forum the Glittering Sea (closed group rp, 6/6)

Started January 11, 2023 by Deleted user

tune

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Blaze grinned at the attention he was getting. That wasn't why he had launched the explosive, of course, but he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy the praise. Hell yeah, that would show the people chasing them! As a woman spoke directly to him, he glanced over at her. He rolled his eyes at her teasing. She looked familiar, what was her name again? Rhea? It was hard to keep people's names straight when there were so many and Blaze only spoke to some of them.

"Next time I'll lead with the explosives then," he responded, torn between annoyance and excitement. Okay, it was mostly excitement. Only one ship to go now. He headed back towards his cannon, once again readying it to fire at the remaining boat. He was just waiting for the captain's orders. He felt pretty proud of himself for being able to take down both of the downed boats so far, but also slightly annoyed with the rest of the crew. Sure, this was his area of expertise, but he couldn't be the only person who was gifted with weaponry? This was a pirate crew, after all. Ah well. Even if he had to be the one to take down all three of the boats, he would. He was confident that he could at least make a dent in the third one if he tried.

He stood like a dog eagerly awaiting a bone, wanting the captain to give the order so he could fire. If Blaze were really feeling threatened, he would fire right away, orders be damned, but usually he was pretty obedient to the captain. Speaking of which, Captain Whitlock had better appreciate him after this. He was working his ass off here and honestly, he enjoyed it. After this fight, he would probably work on some more explosives. He was well and truly out of them now, being too distracted to start another batch recently. But soon he would. All they had to do was win this fight.

Myriil shielded his face with one arm, using the other to block one of his ears, at the raucous sound of an explosion. He winced, squinting at the pursuing ships, watching bits of burning wood chip off and fall into the sea. Fire. He shuddered, it was the natural enemy of any ship, a horrible way to go, caught between burning to death or drowning in your ruined craft. Some small shapes flung themselves into the sea as he watched, choosing their fate themselves. The whole thing caught like a tinderbox, the flames eating away at the wood, even the waterlogged portions, and licking upwards towards the sails, burning away the enemy sailors chances of survival. He didn't want to think about what had been aboard to make that happen. The image of the gunpowder covered individual from below popped into his head, Myriil shuddered again.

Still, it was a good idea, and extremely effective. A similar one popped into his head suddenly, the wood elf stopped in the middle of the deck with the realization. The ships might be magic, but they still had sails, they needed those, they didn't need to take out the whole ships, just stop them from following. He glanced upwards, searching the sky for any motions of life, and was not disappointed. Birds flocked around the Corusci Maris and its following vessels, just one left now. Carrion eaters, waiting in expectation of the dead, many already going towards fallen bodies, before being shied away by crew members.

Myriil wanted this fight to be over with, he was tired, and hungry, and thirsty, so he was being unusually active in his help of the ship. Scurrying just below deck briefly, Myriil took a scrap of fabric from his pouch, he'd been saving it to make into a scarf when he found other pieces of similar colors to sew together, it was about two handspans long and without searching long he found what he wanted. Alcohol, spirits preferably, they could be found without too much trouble on a ship like this. One of the few upsides of being a pirate he supposed. He dunked the cloth in it, the absorbent material greedily soaking up the liquid, deepening its already dark color.

Returning above, he glanced at the sky again, staring hard at a bird not too far away. It was an ugly thing, with stained feathers and a wickedly curved beak, but it would do. The thing was staring hard at one of the injured sailors, beady little eyes bright in expectation of a meal. With a moments concentration, Myriil shut out the noise of the battle, focusing hard on the creature, the bird had a strong will, independent and rebellious, it bucked under his command. But it couldn't resist his will, the creatures mind gave way and after that it was simple to order the bird down with a sharp hand motion. It flopped onto the deck, moving awkwardly on the slick surface, not nearly as elegant as when it was in the air.

"Good bird." He said it absently, working on tying the alcohol soaked fabric around its leg. He searched through his pouch for a minute, before cursing silently.

"Anyone have a match? A lighter?" Myriil shouted into the air, hoping one of the pirates around him owned one They'd have a lighter on them, they were too valuable to be left belowdeck where someone like him could steal them. He just needed a small spark, and perhaps then the chase would be slowed.

Captain Whitlock stared for a moment longer at the fire. Some were escaping the scene, their pursuers. Maybe they'll drown after all, she thought almost excitedly. She turned to Blaze and grinned at him with approval before yet another shot grazed her. Throwing up a gesture, Thalia continued to shoot at Corusci Maris's unwanted shadow. Would they retreat at any point, she thought? Were they allowed to? If they were, the captain spitefully admired their resolve. It was hard to tell if she wanted to finish them off or if she just wanted them out of her sight.

