owned by my family."

Iniko sighed in annoyance. "Grab her, Nico. We're throwing her out now." He then moved closer to Morrigan, his face only centimetres from hers. "You have failed to change my mind. I don't tolerate stowaway's, especially ones that lie through their teeth."

"Listen t' me, you fuckin' asshole." Morrigan spat, her developed accent returning as she gave up on being diplomatic. "My dad thinks I'm dead, an' chances are, he thinks it's his fault, too. I spen' a year an' a half bein' tortured 'cause o' my last name, an' here you stand, with the balls t' look me in the face an' tell me it never happened. I don' give a rats ass whether or no' I changed your mind, 'cause I know who the fuck I am, an' I'm two seconds from goin' up."

Iniko glanced up at Nico, who understood the signal. He grabbed Morrigan by the arms, forcing her to stand up. His extreme strength threatened to snap her bones. Iniko leaned back on the desk. He slowly drew water from the moisture in the air, containing it in a ball. "I think that the easiest way to get rid of you is to drown you." He moved the ball over her head, trapping her airways. "You can hold your breath, but you'll run out of it soon."

((A'ight, with how this is going, I can't really see him just deciding not to kill her, so I have an idea. Well, two, but I'm torn between them. 1. She gets away, and they run into each other a while later. 2. The people looking for her show up, and invade the ship to find her.))

Morrigan closed her eyes, her metal arm beginning to smoke as she ran through every plan she could come up with. Maybe death wouldn't be too bad. I could see mom again. She almost took a breath, but another thought stopped her. Her dad. She had to get back to him. And stars, she needed that place on the Throne, it would be the easiest way to fix things, to save the others and stop them.

No asshole ship captain and his freakishly strong first mate were going to stop her.

Morrigan threw herself to the side suddenly, taking the man holding her down with her and successfully freeing her airways. Taking in a deep breath, she rolled, yanking her metal arm free and slamming her elbow into his gut. And then she was on her feet on literally on fire, using her arm to pull the cabinet from the door. She cast one last look at the captain, a wickedly feral grin on her face. "Nice meetin' ya, but I got a war t' stop." And then she was gone, hurrying down the hallway and desperately hoping there was some sort of emergency escape pod.

"We don't have escape pods!" Iniko yelled after her, helping Nico up. "At least, not that you can access," He added under his breath.
"Fuck. That girl is a bitch," Nico swore.
"Yeah, I know."

Morrigan's steps didn't falter when the lights began to flicker. What made them falter was the distorted voice coming over the speaker system, paired with the slight crackle that made it obvious the person speaking wasn't actually on the ship.

"You were so close to getting away, Princess." She leaned heavily against the wall, trying to control her breathing, as though he could hear her. And who knows, maybe he could. She wouldn't put it past him. "But you forgot one thing. We always know where you are."

Iniko heard the crackling over the speaker, then the voice that came with it. He whipped to the control board, trying to see what was happening. He pulled the lever that wasn't supposed to be pulled unless it's an emergency, locking down the ship.

"Go get everyone into the panic room," He spoke to Nico. "I'm gonna try and find this 'princess'."

"No no no no no." Morrigan muttered, forcing herself off the wall to continue. "You can have a panic attack and run. Just get out." She knew they had warpers, people with the ability to teleport essentially, and no lockdown was going to keep them from finding a way in. Especially with her on the ship.

Nico ran out the door, and Iniko wasn't far behind them. They split up, Nico going to the right and Iniko to the left.
"Stowaway!" He yelled, trying to get her attention. "Stowaway!"

"Stowaway!"

The shout cut through the haze of panic in Morrigan's mind, just enough for her to draw her gun and aim it at the corner the captain was coming around. Her eyes belied the panic, contradicting the stony look on her face. "If ya know what's good for you an' your crew, you'll let me leave."

Iniko saw the panic in her eyes and smirked. "And if you know what's good for you, you'll come with me. I know this ship like the back of my hand: I know every single nook and cranny."

"Oh, sure. Lemme jus' trust the guy who tried t' kill me no' even three minutes ago." Morrigan said sarcastically, taking another step back and not removing the gun's aim.

"Listen. You are the person they're after. You are the reason that they're trying to break onto my ship. You are the reason that my crew could die. So soak up your pride and do what I say. Because I don't give a fuck about you, and I will gladly hand you over."