darkSpyro

Maverick and Angora managed to hear a Shade when they were leaving, and even though they were glad to have him on their side, they knew it wouldn't help much. Before going below deck, Angora put her index finger over her mouth, wanting the impuslively Shade to keep his thoughts to himself.
"Take it easy Shady. Don't confront them. Remember, don't give them any more excuses to abuse us." Angora warned telepathically, not wanting Shade to get into unecessary trouble. She managed to vent with Maverick in the cellar, but Shade didn't have that luxury, at least not yet. Angora meant to visit him every night when everyone else is asleep.

After almost an hour, Angora and Maverick managed to attend nearly every sailor in the ship, and returned to the deck to attend those who had decided to watch the stars, including Ilasi and Leoquin. The duo decided to go to the latter at first, ready to ignore his insults and nicknames. When it was time to go to Ilasi, Maverick did it without looking much at her, wanting to remain discrete to her presence. He was quite sure the mermaid wouldn't accept any alcohol, but he did the offering just the same, as did Angkra with the food, pretending to be ignorant to what was going on...

Leoquin was not going to let Shade just get away with what he just said. "I'll say whatever the hell I want to say to them, you thing. Are you stupid? Or are you just frustrated that no one on this boat is qualified to wed you to the pathetic lump that's supposed to be a troll? I'm sure there are some here who won't take kindly to what you just said..." Leoquin turned his back and walked away, his piece being said.

"That sounds quite wonderful!" Ilasi said. "Most merfolk don't keep pets - some do have fish however. Or sharks... I don't like the sharks much, myself. They seem rather dangerous. But some of us can tame them. Or fight them." As Ilasi spoke, she was interrupted by Angora and Maverick bringing food and drink.
Ilasi never really liked rum - however, she had eventually learned to tolerate it. More importantly, however, was who was offering it - Maverick. That reminded her - she intended to speak to him later that day. Maybe a bit of alcohol would make her less nervous.
"Why, thank you, Maverick," Ilasi said, as politely and pleasantly as she could. "You actually came back this time!" Ilasi realized what she just said - what was supposed to be a joke would instad come off as a resentful jab at Maverick's abandonment. "Well, I didn't mean it like that... well, we can talk later." Ilasi took the food from Angora as well. "Thank you, Angora," she said simply, not wanting to engage in any conversation, knowing that Angora would probably despise it.
Latnok, who was with Ilasi at the moment, had not been served yet. "Raclaw and I want our food and drink next," he demanded. "Don't forget Chester's food, either."

"He didn't mean it like that-- I'm sorry. Just give it time and they'll come to trust you again. If it helps-- I'm glad you were to make it aboard.," Raclaw quickly telecommunicated with Angora not wanting Latnok's tone to stick to him as well and trying to reassure the Troll. He made a mental note to properly talk to Angora again sometime.

As Icestorm stuck out his tail, Leoquin kicked it out of the way. "Don't play any dumb games with me," he said. "I'll let you know right now that I'm a lot more useful than you. Keep that in mind."

While the group was speaking, Leoquin came over to Latnok. "That dragon of yours is being insubordinate and disrespectful," he said.
"...what? Of course he is... Come with me, let's go speak to him to find out what the issue is," Latnok said. Without waiting for their food, the two left, looking for Shade - his large size made him quite easy to find.
"Hey, Shade," Latnok said. "Is there any reason that our crew is having issues with you? Are you being insubordinate and disrespectful?"

"Maybe if you don't try to put your tail in the way, there won't be any problems," Leoquin said. "But if you want to start a fight, we'll see what the boss man thinks of that." Leoquin was not about to let some other crew member start trouble with him - but he was smart enough to not just start a fight himself.

"Listen, Shade. I don't care at all what you think," Latnok said. Do you think Aelinon will give a damn if you got disrespected? No, they won't. You will give respect, regardless of the circumstance. This will be your first and last warning. Besides, you sure as hell won't get any respect here from Redwater residents after you killed so many people with your own carelessness." Latnok waited for Shade to give any further defense of himself, fully intending to activate the collar's silence command if needed.

Raclaw quickly followed the two, wanting to observe Shade's treatment and hoping that his presence might help calm the dark Dragolet if need be. He knew just how much respect Shade had for certain crew members, while lacking said respect for most others-- including Latnok.

Maverick gave a small bow to Ilasi in response to her thanks, and avoided any small talk, not wanting to embarrass her. He and Angora then offered the trays to Latnok and Raclaw. Angora stared at Raclaw, still upset with him but secretly relieved he was one of the few who weren't so mean to them. The calm mood was very short when she and Maverick witnessed Leoquin giving his complains about Shade and got really worried.
"Shade you idiot! I told you to take it easy! I know that mermen is a jerk, but he has favoritism on his side! Don't push it!" Angora scolded telepathically, angry that he didn't listened to her first warning. Just like her, Shade was just too brash, and she was now realizing that his behavior was no different from hers.

"Wrong answer," Latnok said. "Collar, silence." The collar activated sound-dampening and psi-dampening magic - which would render it impossible for others to hear Shade speak or use telepathy. "I dare you to make me use any stronger command. You will learn to obey - whether you like it or not.