The captain considered for a moment yelling for the cannons another time, but if Captain Ambers's leadership taught her anything, it was not to go too far- well, she didn't learn that- just not to waste supplies when she could. Captain Ambers was a lot more organized than her. From time to time Thalia wondered if she should start captaining more as he did, to carry what he left behind.

But one way or another, these hunters had to go. Thalia never bothered to ask any of her crew about their knowledge in magics… but maybe if they could detect whatever charm was on this little thing? She glanced around, right as she saw that wood elf Ambers recruited. He was flaky, but she couldn't bring herself to mention it to him, mostly because she could almost never find him.

What is he doing? She squinted at him. A bird swooped down, and he was clearly communicating with it. He tied something to it, it was dripping in some liquid substance. "Anyone have a match? A lighter?" Suddenly it clicked. Alcohol.

"Well?" Thalia exclaimed to the people in her immediate surroundings. When only some turned, she shouted again. "Fire! Come on, are we losing them or not?!" The multiple things "fire" meant did not occur to her for a second. As usual, even if it did, she didn't really care about any confusion. Whipping back around she continued to try and hold the last boat off, anger now burning in her chest. How dare they be there that long? They stole their supplies while the village's back was turned, and that was not any of Thalia's concern. Astriz was way too carefree, and way too sensitive.

Myriil's head snapped up sharply at the strong voice, looking for all the world like a bloodhound responding to the call of its master. His eyes focused on a distant point, the pupils dilating then relaxing once or twice, when everything settled down again, a flickering light was shoved in front of his face, held by a grubby hand. The wood elf hissed at the flame, looking up at the person who was holding it out, a man just as grubby as his hand, with a trickle of blood running from a cut near the forehead. They glared at each other for a heartbeat, before Myriil snatched the lighter, holding it to the alcohol soaked fabric.

It took longer than he'd hoped to catch, nothing happened for a moment and then the flames leaped to life. He pulled his hands away quickly, making another hand motion to calm the bird, the flames hadn't reached it yet. His command stilled it, then forced it into the air, Myriil pointed at the other boat. Tangle yourself in the sails. Thrash and shake and burn. It took a moment for it to register with the bird, and another fight of wills, before it took off, the heavy beat of the wings furthering the flames. A small beacon of light against the sky.

Before the bird got out of range, Myriil gave one last command, for the bird to fly in a jagged pattern, making it a harder target to hit and giving more air to the flame. He breathed out softly, standing to his full height, watching the bird fly off. The little tether of his finally breaking off, the bird would follow his final orders, but he couldn't issue anything new at this range. Finally back to his senses, he roughly shoved the lighter back in the sailors hands, baring his teeth at him in a snarl, the closest he'd get to thanks.

Then he ducked, getting back to the "fight", though with one ship left they only ran the risk of getting hit with the larger shot. Otherwise they were fine, the deck was calming down.

Realizing that the cannons were much more effective than their guns, Reia left her weapons behind and went towards the cannons. She eventually managed to get ahold of one, and while Reia’s aim wasn’t the greatest, she still knew the basics of how the cannons works. It took a while, but eventually, the final remaining ship caught fire from one of the explosives. Its burning masts so lower and lower until the flames finally vanished underneath the dark water.

For a few moments, Reia didn’t know how to react. Sure, they had defeated the enemy, but the ship had sustained plenty of damage from the bullets and the cannonballs that had been fired into it. Damage that she would likely have to assess to see if they needed to stop and get it repaired. However, despite these few shortcomings, Reia still cheered and clapped along with the rest of the crew, rejoicing over their enemy’s defeat.

Like any pirate crew, the crew on board the Corusci Maris loved to celebrate their victories with one thing and one thing only: booze. Reia, unlike many of the others, wasn’t a huge drinker, so she began to gather up her belongings so that she could head to the Captain’s Quarters and finish up with her work.

Thalia screamed with childish glee as the last boat went down, roaring with laughter and pumping her fist into the air. The fire reflected in her eyes while she watched the final boat sink. Perfect.

She turned to her crew. Cheering with her, most of them. Many were injured, shot. Were any dead, she wondered for a moment? No, couldn't be. Thalia would know. She felt as if she were part of a family when it came to that crew, which was one of the little things she and the previous captain had in common. I'd know.

