[IC] Vampirates

[Midorimacchi]

Valerio frowned at the vampire's words, standing up and walking over to the edge of the ship. He wasn't worried about turning his back on the vampire, he could feel that the paralysis was still in effect, and mentally went through all his options. All he wanted was to know where he had received the hook and then be on his way, not all this fighting malarkey. If he really intended to fight, he would've killed the crew instead of merely putting them to sleep, sunk the ship even. But no. This is what he got for being a nice guy or whatever. He turned the golden hook around in his hand and stared at it longingly, wishing he could be finished with this impossible quest. Playing catch up with Valente wasn't half as fun as it was when he first started and travelling to all these different realities and periods in time were getting dull. But the sleeping spell he put on the crew would were off soon and the captain would regain his ablitiy to move soon, so he had to make his decision up fast.

" Fine," He shrugged, a silver stake materializing in his hand, glinting in the moonlight, " Let's see how much you can stand."

" STOP!"

Turning to the right, Valerio saw a small boy standing there, tears in his eyes and mucus running down his nose, but determination in his eyes. He could faintly tell that the kid was a vampire too, but something was different about him. Unlike the captain and the blond one he had put to sleep, he was a pureblood, born from two vampires instead of being changed. This brought little caution to Valerio, and he merely waved his hand in his direction, intending to put him to sleep. But the boy remained standing despite the spell and Valerio did a double-take. Before he got a word out, the boy was bounding towards him, anger rolling off him in waves and headbutted him in the stomach, pushing him to the ground, " Get away from him!" He yelled in Valerio's face.

Suddenly, the boat began to shake, the waves of the ocean becoming unstable and tossing the ship from side to side. Once again, thunder sounded in the distance and clouds covered the moon, enveloping the entire ship in complete darkness. While Jecht and Tori both could see during the night, Valerio could not and he could feel his heartbeat quicken, legitimate fear coursing through his veins. In the darkness, something latched on to his arm, pulling him closer to the ground. He tried to reach out and try to pull it away, but when he felt his arm, nothing was there. Something else from the darkness shot out and grabbed both of his legs, and Valerio could feel the ground beneath him begin to open up and swallow him. " What the fuck is this?!" He yelled out, dropping the golden hook from his hand, and looked up at Protettore. From what he could see in the shadows, the child had no clue what was happening either. Finally, the force wrapped around his throat and gripped tight, completely dragging him into the dark pit where the wooden deck once was and closed up.

The clouds faded and the thunder subsided and Tori fell back onto his behind, completely at a loss as to what just happened. One minute he was blinded by anger towards the wizard and the next he was gone. Had he done that? What even was that that had pulled the wizard away in swirls of darkness and shadows? Still numb, Tori got to his feet and ran over to where Jecht was, hoping that whatever the wizard had done to him faded with his disappearance, " Are you okay?" he could feel the tears well up in his eyes again and tried to hold them back with a sniff.

[Azalea]

The wizard stepped away and began walking to some other part of the ship. Jecht guessed, by the way the man frowned, that he was considering his words.

Good, he thought, I need to give them more time.

He could not move his eyes and did not see where the wizard ventured off to, but he could still hear his footsteps. "Fine.", he heard the wizard say, "Let's see how much you can stand."

If the spell had not held his body prisoner, Jecht would have flinched at the wizard's words. It's not like he wanted torture, but he needed to think of his crew's survival. The wizard had created a silver stake, and even worse, one made of magic. Jecht would always know when there was a stake around; one of the few items that could seriously harm a vampire. He felt his heart begin to beat quickly, from the fear Jecht would never admit he was feeling, but suddenly another surprise rang in his ears. His heart began to beat faster.

Annoyingly, he still couldn't see, but he recognized the voice as Trixxtal's young nephew. "What are you doing?!"he shouted, alarmed that the young vampire was running straight towards the wizard. When he attacked him, the spell must have lost some of it's power, because Jecht suddenly was able to move his neck again. He finally saw Protettore shoved the man onto the ground and panic began to overwhelm Jecht.