Angora was so furious, both at Shade for being too rash and Latnok for being an abusive bully. But true to the conditions, she didn't say or did anything. She did, however, spoke telepathically again... to Maverick this time.
"You see? That... that is my teacher! And that water breather is taking advantage of his favoritism to do as he pleases!" she said, full of indignation. Now she had no doubts that Leoquin was going to be the most problematic crew member for them. He has demonstrated to be rude and insolent imbecile, and Angora firmly believed he was going to take advantage of his power and preference to bully and maybe even provoke them so he could have an excuse to accuse them to the Guardians and slander them in the process. Maverick however, remained unresponsive, looking expressionlessly at the mermen. It was sad that someone as rotten as him was the only one Ilasi could relate with the most.

Raclaw watched and felt for the dark dragolet, although he didn't interfere. For better or worse, Shade had to learn how to show respect if he wished to avoid a prompt execution upon his return to Redwater. The King and the people of Redwater demanded it and he knew that there was no alternative. He remained nearby, just in case he was needed to help calm the Dragolet and to provide at least some comfort to the interaction. 'You'll get through this Shade and you will survive.,' he thought to himself.

"How about you just shut up," Leoquin said to Icestorm, as his voice began to rise. "You want to start fights with me and now you're telling me what to do? That thing has killed hundreds of people, and those two are friends with it! Friends with a murderer! And the troll even has the nerve to talk to me and Ilasi - who didn't even say anything except that she didn't like how the troll was speaking about our boss when she intended to come with us - like we're beneath her! They deserve no respect! They deserve to be put in their place! I don't know why the hell they-"
"Okay, okay, that's quite enough for tonight, Leoquin" Latnok said. "Let's all just have some rum and calm down." As little as Latnok cared to do any sort of defending of Angora and Maverick, he was afraid that at the rate things were going, Leoquin or other crew members may escalate to actually hurting them.
"I can't have rum right now, I have to navigate," Leoquin said.
"Well, that sucks for you then. I'll... make it up to you somehow. Just do your navigating for now. Icestorm, let's not try to provoke fights by trying to trip them - if that is really what happened - or calling them cowards. Angora, Maverick, you can forget about our food, I'll get it for myself, Raclaw, and Chester. Just... take a break, eat, drink some rum, go to bed or something. Shade, I'll revoke the silence in the morning. I hope I won't have to utilize it again. Ilasi... I don't know, we don't have anything you need to do at the moment, so you can turn in for the night too."
Latnok hoped he had done enough to defuse the situation. There was one more, very important hting he had to mention, however. "Hey, you two," he telepathed to Angora and Maverick. "Don't think we're going to go easy on you until you earn our trust again. However, we don't need other crew members physically attacking you in the meantime. Let me know if stuff like that happens, or you think it's going to happen."

Quote: A Guy

"How about you just shut up," Leoquin said to Icestorm, as his voice began to rise. "You want to start fights with me and now you're telling me what to do? That thing has killed hundreds of people, and those two are friends with it! Friends with a murderer! And the troll even has the nerve to talk to me and Ilasi - who didn't even say anything except that she didn't like how the troll was speaking about our boss when she intended to come with us - like we're beneath her! They deserve no respect! They deserve to be put in their place! I don't know why the hell they-"
"Okay, okay, that's quite enough for tonight, Leoquin" Latnok said. "Let's all just have some rum and calm down." As little as Latnok cared to do any sort of defending of Angora and Maverick, he was afraid that at the rate things were going, Leoquin or other crew members may escalate to actually hurting them.
"I can't have rum right now, I have to navigate," Leoquin said.
"Well, that sucks for you then. I'll... make it up to you somehow. Just do your navigating for now. Icestorm, let's not try to provoke fights by trying to trip them - if that is really what happened - or calling them cowards. Angora, Maverick, you can forget about our food, I'll get it for myself, Raclaw, and Chester. Just... take a break, eat, drink some rum, go to bed or something. Shade, I'll revoke the silence in the morning. I hope I won't have to utilize it again. Ilasi... I don't know, we don't have anything you need to do at the moment, so you can turn in for the night too."
Latnok hoped he had done enough to defuse the situation. There was one more, very important hting he had to mention, however. "Hey, you two," he telepathed to Angora and Maverick. "Don't think we're going to go easy on you until you earn our trust again. However, we don't need other crew members physically attacking you in the meantime. Let me know if stuff like that happens, or you think it's going to happen."

"Thank you señor Latnok." Maverick replied politely, having heard his telepathic message. He didn't expect Latnok to be this kind all of the sudden, but he was glad to have this break and it made him relieved Latnok was willing to help them if the abuse went too far. The fawn man hoped that with Leoquin's little outburst, he could finally realize how problematic the mermen was being, and prayed Latnok or Sere could put him in his place before his antagonism became too extreme. Angora on the other hand, had nothing to say, but she couldn't help giving a small grin in seeing the scolding. Finally Latnok had enough intelligence to know Leoquin was the one causing trouble. Like Maverick, she hoped Latnok was noticing the warning signs in that mermen. As she left after Maverick, she looked at Icestorm and nodded slowly, glad that the little Kaiju was on their side. She remembered them, but Maverick never had the honor of meeting him, so she planned to introduce him when the chance presented itself.