"Well done!" Thalia said, feeding the excitement. It was a disturbingly narrow escape, but an exciting one nonetheless. She made her way to Blaze.

"You!" The woman grabbed his shoulder. "You did nice, very nice. Blaze, was it? Excellent." The pride in her voice reflected her appreciation, her eyes intense but not intimidating, not intentionally.

"Myriil!" She let go of Blaze's shoulder and called to the wood elf, hopefully before he'd run off again. She wanted to speak to him, at least for a moment, to praise him. Maybe if he felt appreciated he'd be present around the ship.

Myriil watched the final ship go down with a blank expression on his face. His cobbled together plan had worked and he was watching the fruits of his labor. The flame licked greedily at the sails, too far up for the sailors to get to them in time, frantically scrabbling across the deck in search of anything to save themselves. Some of them were viciously deformed, faces shredded into pieces and skin into ribbons from the millions of splinters of wood shot out from their neighboring craft when they'd gotten hit. Cannonballs would be so much less effective weapons if it weren't for the buckshot spray of their own ship.

The wood elf watched the flames for a moment longer, before turning away, glancing curiously at the celebrating crew. The libations would start soon and in maybe an hour the crew would be inebriated enough that they wouldn't even remember that they weren't supposed to play cards with him anymore. He could probably score a decent nest egg before the drunk sailors realized he was cheating. The smart players didn't play with him to see who would win, they played with him to see if they could catch him in the act. That was the real game.

Or maybe he'd go chat with the little voice in the hold, bring a tiny tin cup full of water or something. Maybe he could swipe them a whole flask..?

Myriil mulled it over for a minute, shoving his hands in his pockets, pushing… something around the deck with his foot. His instructions to the bird earlier had been draining, he hadn't had to do that in a long minute. A little ache for the forests of home reawakened and then slept again as Myriil watched the celebrations. And in the midst of it, shining brighter than a candle and as dangerous as a wildfire, was the Captain herself. She was radiant, in an unstable sort of way the light of the burning ship a backdrop illuminating her. He turned away.

Resolving to go below deck and hide for a couple hours Myriil was finally moving to make his dream reality, when he heard his name called. Spinning around a flash or irritation in his eyes and a smile on his face, Myriil faced down Thalia, who was standing near the smoky individual. Smirking, Myriil bowed twice, two short bows to the left and to the right, using the best of his training and social skills to look as insufferable as possible.

"Yes, Oh Captain, my Captain? The prize we sought is won. Our very lives is our plunder… Along with all the goodies in the hold I suppose." Myriil quoted off the top of his head, both cringing inwardly at his words and being slightly pleased with just how annoying he sounded. Maybe they'd decide he wasn't worth the energy.. Or he'd have to remember some shanties for the crews entertainment again. He shuddered, nope, wasn't doing that again.

After the last ship went down, Blaze was pleased to see the captain go straight to him. He grinned at her, happy to be of service. It was his job to protect the ship, after all.

"Heh, thanks!" he responded to the praise, beaming. He didn't even notice the mess of gunpowder on his hands and face. Quickly after that interaction, Thalia made her way to the not-thief. Myriil. So that was his name. He didn't look as chipper as everyone else on board, and Blaze wondered if that was due to some sort of peaceful nature, though it may have to do with Myriil's reluctance to get involved instead. Blaze had found him belowdecks, messing around while most everyone else was fighting.

As Myriil spoke, Blaze hoped that he was being ironic. If not, well, that was definitely something that the shifter found a bit cringeworthy. He had never been good at hiding his emotions, and his annoyance with the man was no exception. His brows knit together slightly as he tried to decipher how serious Myriil was being. He was ready to go drink in celebration.

Captain Whitlock was briefly taken aback by Myriil's words but figured he was being ironic.

"Uh.. ha! Well, I was just wanting to congratulate you. That was a close call." Thalia would have slapped Myriil on the shoulder or something, but there was a bit of a height difference that made her feel awkward. "Maybe you could pull something like that next time, hm?" She added somewhat jokingly. Having a stronger magic-user on the ship would definitely be useful, if he showed his face more often.

Now that the thrill of battle was over- or rather, burning and sinking in the distance- the woman was eager to find a new temporary excitement, like her crew. Kegs and barrels were already being set up, along with the long tables they used for "banquets". "Banquets" were just the last meal of the day, and usually didn't have that much liquor involved, but Thalia had already expressed before the stop that she'd want a celebration for a successful robbery. She walked past the men and descended the stairs to the main deck. The sky was beginning to dim. By the time the drinking was over it'd be completely dark. Sometimes it concluded with the captain too drunk to continue, and on a normal day, it would conclude with her ordering everyone to call it a night. Something told Thalia that that night's end might not be the latter.