When the ship began to rock violently back and forth, Jecht scowled. The last thing he needed was to deal with a storm, too.

However, darkness began to enshroud the FlyingDeath, and much to the captain's surprise, he could see the wizard being pulled into the darkness. The more the darkness trapped him, the more Jecht could feel the spell on his body began to wear off. With his control returning to him, he began to feel the magic in the air. He thought for a moment that Protettore's power had been responsible for the wizard's surprising departure, but he realized that there was no way the magic came from him. The boy quickly ran to his side and asked if he was ok. He could see he was on the verge of tears and he was not going to deal with anymore drama at the moment. The captain nodded his head and let a rare smile onto his face, patting the frightened child on the head. "Yes."he reassured. "I am impressed with your bravery, young one. Go and find your uncle and see if he is awake."

Jecht rarely gave compliments, not that Protettore would know that yet, but he slowly walked away from him and motioned towards the golden hook. He was glad that he did not lose it, but was still annoyed that the object caused him so much trouble. His head hurt so bad. He was tempted to just throw it back into the ocean to avoid having anymore wizards magically appearing on the ship again. He felt exhausted.

"Stupid...hook..."he mumbled, his voice quiet. Damn, his head hurt. Jecht placed the hook back into his pocket before he lost it again and he turned around, intending to find Protettore and Trixxtal. However, he was having a hard time seeing.

You have got to be kidding me... he thought, worried as his vision started to blur. The fight had taken a lot more out of him than he thought.

Jecht blacked out before he fell onto the ship's wooden floor.

[Midorimacchi]

" I still don't understand," Trixxtal said, turning the hook around in his hands, examining it, " The wizard just disappeared?"

" I don't know," his young nephew whispered, his gaze locked on the floor, " It was like the ground just ate him up. This black stuff just appeared and took him away." Prottetore's hands were still shaking, despite being hours later, and Trixxtal reached over to run his hands through his hair, " It's okay. The most important thing is that we're all safe and the wizard is gone and we can get back to searching for your parents." He offered a small smile which Tori returned faintly. Tori had woken him up in sheer panic, rambling over and over again about a wizard and the battle between him and Jecht and from what Trixxtal had understood, it was a major one. With the help of the awakened crew, Trixxtal had carried the blacked out captain back to his chambers where he had been resting ever since. Meanwhile, Trixxtal had tried to gather more information as to what happened, but like him, the rest of the crew had been asleep. The only source he had was Tori who had only seen the ending of the fight.

" Try and get some sleep," Trixxtal sighed, bending down to kiss the top of his nephew's head and pulled the blanket up to his shoulders. The sun would be rising in a couple of hours so they all needed to rest up for the day ahead. Once leaving his room, Trixxtal returned to the deck and talked to the main navigator making sure that they were still heading towards the coordinates Jecht had said. The faster they got to the island, the more likely it was that they still had a chance to save his brother and sister-in-law. Though something in his gut told him that the wizard was only one of the many difficulties they were about to face...

[Azalea]

JECHT

The captain slowly opened his eyes, bewildered as to why he felt so much pain before the memories flooded back to him. He scowled, remembering how the wizard bested him. The only reason he was victorious was because of some mysterious power and the captain committed himself to investigate the magic as soon as this rescue mission was completed. The vampire sat up in his bed and his eyes glanced around the room, briefly disappointed that Trixxtal was not present in the room. Unconcerned that he was not fully healed, Jecht dressed appropriately and exited the room to check on his crew.

REGULUS
The young pirate sat alone in his cabin. The serenity of his situation relaxed him, the aroma of the fish in front of him brightening his eternal horrible mood. Alone and eating food, his favorite situations meshed into one. Using his bed for a table and about to take another bite of fish, his halfway eaten meal was interrupted when a pirate barged through the door. Narrowing his eyes, Regulus calmly stared down the man in front of him. The pirate did not waste any time getting to the point as he slurred out his demand.

"Ay Little Reggie, take my shift for me will ya?"requested the other pirate, the smell of rum coming from him.

A smile slowly crept it's way onto Regulus' face, giving the pirate a curt nod. "Of course", he replied quickly as he set down his fork, "It will be my pleasure."