Finally free for the rest of the night, Angora and Maverick went to the cellar to put the trays away and went to their rooms. Their beds was a simple berth, and it was a very small space, but at least it was their own spot and the place was more comfortable than the cells they have been.
"I get the top bunk!" Angora playfully claimed, with Maverick having no objections. As the troll made herself comfortable, she started to miss the cell she had in Blue's castle. It felt more like a room than a prison, and if it wasn't for the castle's destruction, she wouldn't have minded having that as her space. But soon, her thoughts went out when she saw Maverick opening the door and leaving.
"Hey, where are you going? Aren't you going to sleep?" she asked.
"Later Angorita. Just going to the hull for a while to see the stars. They look more beautiful at sea." Maverick said, being that one of the very few things he missed from the ocean. The night sky was clearer and brighter.
"Alright, but don't sleep too late. You never know what brutality of a job we'll be given tomorrow." Angora warned, not wanting him to get insomnia for his own carelessness. Maverick nodded and smiled, leaving the room to head for the deck. He couldn't wait to identify the constellations...

Latnok was tired - he wouldn't go to bed just yet, however. Making good on his word, he headed down to the kitchen - preparing the rum for himself, and the food for himself and others. Once that was done, he went right back to where Raclaw and Chester were waiting - Ilasi had already left.
"So, do you want any rum, Raclaw?" Latnok asked, as he began to drink some himself while eating an apple. He wouldn't be on duty tonight - not much left to do but sit back and relax - for now, anyway. He wondered if Angora, Maverick, and Shade would ever change... if they could just cooperate without complaints, like everyone else on the ship, things would be splendid. Maverick was compliant all the time - Angora, though reluctant, had been more cooperative than previously. Shade, however, still had the problem of his hero complex. That would have to be trained out of him - no matter what it took.

Ilasi left the main deck - she had found Maverick's room earlier, and she intended to make good on her decision. She was very lost in thought when thinking about all of the ways their discussion could possibly go - so lost in thought, that she was almost hit when Maverick opened the outside door.
Fortunately, she was quick enough to stop in place. "Oh, uh, hello, Maverick!" she said. "I was thinking... maybe we should talk for a bit. I thought your room might be a good place, but... Angora. She's there, isn't she?" Talking with maverick is something she would rather not have the spiteful troll around for - Ilasi would rather nothing bring her down or potentially ruin her mood in the moment.

"Ilasi!" Maverick exclaimed as he clumsily slipped one leg on the stairs and hurt his knee. It was nothing serious, but it was still painful.
"En serio? I have to stop doing that!" he whispered angrily to himself, noticing the pattern of clumsy injuries whenever Ilasi appeared and talked to him all of the sudden. After rubbing his knee discretely, he could finally speak to her.
"Talk? Uh, sure. Sure. Angora is asleep, and I was going to take a little night air, so... we can talk outside." Maverick said, not stammering as much as before but still making brief pauses. If Ilasi wanted to talk to him, he believed it was because she read the note after all. He didn't think there was another reason for her to choose a conversation after the way he treated her before.

"Sure, let's do that,"Ilasi said, as she began to follow Maverick, trying to ignore what just happened. She wanted to make sure Maverick immediately knew the circumstances.
"So... I read the note you had for me," she informed Maverick, as she continued to follow along. "I think you may have... I may have given you the wrong impression. I don't hate you... not even close. I... I was just a little upset after what happened at Orcford. I figured you might not want to speak to me again after what Angora told you about me." Though Ilasi was thinking of how to better word her next statements, the pause would most likely seem like she was done speaking and waiting for a response.

"I'm sorry about what happened in Orcford. I really wanted to visit you.. but, we were tele-transported away before I had the chance to do so." Maverick explained, not saying who sent them away since Ilasi would probably find it hard to believe, so he let her assume it was a local mage or something.
"We wanted to keep Shade away from civilization to avoid trouble... but I guess trouble did happened in another city anyway." He added gloomily, angry that it came to this the moment he was separated from his companions. He then get to the subject that seemed the most important to Ilasi.
"As for Angorita, I apologize if she ever made you feel bad. She is angry, but I promise it'll pass. She really isn't a bad lady you know. She just... tends to overreact and say very offensive things, but I can assure you that she doesn't mean harm. She's had such a hard life that she tends to take her anger on everyone she meets. She gives a lousy impression at first I admit it, but if you got to know her the way I did, you'll understand. Whenever she's angry, just give her a little space and I can guarantee you that once you get to know her, you'll see she's not such a bad lass after all." Maverick assured, apologizing on Angora's behalf and demonstrating just how fond he is of the troll. Maverick did feel bad for Ilasi though. She looked like someone whose feelings were easily hurt, so he was determined to make it up to her.

Quote: A Guy

Latnok was tired - he wouldn't go to bed just yet, however. Making good on his word, he headed down to the kitchen - preparing the rum for himself, and the food for himself and others. Once that was done, he went right back to where Raclaw and Chester were waiting - Ilasi had already left.
"So, do you want any rum, Raclaw?" Latnok asked, as he began to drink some himself while eating an apple. He wouldn't be on duty tonight - not much left to do but sit back and relax - for now, anyway. He wondered if Angora, Maverick, and Shade would ever change... if they could just cooperate without complaints, like everyone else on the ship, things would be splendid. Maverick was compliant all the time - Angora, though reluctant, had been more cooperative than previously. Shade, however, still had the problem of his hero complex. That would have to be trained out of him - no matter what it took.