Thalia Whitlock held an empty wineglass in her hand, smiling and waiting for everything to be set up.

If there was one part of being on a pirate crew that Reia hated, it was the constant celebrations. Like any other crew, the men and women on the Corusci Maris were known for their drinking and partying. Reia didn’t mind have a shot of whisky here and there, but it was the partying she utterly despised. Less because of the social aspect of it and more because of her siren nature.

For a majority of the time, Reia tried to ignore the noise coming from the upper deck, but tonight was different. They had just scored a major victory, and Reia had helped. It only felt right for her to join in the celebration. So, after a bit of hesitation, Reia went back to the sleeping quarters, threw on a clean shirt, and headed upstairs to join in with the banquet.

As soon as she reached the upper deck, the heavy smell of booze assaulted her senses. Her head throbbed from the loud shouting and chattering of the other crew mates, but she still forced herself to sit down among the others to enjoy the festivities. While she did start enjoy herself, there was still one human tradition that she didn’t quite understand: dancing. Humans seemed to love it, but Reia couldn’t quite wrap her mind around how they danced around the deck without stepping on each other’s feet.

Myriil grinned brightly at the words of the Captain, and the moment she turned away he had a quieter, smaller moment of triumph as the smile disappeared . He wasn't planning on helping out much anymore, he'd drawn too much attention to himself already, it would be wise to lay low until the next port, where he'd slip off. Lacking his original agreement with Captain Ambers it was dangerous to stay.

The wood elf hooked his finger around an empty wineglass, holding it loosely in one hand and adjusting his gait to be slightly tilted and off balance, a dopey smile on his face. He started towards the belowdeck, making sure to laugh once or twice at a spectacle, staring at the stars, or bump into someone else.

Somewhere a sailor had dug out a harmonica and was starting on a jaunty tune, others clapping their hands to a rhythm, seemingly others looking around for their own instruments. With the music as encouragement, and alcohol to loosen any shame several started to dance. The warm fading light of the sunset filled the sky, making everything look inviting and warm.

Myriil hesitated before leaving, giving a glance at the festivities. He'd always loved music, he could feel the beat pounding in his ears and shaking the air, could hear a pirate with a little string lute pluck out sounds to add to the chorus, only slightly off-tune. the itching feeling in his legs urged him to move, but he did his best to shake it off, heading downstairs and filling the wineglass with water. Anyone he passed now would see an elf who looked liked they'd had far too much to drink too early and was looking for a place to pass out.

He headed for the cargo hold. With luck, he'd get another response. Myriil briefly wondered if he should let the Captain know, gut instinct told him he should, so obviously he ignored it for now. Poking his head in, it seemed like everyone had gone upstairs, good. Tapping on the wineglass with a fingernail, letting the noise ring out, Myriil spoke in a soft voice, though being heard was nigh impossible with all the ruckus above.

"Hey! Thirsty?"

Tao moved and shifted around while everyone was fighting on deck. He was trying to block as much of the noise as he could. And yet, every shot fired made him jump. At one point he even managed to climb out from under the pile of sacks, beads of grain falling out of his hair as he stood up.

Tao almost dove back under the pile once when it almost sounded like someone was coming down, but he must have misheard when none appeared. He wandered over to the other side of the hold to where there were more barrels than boxes and bags. He opened the tap on one and cool water streamed out. He splashed some onto his face before shutting it off again.

he climbed around on top of the barrels, thanking himself for his small frame and light weight. He was standing on top of one near the back of the pile when he heard footsteps coming down. Quikly he his behind the barrel he was standing on and prayed that whoever it was was just grabbing something and would leave. Tao watched a man move to about where Tao had been before and tap an empty cup with a fingernail. "Hey!, Thirsty?" the man called out. Tao held as still as he could, not daring to even breathe. His mind went to the small puddle of water left over from the barrel and gringed. If the man saw it, he would most certainly see him too.

By sunset, Thalia'd had a couple shots of rum, and was now holding an entire bottle of ale. She was only tipsy, but her sometimes uncontrollable laughter was a loud sign of the mildest of her intoxication. Although her speech was not yet slurred, it was certainly walking that line, and it was getting difficult to pronounce an "S" properly.