The pirate wasted his breath on giving his insincere gratitude and other words Regulus did not bother listening to. Regulus glanced down at his food. Hesitantly, he stood up from his bed and left his meal behind before following the pirate out of the room. "Ya know the way right lil Reggie?"asked the man, giving Regulus an uncertain look.

Regulus could feel his irritation rising quicker by the second. "I do. I will go there on my own," he reassured politely, thinking, Does the lazy fool really believe me to be a stupid child? I have been on guard duty before.

Getting away from the annoying pirate's presence, Regulus prayed that he wouldn't run into anymore crew members who made him feel like hurling himself off the boat and drowning to his death. Especially that infuriating werewolf captain that would probably bark more orders at him. Or worse, that confusing magical girl who reminded him of the daughters of the aristocrats who enslaved him. He could not figure out if she truly was kind, or if she was pretending to be nice like Regulus was. She was a puzzle he had yet to solve.

A half hour later...

He twirled the prison keys around his fingers, never taking his gaze off of the two kidnapped vampires. Regulus did not know or care why they were captured and brought here. He just knew one thing. It felt good to be the one with power for a change. But like always, his voice was gentle throughout the entire conversation and only after listening carefully could one hear the underlying malice in his tone.

"Does it bother you to see this?"he asked the vampires, the keys dangling in front of him and in their direct view. They struggled to move from their shackles. They wanted the keys. Regulus knew why they wanted freedom so bad. They pleaded to him in the beginning, asking if a "nice boy like him would help" because they needed to find their son. They wanted their son, which angered him greatly. He hated that these two parents desired to be with their child so strongly while his own parents abandoned him the first opportunity presented. Oh, how Regulus hated these two prisoners. He took delight into tormenting them, the only outlet he had to vent his bottled up anger.

He sat in his chair, feeling like a king watching his subjects do something stupid for his own personal amusement. "Your freedom, literally in my hands." he continued to taunt, his voice calm but laced with venom and bitterness. "It's such a shame that you may never live to see your son grow to become my age. You failed as parents, you know. You should have been stronger and smarter than to get yourselves kidnapped. But if you want to be optimistic, then maybe he is already dead! The spoiled brat probably has no idea how to survive on his own, I bet. You can be reunited with him in death, and finally get to see your precious, loved child."

He rambled on and on with his verbal abuse before Regulus briefly remembered that he was supposed to make sure they were fed too, but there was no way he would let such vile people drink his blood. No matter how much he wanted to be rid of his filthy human blood, he could not risk the vampires taking away his precious demon blood.

[Midorimacchi]

☆trixxtal☆

Trixxtal was sitting on the edge of the ship, his feet dangling off the side. It was mostly because of his supernatural abilities that he didn't go toppling off the edge with every sway of the ship and the other half was just pure luck. It had been a while since he put Protettore to bed and he was patiently waiting for either him or Jecht to wake up, keeping himself busy in the meantime by making paper crowns. It was boring but there wasn't much else to do. His usual daily activities consisted of speaking with Jecht, hanging out with Jecht, telling stories to Jecht, eating, following Jecht, talking about pasta with Jecht, playing with Jecht, following orders from Jecht, petting Jechts hair, etc, etc. So when Jecht was out of the picture, Trixxtal was very limited with a choice of activities. Noticing this, one of the crew members had given him some paper that was lying around (idk how much paper cost in those times??? but they're pirates so hahahA) and taught him how to make crowns, animals, and other shapes with it. Inbetween his sixth crown and third giraffe Jecht appeared in the corner of his eye.

Suddenly rejuvenated, Trixxtal swung his legs back over the ledge and jumped off it, quickly making his way over to the captain, " What are you doing up? Why are you walking around?" Were the first things out of his mouth, his hands already on his hips in the most sassiest stance ever, " You should still be in bed, resting. You're probably not even healed yet so why are you still here and not going back to sleep? I've got everything under control here so you can go back and rest." Despite his words, Trixxtal was very happy to see that he was healthy enough to walk around and that that bastard wizard hadn't done any permanent damage.