"Sure-- I'll take some.," Raclaw said with a smile having acquired more of a taste for the sustence. He thought about Shade and how he would handle the future training. It was only when placed next to someone like Shade, who was still considered more 'wild', that he realised just how tame and domesticated he really was. Whereas Shade would have to be forced to fit that mold (rather he liked it or not), it simply became part of his nature and who he was. It was no wonder many thought him to a pet and that he gravidated towards the first human the initial group had come across during their first adventure with Darkmatter. As he ate, he only hoped that Shade would be able to adapt and change-- both for his own sake and fir the sake of the world.

"Well, I'll be right back then," Latnok said. "A bit hard to get some for you with this stuff when I need a special drinking vessel for you." Latnok left his food and rum there, heading back to the kitchen to get Raclaw some rum. There wasn't much going on, however, so he managed to get back before much time had passed.

Ilasi listened to Maverick as he explained his side of what had happened - as well as his defense of Angora. Alone, each would be perfectly acceptable - combined, however, and added with what she had heard of Maverick and Angora so far, it brought major doubts.
"Why didn't you have the chance to stay?" she questioned. "Is it because Angora didn't want you to? I've heard a lot of things about her - how she can be very pushy, how you seem to do whatever it is she wants without caring much about anyone else... I just don't know if... if you think..." Ilasi trailed off, finding it extremely difficult to bring up the words she wanted to.

Maverick put a hand over his eyes, realizing how much he messed up that time and how Ilasi was still upset about it.
"No. It was a collective decision. Angorita had nothing to do with it. Before leaving Orcford, I was planning on visiting you and then leave, but the opportunity to leave at that very moment presented itself... and... well, we all took it. I know I know. It was a rotten thing to do, leaving without saying anything. I just didn't want to leave Shade and Angora alone." Maverick confessed, imagining Ilasi knew by now the consecuences of that.
"Angorita was rather upset with me when I told her. Regardless on what or how she feels about something or someone, she hates a broken promise. She was quite angry when I didn't tell her about meeting with you. I just... I was too afraid to say anything. I wanted to leave Orcford after being imprisoned there for a week. But I also wanted to see you. Neverthless, I chose the former and took the coward way. I felt so awful afterwards. I just kept thinking how much you were going to hate me when you found out I left without saying a word. I... I know I have no right to ask for an apology... but... I would still like to ask one anyway." Maverick said with a breaking voice, knowing Ilasi had every right to be angry after he wasn't true to their meeting. He never thought he would see her again, but life was kind enough to destine them to meet again, so Maverick really wanted to let Ilasi know how sorry he was.

Ilasi was silent for a few moments, her gaze slightly averting to avoid meeting Maverick's eyes as she considered everything Maverick had told her about his situation. Was everything he was saying the truth? Did he really choose to leave against what Angora would have wished? His story seemed reasonable enough.
There were other things she needed to know, however, before she gave a definite answer. "I... I won't hold it against you now," she said. "Maybe it is for the best. You left me with more questions last time we spoke, though - your pirate life... you said that your father forced you into it. What... was that like? Did you yourself have to steal from people? Kill anyone? Destroy ships, or villages, or anything like that?" Ilasi realized that her questions may have been a bit straightforward, so sought to dampen the impact of them. "I know you might not have enjoyed doing such a thing - I'm sorry if I'm implying that you did. I just want to know..."

Maverick groaned, knowing there was no escape from that sudden confession.
"Yeah, about that... I'm sorry you had to hear that. It was a weakness of my part. That is a past I want to keep buried deep within the ocean where it belongs. It was a comment that slipped. I... didn't want you to know that cause I feared you would think different of me. It's... it isn't a life I'm not proud of. My father... he was a monster. He... he forced that life into me since birth. I... I couldn't disobey him..." Maverick said with a throat so dry, he feared he was going to be mute at any second.

With shame and embarrassment, he lifted his shirt so that Ilasi could see his chest and belly... so full of scars that they were more of them than actual skin.
"He... he would always grab a knife and carve into my skin every order I disobeyed... but... it's not worth talking about it. The man is dead now, so good riddance! He can rot in hell for all I care! He deserves it! He thought he was such an invincible force of nature... but life made him pay for his sins in the long run! If... if I could grab another knife and slice out all the blood and veins that connect me to him..." Maverick began to say before going completely silent. His hand became to tremble severely when he simulated having a knife, and he was now pale and sweaty, with his sclera turning red with held tears. He almost like having an epileptic attack. Just how awful was this man that caused even such a gentle soul like Maverick to speak so ill of him, his own father?

As Maverick presented his scars, Ilasi looked on with shock and horror. There were so many of them... and these were all inflicted by his own father? "Maverick, I... I'm sorry." Ilasi put her head down. She couldn't bear to look any more. "When I hear 'pirate', I think of wicked people who will kill everyone on a ship to get some money. Our kind doesn't really like them - the mermen take great pride in seeking out and killing pirates who come anywhere close to our waters - they are often quite merciless in dealing with them, and sometimes they use the pirates as literal shark bait. From everything I've known, pirates... they're horrible people, and the things they often do, they make me unwilling to want to be anywhere near them.
"But seeing this, I... I just didn't know that they would treat their own kind this badly. How did you manage? How did you eventually escape? Do you ever think of the people you have helped the other pirates kill? What does it make you feel, when that comes to mind?" Ilasi had so many more questions she wanted to ask - she already asked quite a few, however, and didn't want this to come off as an interrogation. Her last two questions already sounded rather accusatory, and she didn't know how she could fix that now.