It delighted her to see members of Corusci Maris excited (a lot of them drunk). Even that woman, Reia came out from her usual work. That and alcohol made her more confident and boisterous than usual, which many thought to be impossible.

Thalia spoke to her crew about past battles, some parts largely exaggerated, perhaps unknowingly, and some details brushed off as if they were nothing. Once she felt bored with telling half-truths she stood, back leaning against the banister. The music was… acceptable, to anyone paying attention. To her, it was perfect. But she was starting to feel antsy again. Shifting her weight to stand fully on her feet, the captain took a moment to assess her balance. Once she'd confirmed that she wasn't yet too intoxicated, she thanked her tolerance in a mumble to herself and strode to a table. Then stood on it.

The captain of Corusci Maris swayed for a second as she rose, but quickly gained her balance again.

"Have you all never used your damn voish-" Thalia quickly corrected herself. "Voices before?" She called out, grinning.

(it is now time for me to look up sea shanties. good luck and im sorry to every fictional character on the ship right now)

Myriil turned his head, listening to the air, trying to hear noises above all the scuffling and muffled thuds of footfalls. Not getting a response, he pursed his lips with mild annoyance. Walking quietly to the water barrel, he decided to top off the glass, maybe the little voice would come out if it heard running water…?

Stepping over, Myriil put his hand to the tap and paused, head cocking to the side. The floor was slick. He wasn't getting the same traction as with normal wood. When he looked down a small puddle was under his foot. He chuckled, feeling highly amused. Of course they'd find a way.. He'd been foolish to think their stowaway didn't have access to water. He still wasn't quite sure how ships worked and wasn't doing much to learn. He lifted his foot, shaking it gently, flinging drops of water.

The action made him look up, spotting a tuft of hair, maybe a hint of an elbow peeking out from the side of a barrel. Myriil blinked, his eyes rounding. Gods.. That was a child. They were too small to be anywhere near full grown, and the skin didn't have the same texture of a halfling or dwarf. Taking a slow step backwards, he slowly lowered himself to sit on a barrel just opposite from their hiding place, his left foot resting on his right thigh, free hand wrapping around his ankle.

"Guess I caught you unawares, huh?" He took a sip from the glass of water, his voice friendly and light. "Wasn't expecting your little voice to match your stature though." Myriil chuckled softly, he didn't seem to be taking the situation too seriously, but his mind was racing with things to do. He definitely had to tell the Captain now. It wasn't safe for a child on a pirate ship. Myriil would be the last to claim he had any paternal instincts, but even his loose morals couldn't in good conscious ignore this. He tugged on his earring, fiddling with the soft feather material, trying to find something to do with his hands. This was tricky. How did you talk to children?? Were they just mini-adults? Or did you have to be all gentle? His own childhood wasn't giving him any pointers. You'd think being a child once would have given me more experience.

Tao held his breath as the man flicked water off his shoes. he was unlike any of the villagers or people he had ever met, but his experience with people was more than a little sad.
"I-I don't know what you want me to say."
Tao answered, his head slowly showing up above the top of the barrel.

He knew he was taking a risk showing himself to this man, even though he had obviously already seen him. Sometimes people would freak out or get mad when they first saw him. He clutched his elbows and tried to smile at the man. Hoping that he wouldn't get mad and hurt him.

"I-" He started before realizing the man was fidgeting and stopped. Was he nervous? Tao thought confused. Why would he be nervous? He's not the one who was caught stowing away on a ship.

"Why are you nervous?" Tao asked loosening up and gaining a bit of confidence.

Myriil blinked at the ghost white face that rose up from the behind the barrel, he got a slight shiver, gooseflesh rising as his brain for a brief irrational moment, told him he'd found a ghost. Then the child blinked dark eyes and he took the idea from his mind, they were alive.

"I-I don't know what you want me to say." Myriil smiled at that, shaking off the last of his unease. It was such a little voice, there was no reason for him to be uncertain. The child smiled a bit, holding onto himself to look smaller and the wood elf felt a pang of familiarity. To ease the wild animal, Myriil didn't move from his spot still trying to think of his next moves, when the kid spoke again.
"Why are you nervous?"

His hand froze halfway through twirling his earring. Eh? Myriil blinked owlishly, caught off guard by the sudden question. He reassessed his opinion of the child, they didn't seem as skittish as expected on first glance. Made sense, took some nerve to be a stowaway. Thinking quick, a sudden sly smile spread across his face, eyes narrowing as he placed aside the wineglass and spreading both hands wide. His voice lowered conspiratorially.