Maverick had to take a few minutes to calm down. Even though he truly despised his pirate life, he had learn to accept it was part of him. He now understood why merfolks were the ones to end his father's reign.
"It's only natural you'd want to know." Maverick said kindly, not rebuffing Ilasi for all her questions.
"Well... heh, as you know, it wasn't always easy. Whenever I had to fight someone, I always did it in self defense. I never wanted to kill anybody... but... well, you now know the consecuences of that." Maverick said before continuing. He left vague whether he actually killed or not, since he didn't want Ilasi thinking the worse of him if she wasn't already.
"My mother... I don't remember her much, but she was nothing like my father. She really loved me. Said I was special and that I was destined to do great things... but, she never could free me from my father. She was the one who made me hopeful that I would someday have a better life... But one day, I stopped hearing from her..." Maverick commented with many pauses, no doubt a memory too hard to recall. He never knew what happened to his mother, so Maverick believed his father went as far as to kill her. He tried not to think much of it.

Getting caught in the tale, Maverick decided that it was better to tell Ilasi everything.
"I lived that awful life for years, trying to believe in my mother's words, but it was so hard. Until one day, my father was looking for new pirates to recruit. Naturally, nobody dared to work with him... except Angora. Boy did she fooled us all making us believe that she was simply a deformed goblin. She and I struck a friendship back then. She was quite bitter those days as well, but we were both miserable, so we decided it was better if we took care of each other. Angora... she helped me maintain my sanity. I was on the verge of losing my mind, so she came along at the right time..." Maverick confessed, wanting Ilasi to understand why Angora was so important to him.

And now it was time to come to the end. Since Ilasi was so curious about that part of his life, he decided it was better to tell her everything.
"A year later, Angora decided she had enough. She left the crew after I convinced my father to release her. I was so tempted to go with her... but... I was so terrified of my father..." Maverick said, now realizing how many times he was a coward.
"... Until one cold night, my father dared to venture into merpeople territory to look for a legendary treasure it was said they kept, until, well you can figure out the rest. The ship was sunk, and the merfolks killed the pirates one by one. I was certain to be next... but then your friend Lydia, she... she saw something in me. I never knew what, but she convinced her clan to spare me. She spent days pulling me to the nearest shore... and that's when I vowed to start a new life. Lydia... she was, IS a splendid mermaid. If I ever see her again, I want to thank her for giving me a second chance in life." Maverick concluded, smiling for the first time ever since getting on that ship.

Ilasi patiently listened, paying attention to everything Maverick had to say as he poured his heart out. It was a lot to take in - Maverick's life certainly wasn't as simple as she had initially thought it would be. Her life, in comparison, was rather simple - just a mermaid looking to make it on her own.
"Well..." she began. "Many people would have embraced that lifestyle after being inured in it for so long. You seem to have chosen the opposite route - you completely reject everything having to do with that lifestyle, well, as much as you can, anyway. I think that's quite... it takes quite a bit of determination to do that. Of course, there are some, such as Latnok, who try to take what they've learned from their bad experiences and apply it to good ends... that also takes appreciable effort.
"I can see why you like Angora so much," Ilasi continued. "I just have a few concerns, though... I've heard from a few that you like her almost to the exclusion of almost everyo... everything else. That she controls you. I know you had a rough past... but I don't think it's worth letting her control you like she does. You broke free of that past. You are your own man now. You don't owe her any more than you've already given you - you've taken care of her, too, but she doesn't let you dictate everything she does." Ilasi was not completely sure about how much of what she had heard of Angora and Maverick was true - however, based on what she heard from others, the separation at Orcford, and what she now heard from Maverick about their experience, she was getting a very strong impression of obsequious loyalty. She tried to speak as politely as she could on the matter - some of her feelings about it were hard to put as kindly, however.

"Control me? Whatever gave you that idea..." Maverick asked, but Ilasi didn't have to answer. It didn't take him long to figure things out.
"Oh wait, I know. Either señor Latnok or señor Sere told you that, didn't they? Is that what they really believe?" he said, giving a small, involuntary chuckle at the notion.
"Oh boy do they have it all wrong. I can't believe that's the impression they get. Angora doesn't control me. On the contrary, she herself has tried to persuade me to leave her behind so I can live my own life. It's me. I'm the one who is deciding to travel with her. You see, Angora is all alone. Sure, she had Shade now, but as you know, she can't handle him alone, and before he came along, she was all by herself. Her own family wanted to kill her you know, for being so small. And even after trying to find a new life, she feels like the world is against her, You have seen so yourself Ilasi. How much people despise her. How much people belittle her and think badly of her, many times for being a troll. She does give a bad impression at first of course, but most of the time, she genuinely tries to avoid interacting with people, precisely because of what she is. This is exactly why I want to help her Ilasi. I want to be her family, cause nobody else wants to." Maverick expressed, before favoring his own argument with a question.