"I have many reasons to be nervous. I'm hiding too you see." With a flourish, Myriil's hand suddenly held a little paper bird in it, appearing as if by magic, his shirt sleeves were baggy for a reason, giving him ample opportunity to sew in some extra pockets for sleight of hand. He'd made the little origami bird a few days ago, stealing a page from some sailors bawdy book then rubbing charcoal to hide the words and make it black. The wood elf held it out to the child to take if he wanted it. Kids liked toys right? Little figurines?

"But enough about me! You're the interesting one! Stowing away on a pirate ship and the Corusci Maris at that!" Myriil laughed with a hint of genuine mirth. "So either you're stupid or very, very unlucky kid."

"I have many reasons to be nervous. I'm hiding too you see."

Tao raised an eyebrow, but gasped with childish excitement when he pulled out a little paper bird from nowhere. "Where-?" He asked reaching out. He froze and pulled his arm back. No, this is trickery. The man was trying to gain his trust. Tao looked down at the floor. and shook his head.

"But enough about me! You're the interesting one! Stowing away on a pirate ship and the Corusci Maris at that!"
He looked up. "Pirate ship?" He gasped. The name Corusci Maris meant nothing to him, He wasn't that cultured.
The man was very obviously proud of the name, seeing as he laughed when he said it.
"So either you're stupid or very, very unlucky kid." Tao found at that. He didn't think of himself as proud, but that still
hurt a little bit. "I'm not stupid." he said defensively.

He jumped up onto the top of the barrel and sat down, his legs bouncing off of and kicking the side. "My name's Tao, and your bird is leaving a smudge mark on your hand." He folded his wings up against his back, hiding them partially from view. Tso pulled one leg up under him so that he was sitting on it, but also so that he was able to jump off more easily if the man were to get mad. His friendliness could just as easily be a mask and it could be real.

By sunset, Thalia'd had a couple shots of rum, and was now holding an entire bottle of ale. She was only tipsy, but her sometimes uncontrollable laughter was a loud sign of the mildest of her intoxication. Although her speech was not yet slurred, it was certainly walking that line, and it was getting difficult to pronounce an "S" properly.

It delighted her to see members of Corusci Maris excited (a lot of them drunk). Even that woman, Reia came out from her usual work. That and alcohol made her more confident and boisterous than usual, which many thought to be impossible.

Thalia spoke to her crew about past battles, some parts largely exaggerated, perhaps unknowingly, and some details brushed off as if they were nothing. Once she felt bored with telling half-truths she stood, back leaning against the banister. The music was… acceptable, to anyone paying attention. To her, it was perfect. But she was starting to feel antsy again. Shifting her weight to stand fully on her feet, the captain took a moment to assess her balance. Once she'd confirmed that she wasn't yet too intoxicated, she thanked her tolerance in a mumble to herself and strode to a table. Then stood on it.

The captain of Corusci Maris swayed for a second as she rose, but quickly gained her balance again.

"Have you all never used your damn voish-" Thalia quickly corrected herself. "Voices before?" She called out, grinning.

(it is now time for me to look up sea shanties. good luck and im sorry to every fictional character on the ship right now)

For his part, Blaze was getting drunk tonight. He was not exactly a lightweight, but once he got tipsy, he started guzzling everything in sight with a mischievous glee. He was just as loud and boisterous as the rest of the pirates, definitely in his element here with the drinking and talking. He listened closely to Captain Whitlock recount her past battles, enthralled as if he were a child again. He had always loved to hear tale of brave warriors and daring pirates as a child, and when he had become a pirate himself, he knew that his childhood self would approve wholeheartedly.

He laughed at the captain's tipsiness, though he himself was leaning against the wall in order to stand up straight. He had taken a brief break from drinking, knowing that if he kept it up he would end up throwing it all up soon. He knew his limits well enough to avoid that (usually). At Thalia's words, he raised his arms, taking an automatic step to the right to steady himself so he wouldn't fall over.

He roared along with the others who were paying attention, figuring some sort of sea shanty was coming next. Blaze had the most horrible singing voice, always off-key and loud enough to drown out an actually decent singer. But he didn't care about that. Sea shanties weren't sung to show off one's vocal prowess; they were to celebrate and to bring a feeling of camaraderie to the crew.

"I have many reasons to be nervous. I'm hiding too you see."