"Ilasi... if you were all alone in the world, and nobody wanted to give you a chance because of who and what you are, and is always mean to you no matter how much good you try to do, wouldn't you want the world to have least one person in this entire planet to genuinely care for you? To have faith and believe in your noble heart no matter what everyone else always say? That the person... I'm trying to be for Angora." he finished, wanting Ilasi to know beyond the shadow of a doubt that him traveling with Angora was because of his own, personal decision and not due to Angora controlling him like everybody claimed.

"You know, I never really thought about it that way," Ilasi said. "And if what you said is true, then I might not really understand how the relationship between you too. I'm sorry... I've been asking too many questions. I think I'm just going to go to bed right now. Good night, Maverick." Ilasi didn't want to keep talking, on account of her guilt making any further conversation unpleasant. She had only meant to get a better idea of Maverick - not to interrogate him, and question his decisions. She wanted to forget she even asked most of what she did.

"Don't worry dear Ilasi. I understand. Our friendship is... quite weird. It's too much to take in, I get it. No need to feel sorry for that. It's ok. Perhaps in this voyage, you'll understand more, and get to know us better. There's more to us than what you hear. One day, you'll know. In the meantime, good night my fair maiden, and sweet dreams." Maverick bowed and waved with a small blush, letting Ilasi return to her room to get the sleep she needed. He knew it was getting late, but he decided to stay there for a little while longer to watch the stars. Even if it wasn't the conversation he expected, Maverick really loved Ilasi's little visit, and it really improved his spirit, far more than she'll ever know.

By this time, Angora was already asleep. She had been at one time tempted to see where Maverick was, but she decided to give him time for himself. He has taken great care of her and Shade, and Angora would sometimes feel guilty that he feels obligated to help her have a better life. It infuriated the troll so much what an annoying softie that hairy man was, and she hoped that one day, with or without her or Shade, he could have the happiness he deserved so much.

Meanwhile...
Quote: A Guy

"Well, I'll be right back then," Latnok said. "A bit hard to get some for you with this stuff when I need a special drinking vessel for you." Latnok left his food and rum there, heading back to the kitchen to get Raclaw some rum. There wasn't much going on, however, so he managed to get back before much time had passed.

"Thank-you.," Raclaw said upon Latnok's return and the sight of the aforementioned drinking vessel-- filled to the brim with the sweet sustenance. That was one downside to being a fur dragon traveling with humans. Thanks to the dragon muzzle and quadrupedal form, the Guardians had to adapt and accommodate certain things to him verses the other way around. Things like doors weren't an issue to him, but food and drink took a little more effort on his host's part as a direct result. At the very least, his size was much more manageable-- being slightly taller than Latnok but still shorter than Godfather Sere himself. And others such as Risar (non-dragon) or the currently silenced Shade (dragon) took the cake when it came to height alone.

As he, Latnok, and the excitable Chester ate-- he briefly pondered this. Due to their busy schedule the past weeks between the trials and the festivities, he hadn't had much time to play with the artifact that Latnok had so gracefully gotten for him at the beginning of all the trouble. From what Damon knew of it and from the little experimentation he had done, it was capable of taking both simple and complex formed. And if Damon's prior research was accurate, it was also capable of attaching like armor or some kind of armband. If he and Damon, depending on who was technically doing the controlling, were capable and doing that-- could they also move it on its own? Surely it couldn't float or anything like that, but perhaps it could swing or pivet 'on its own?' There was only one way to find out-- and that was to experiment with it while they were still in a relatively safe environment possible rough tides aside.

As they finished eating, drinking, and having casual conversation-- Raclaw spoke the telepathic command into the collar and triggered the small portal in front of him. Chester looked at it in awe, having heard Raclaw mention it but never having it seen in person. "While we'll all here and have a moment to ourselves, I would like to try something-- if it's alright with you guys.," he said reaching into the miniature portal with his muzzle and pulling out the artifact which immediately took the form of a small golden ball. He placed it on the ground where it then took the form of a mostly uniform cube. "Damon...," he spoke over the links this time opting to temporarily share it with Chester as well. "Woah-- wait what is going on?," Chester immediately asked not used to sensation. "I've temporarily sharing my thoughts to you and giving you access to the links-- and Damon.

Before the little Beagle could respond, a familiar but always slightly unsettling voice could be heard over the links. "I'm here-- anytime you need me. You wish to try something with the artifact?," the voice of Damon could be heard. "I do... you said that it could take the form of some kind of attachment , right? And that it could also take the form of a weapon or perhaps something else?," Raclaw asked. "That is correct-- yes. I suspect there is something more you wish to ask, however.," Damon responded. "Yes-- there is. If the artifact is capable of attaching to me, is capable of taking the form of a weapon, and is capable of rapidly taking or adapting to new forms-- could you or I rapidly change its form just enough so it 'moves' on its own and independent of my own actions?," he asked the thought occurred to him. As they spoke, the artifact rapidly changed forms in front of him-- illustrating a little of what he was thinking. "It-- it may be possible.," Damon finally said after some time. "Well... shell we try?," he asked looking at the others. Chester gave a confirmative bark, while he waited for Latnok's response.

Elsewhere, Risar was helping out on the late afternoon/early night shift. With the graveyard crew being able to operate on less people and the minotaur having the strength of several men-- more men were able to take a rest therefore being more alert for the days ahead. One man, in particular, briefly stopped what he was doing and stared at him. Risar could feel the glare from a mile away and slowly turned his head towards the salty sailor. They quickly changed their glance and got back to work, with Risar merely giving a huff and resuming what he was doing.

After watching the stars studying the consolations he loved so much, Maverick decided that it was late enough, and he didn't want to feel sleepy for tomorrow's tasks. So after less than half an hour in that spot alone, giving the sleeping Shade a pat and a good night sleep, and giving a little prayer on his behalf, so that both his power and temper could be tamed. With that settled, he went to his room, where the tired Angora was happily snoring. It has been so long since she had such a restful sleep. It was now Maverick's turn.

Before falling asleep, his thoughts went to Ilasi. He really cared for that mermaid, so he felt horrible for ditching her back in Orcford. If only Orion hasn't suddenly appeared and teleported them away. If only he could've had the courage to tell Angora and Shade what he was planning. At least he managed to find her again, and this time, he was determined to make it up to her. He knew how dismissive and rejecting she was of his friendship with Angora, but Maverick had faith that one of the days, he would understand his loyalty, and if things went right, maybe the two of them could even befriend each other. Despite now being too pleased with the conversation, Maverick was glad that he was able to be open enough to her to talk about so many aspects of his life. He was aware that trying to make Ilasi understand why he loved Angora so much wasn't going to be an overnight achievement. But he was still hopeful that this voyage was going to do wonders for them. It was the time and space they needed to get to know each other.

"Hey-- careful!," Risar said hearing the barrel loudly roll down the deck behind, but not immediately identifying the source. He immediately moved from his post and stopped the barrel in its track; putting it back in its place and soon hearing the nearby whimpering of Shade. "You're lucky you're asleep beast...," he said briefly watching Shade to make sure he wouldn't do anything else in his sleep. He was prepared to get Latnok or Raclaw if need be, knowing that ether or both of them would be capable of controlling Shade-- rather it be via telepathy or the collar itself.

Latnok listened as Raclaw formulated his plan. It sounded like a good idea - if he knew the full extent of the capabilities of the artifact, it could be a very useful tool once they were on dry land. "Go ahead - do what you need to," he said. "I'll be here. Let's see what happens." Latnok took a swig of rum before proceeding - though he wasn't trying to become completely inebriated, being lightened up a bit, after what was happening, wouldn't be so bad...

Quote: A Guy

Latnok listened as Raclaw formulated his plan. It sounded like a good idea - if he knew the full extent of the capabilities of the artifact, it could be a very useful tool once they were on dry land. "Go ahead - do what you need to," he said. "I'll be here. Let's see what happens." Latnok took a swig of rum before proceeding - though he wasn't trying to become completely inebriated, being lightened up a bit, after what was happening, wouldn't be so bad...

"Alright Damon-- How are we going to do this?," Raclaw said speaking over the links."First, we need to find an ample spot to attach it. It would have to be somewhere where it wouldn't be limited to same motions you are-- the upper bicep perhaps.," Damon suggested believing that would be the most convenient spot for such a weapon where he otherwise wouldn't have a natural weapon. Too far down the 'arm'-- and Raclaw might as well just use his claws. The only other possible points of attachments would be the tail, the horns, and the collar-- all places that would limit the range of its movements. Raclaw agreed with the entity's suggestion and began to think of a slightly oversized wristband-like shape, with the artifact acting accordingly. Chester watched in both curiosity and amazement.


Meanwhile...
Quote: Spyroconvexity

Shade was twitching and wining in his sleep indicating he was having a bad nightmare. His tail once again moved almost hitting Risar

"Do that one more time beast...," Risar said with a slight growl as he moved out of the way and moved further back-- while still keeping an eye on Shade. He didn't want the large Dragolet destroying anything, although he wasn't go to call for help everytime the poor thing had a nightmare. Not that deep inside, Shade was clearly still very wild and he had seen just how unstable Shade's powers could be. He couldn't afford to leave the dragolet unsupervised in his current state.

"Hey Beast-- wake up before I call your keepers!," Risar said with a slight growl moving some of the barrels out of Shade's way. He proceeded to try to shake the poor beast awake without getting crushed.

Meanwhile, Raclaw watched as the artifact changed shape and 'grasped' it with his right paw. Leaning back and almost standing on his hind legs-- he proceeded to slide it down his left 'arm' and eventually to his upper bicep, with the artifact changing size as needed. When it reached the desired point, it tightened and formed a near seamless band around his upper left arm. He resumed his normal quadruple position with the new 'arm band' artifact staying firmly in place. "Well-- that worked. So far so good." he said over the links.

"You had nightmares-- nearly destroyed a few barrels.," Risar said eying the now awake Dragolet and the deep scratches that now marked part of the deck.

In their cramped room, both Angora and Maverick finally managed to sleep pleasantly, oblivious to what was going on above. It was a quiet night, and not even the rocking of the ship was enough to interrupt their sleep. The two of them had sailing experience, so it was something they were used to. Angora had been worried about Shade, and wondered if she should've slept alongside him to keep him calm, but since Latnok and Sere would probably make a fuzz about something as silly as that, she decided it wasn't worth the risk.