Tao raised an eyebrow, but gasped with childish excitement when he pulled out a little paper bird from nowhere. "Where-?" He asked reaching out. He froze and pulled his arm back. No, this is trickery. The man was trying to gain his trust. Tao looked down at the floor. and shook his head.

"But enough about me! You're the interesting one! Stowing away on a pirate ship and the Corusci Maris at that!"
He looked up. "Pirate ship?" He gasped. The name Corusci Maris meant nothing to him, He wasn't that cultured.
The man was very obviously proud of the name, seeing as he laughed when he said it.
"So either you're stupid or very, very unlucky kid." Tao found at that. He didn't think of himself as proud, but that still
hurt a little bit. "I'm not stupid." he said defensively.

He jumped up onto the top of the barrel and sat down, his legs bouncing off of and kicking the side. "My name's Tao, and your bird is leaving a smudge mark on your hand." He folded his wings up against his back, hiding them partially from view. Tso pulled one leg up under him so that he was sitting on it, but also so that he was able to jump off more easily if the man were to get mad. His friendliness could just as easily be a mask and it could be real.

Myriil didn't retract his hand completely, he still held the little bird out just in case the kid changed his mind. He felt slightly gratified that his flashiness hadn't gone unappreciated. His usual audience was the rats or inebriated sailors, it was nice to see a more excited reaction.

"I'm not stupid." The cheerful wood elf's smile wobbled as he tried not to burst into laughter again. It'd answered his question anyways. "My name's Tao, and your bird is leaving a smudge mark on your hand." Myriil glanced down at his hand in mock surprise, eyes widening just a bit. With his other hand his picked up the bird, looking at the little charcoal smudge on his palm.

"Huh. It sure is Tao." An idea made Myriil smile again as he placed the bird very carefully back onto his palm, holding it out again with a gentler smile. "You know why?" He waited for a response, then his smile widened.

" 'Cause this birds special. It's a phoenix, I caught him on fire and snatched him up! He's still covered in ash and is very fragile." Myriil seemed to be debating something, his fingers curling protectively around the little origami bird. Then he glanced at Tao and finally held it out again, noticing the kid was still jumpy, he moved slowly.

"If you promise to be very careful.. You can hold him. He's frightened, but I think he likes you."

He was trying his best to stay calm and entertain. Despite his fatigue with the bird earlier, Myriil was trying to see if he could feel the little life signals of a rat nearby. If it came in range, he could send it upstairs, attract some attention, preferably the Captain, but anyone would do really. He doubted there were many sober minds upstairs, so perhaps they'd follow a strangely humanoid acting rat. He placed his free hand behind his back, ready to do the sharp hand motions that could give commands even when he couldn't speak.

Tao bit his lip and looked from the man to the little bird in his hand. "Huh. It sure is Tao. You know why?" The man said and Tao shook his head. " 'Cause this birds special. It's a phoenix, I caught him on fire and snatched him up! He's still covered in ash and is very fragile." Tao raised an eyebrow. It definitely looked like a bird. He looked at it closer, trying to see if it was breathing.

"If you promise to be very careful.. You can hold him. He's frightened, but I think he likes you."

Tao made eye contact with the man and reached for the bird, picking it up carefully. As soon as he held it in his hands he could tell it was paper and not a real bird. "But it's paper."

he said disappointedly. he looked back from the paper bird to the man, noticing the hand behind his back as he did so. Tao didn't know whether he was grabbing something or what, but he wasn't willing to take that chance. he dropped the bird and jumped back behind the barrel. "Please don't." he said slowly, his wings making a protective shell around his lower body and chest.

Myriil looked pleased when the child finally grabbed the bird, noting with amusement the way his face sort of fell once he could feel the texture of the origami.

"But it's paper."

He almost snorted, but managed to stifle the sound and was about to make a wise-crack about the kids perception, when he suddenly jumped back. Myriil went on high alert immediately, one hand shooting to the dagger at his waist and the other out wardingly, his tension rose even further when he noticed the wings wrapping around the childs body. Myriil could practically feel his blood pressure spike and he felt the urge to run. He stayed his ground instead, eyes narrowing carefully and resisting the urge to bare his teeth. Was this a hostile situation? Did he need to fight a child? His grip on the daggers hilt tightened.

"Please don't." The voice was slow, unlike the sudden movement that had thrown him off before. The wood elf tried a steadying breath, unsure of what to do next. No pity from before tugged at his heartstrings, Myriil's hackles were still up from the battle earlier. A scurry of motion and fur caught his eye, a mouse, startled free from the kids movement, was running for the other side of the room. Keeping one eye on the child, still a bit huddled down, he snapped his will against the creatures. Something so small buckled almost immediately and Myriil had it come stand near him with a sharp flick of his wrist.