The hours went by rather peacefully... until a thump woke up Angora. It wasn't the barrels Shade knocked. It was too far away for Angora to hear. Instead, she heard it was something else near them. She and Maverick were given a room near the kitchen and where Dalila and Veris were staying, so they could be as far away from the crew as possible. Angora calculated there was still a couple of hours before morning, and since she wasn't sleepy anymore, she decided to investigate what the sound was. It was... Dahlia. And she was really nervous.
"Hey girl! What's with ya?" Angora said, trying to calm the dirt buffalo, but she was really nervous about something. It was then than Angora heard stronger, more constant thumps, and what sounded like scratches. When she went to investigate, she could see it was... Veris. She never realized just how close he and Dahlia were, and wondered if the dirt buffalo was nervous about him.

Angora quietly entered Veris' large enclosure, built especially for him. He didn't looked asleep. More like he was dozing off. But he was moving quite a lot, and Angora believed the sounds were making Dahlia nervous.
"Hey Veris. What's up? Can't sleep anymore?" Angora asked telepathically, knowing she was most likely tasked for the wyvern's care as well.

Latnok observed as Raclaw and Damon sorted out the artifact - though Latnok felt that, if purely using the thing as a weapon, a tail augmentation would feel more natural, he understood the value of having the device placed where it was. "Okay," he said, "that seems to work so far... how does it feel controlling it from there, though? Doesn't look too natural to me - but I'll let you be the judge of that."

Veris arose, trying to pinpoint the source of the question. There it was - Angora, in the pen. He made several growling noises and motioned his head in one direction, as if he were trying to point at something - his meaning, however, would be rather hard to deduce without someone present to translate for him.

Quote: A Guy

Latnok observed as Raclaw and Damon sorted out the artifact - though Latnok felt that, if purely using the thing as a weapon, a tail augmentation would feel more natural, he understood the value of having the device placed where it was. "Okay," he said, "that seems to work so far... how does it feel controlling it from there, though? Doesn't look too natural to me - but I'll let you be the judge of that."

Raclaw briefly tried it, causing the artifact is form what almost looked like some kind of spike or blade-- albeit awkwardly. "You know Damon...," Raclaw started as he moved his joints and wasn't entirely comfortable with how the artifact. "I believe that Latnok is right. This... This doesn't feel right.," he said releasing the artifact from it's current 'shape' and letting it drop as it formed what almost looked like a cresant moon. "Hmm.. perhaps you're right. The tail than? You could use it like some kind of tail spike.," Damon immediately suggested speaking once again over the links. "Here-- help me get this on." Raclaw said out loud as the artifact formed a similar shape to before, presumably enlarged to make it esasier before scaling down again.

Quote: A Guy

Veris arose, trying to pinpoint the source of the question. There it was - Angora, in the pen. He made several growling noises and motioned his head in one direction, as if he were trying to point at something - his meaning, however, would be rather hard to deduce without someone present to translate for him.

The wyvern looked almost like a hunting dog who has just found something very interesting.
"Hey! Hey! What has gotten into you? Come on, can't you talk to me right now?" Angora said as she entered the pen, not knowing if Veris wasn't communicating due to being restless or because he could only do it with Raclaw present. She was very careful not to be slapped away by Veris' large, spiky tail in his exitement...

Latnok observed Raclaw as he donned the artifact in the new configuration. It was a similar idea to what galuds did, using the tail as another place to wield a weapon. Overall, Latnok felt that this looked more natural.
"Yeah, that doesn't look too bad," Latnok said. "Try a few practice strikes with it. See how it goes." Then he had a pretty interesting idea...
"Hey, so what happens if you stick that in someone, and then expand it?" If it went like Latnok was thinking, it could be an extremely deadly maneuver.

Ilasi was awake in her room, considering her conversation with Maverick. She understood much better why Maverick was the way he was today... however, one thing was clear, and it disappointed her. Angora would always be his priority. As long as that was the case, anyone else would always, at best, be secondary. And she was less than pleased with the idea of just being secondary...

Veris was growling and hissing frantically, clearly trying to communicate something, though he had no way of pointing it out to Angora. The sounds that Angora had missed had disturbed him; however, Veris, on account of the sounds stopping and not being able to leave his holding anyway, began to calm down. As he did, his focus changed from the outside to the dirt buffalo, as he licked his maw.

Quote: A Guy

Veris was growling and hissing frantically, clearly trying to communicate something, though he had no way of pointing it out to Angora. The sounds that Angora had missed had disturbed him; however, Veris, on account of the sounds stopping and not being able to leave his holding anyway, began to calm down. As he did, his focus changed from the outside to the dirt buffalo, as he licked his maw.

Angora didn't know if the reason for his restlessness changed or it has been the same all along, but when she saw him drooling and staring at a wall, and when she started hearing the beating and terrified hooves of Dahlia, it didn't take the little troll long to put the pieces of the puzzle together.
"Oh no! No no no no no NO! Bad wyvern! Very very BAD wyvern! What do you think you're doing? You won't touch the dirt buffalo, if you don't want me to kick your toe and loosen up a few teeth!" Angora said threatenly as she went behind the wall that separated the wyvern from the dirt buffalo. She knew they were in the same part of the ship, but she never realized until now how close they were to each other. Did the sailor that took care of their enclosure was really that stupid? Why did he placed predator and prey so close together? Or did he... do it on purpose so that Veris could eat Dahlia and hurt Maverick?