It was a rotund creature, grown fat from gorging on the spilled grain in the hold. Myriil didn't dare bend down and leave his position or side unguarded, so he had it clamber up the barrel and onto his leg.

"Go to the upperdeck. Make some noise. Thrash, squeal, and bite. Get attention, then lead someone back here. Do not return unless someone follows." It was a complicated command, but the distance was short enough that there shouldn't be any problem. If the mouse's brain forgot an instruction, Myriil was nearby to tell it again. The fat thing ran off, a glimmer of magic in its beady eyes. So he turned his attention back to the child, his smile vanished. He didn't make conversation, he just stared at him levelly. The part of his brain that despised tension and serious situations wanted to make some jokes about those wings, I mean where was he hiding those? He squished it, now was not the time.

(sorry it's so short)

"NO!" Tao shouted then checked himself, his heart was racing and he could feel himself trembling. "no. please." he stood up slowly, his wings not moving from their protective casing around him. He took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. He failed and started hyperventilating instead. Tao felt hollow, the air he was breathing in rattling inside him. he closed his eyes and shivered.

Tao moved from around behind the barrel until he was standing directly in front of the man. "please, just don't hurt me." He knelt down at the feet of the man, folded back his wings and held out his hands. He was now completely exposed and in the mercy of the man.

"I will do anything you ask." Tao was crying lightly by now, the tears moistening the collar of his shirt. "Just Please."

By the end of the second shanty, Thalia was laughing so hard she could hardly breathe. Her tolerance was decent enough, and for the amount of alcohol she'd had her head was still kind of clear. This wasn't entirely obvious, though, since her face was already flushed and she had to focus to stay on the table she was standing on.

The captain, still cackling, looked around at her crew, and took a drink from the bottle. As she did, she went silent when she noticed the vermin. It took a few seconds for her to process it. A few seconds passed before it skittered to a crewmember and bit them. In response, Thalia fumbled for her gun and immediately dropped it, which if she were sober would have been unbelievably embarrassing. Dropping the glass with a shatter, she carefully got off the table to retrieve her pistol. Once again she attempted at shooting it from the ground and missed both the mouse and another person narrowly. The music came to a pause as the rest of the crew tried to figure out what had scurried onto the deck and caused this interruption.

Humiliated and furious, Whitlock got off her knees and stood slowly, maintaining her balance to avoid further damage to her ego. She mumbled some vulgar words and tried to think of the easiest manner to capture the critter. Though it was easier to try and shoot it, she didn't want to put another bullet through the wood.

Reia was starting to somewhat enjoy these sea shanties when, suddenly, chaos broke out on the deck. From her spot at one of the tables in the back, she could barely make out what was going on towards the front of the ship. She stood up and rushed forward, clearly expecting some sort of threat, but what she saw made her snort. A tiny animal was causing the whole crew to go into an uproar.

While Reia tended to be a more reserved person, she couldn’t help but let out a laugh as she witnessed one of the men get bitten by the creature. She unsheathed her knife and tried to rush towards the creature, but it escaped before she could plunge her knife into it. Funny how fast it was even with its excessive weight.

With her hand still wrapped tightly around her blade handle, Reia stormed after the creature, eager to put an end to it. It was waiting for her at the top of the steps, staring at her, but as she got close, it scampered down the steps. Now this was curious. Where was this little animal leading her?

“Come, Captain.” She looked back at Thalia before heading down the stairs. “This fat pest is trying to lead us somewhere.”

"Captain, come. This fat pest is trying to lead us somewhere."

Thalia, who was running after the vermin, came to a halt next to Reia and glared at the mouse before it fled down the stairs. Her first instinct told her to try and kill it again, but she trusted her navigator's judgement. Twelve years on the ship proved her trustworthy. Also, she was sober.

"Stop," the captain held up a hand to those on the main deck. The way she pronounced the word made it clear how hard she was trying not to slur. Without elaborating, the captain began down the stairs cautiously, one hand on the railing and the other still gripping her weapon. The little demonic thing was waiting for her and Reia around the corner. Was the creature trying to get someone's attention?

Rounding the corner, Thalia watched the mouse as well as she could. It started toward the hold and stopped. The door was slightly ajar… what could possibly be in there that the crew missed when storing the stolen goods? She approached the door as the mouse skittered in.

(it will be longer next time sorry)