☆fenrir☆

Safely locked away in his quarters, Fenrir sliced his thumb with his pocketknife and allowed the blood to drip on the circular mirror in front of him.

проклятую мне жаль, что быстро продовольственные магазины поставляются,
поэтому я могу получить некоторый выбор куриные наггетсы двадцать четыре семь

He recited the summoning enchantment over and over until his wound closed up and the blood dried. It took longer than he expected, but the mirror began to glow with a dull yellow and the image in it began to ripple. Soon an empty room appeared and Fenrir leaned in closer, his eyes narrowing, " I want to speak with Milton. I need to know what else I need to open the gate." He had learnt from past experiences that the being known as 'Milton' was sometimes busy and his attendant, a man named Michael, often spoke on his behalf. But today Fenrir had no patience and needed to speak with Milton himself, just to make sure that he had gotten all the correct ingredients for opening the gate.

[Azalea]

dave
He could hear Jecht.

"NO. Nonono No. I am DONE recovering and don't need to rest anymore. Why don't you quit with that sassy attitude of yours and stop telling me what to do-"

Sensing an argument was about to begin at the sight of Jecht's rebellious look in his eyes, the bird swooped down from his resting place on the ship. The parrot suddenly landed on Jecht's shoulder, almost immediately swatted away by the vampire but no matter how much the man shooed him away the parrot just sat back down on his shoulder. Earning a suspicious look from the vampire, and then a flash of surprise and recognition, the parrot no longer held the attention of the pirate as he turned towards the sassy man in front of them. "I think I'll name him Dave..."muttered the captain randomly, patting the bird on the head, seeming to accept that Dave was simply not going to leave.

jecht
"...Anyways, Trixxtal, I don't doubt that you have the ship under control! I just don't want to lay in bed all night..."he growled quietly, distracted from his anger by Dave's presence. "I don't need rest. I am perfectly fine."he lied quietly. His body still ached from the insufferable wizard's attack but Jecht did not want to admit it, there was no way in hell he would ever admit that. Sadly his quiet whining was over as fast as it arrived and he started raising his voice again, acting more unstable than usual. "That annoying wizard though! This is all his fault I wish I could have killed that scum. This is the worst mood I have ever woken up to. I can't believe all this happened over some dumb golden magical hook."he ranted, hoping he could distract Trixxtal by changing the subject. The captain crossed his arms, fury in his eyes, prepared to continue his incessant speech to avoid Trixxtal's earlier demand for him to go back to bed with the added bonus of getting to talk shit about wizards.

"That wizard could have killed you and the crew if he desired so and that infuriates me to no end. A miasma of darkness is not always going to randomly pop up out of nowhere in the middle of the ocean and save us and drag an attacking wizard to wherever it is he was sent to. I need to find ways of destroying wizards and their magic and teach it to the crew. Especially you, there is no way I am losing you, especially to that wizard! And I'll have to instruct Protettore too! He will need to grow up with the proper knowledge of how to deal with them, I just know he will need it someday. That boy will go far, you should be proud of your nephew. You were asleep, but I saw it all! His power, it is unrefined but he has much potential to be great...There is bravery behind that boy's endless stream of tears. He will be an interesting apprentice to mentor, Trixxtal, and training will occupy and distract the child from over-worrying about his parents."he lectured, his angered tone transformed into a voice of pride and then into wonder as Jecht continued on and on. Like always, however, Jecht's mood quickly shifted again and he was back to his screeching. "We could have been much closer to finding his parents if that dreadful wizard had not attacked. How did he even find us again?! Where is the hook?! I will be damned if I fought through all of that shit by myself for me to lose the damn thing. I-"

cepheus
"Hush, Jecht darling."

Out from the shadows, the grim approached his two superiors. The vampire who his words were directed towards suddenly scowled, turning towards Cepheus. "What have I told you about those ridiculous pet names Ce-"

"Hush, I was just attempting to wind you up, Jecht. It is the only method I know that would successfully free your poor victim from your childish attempt at avoiding proper bedrest. I arrived literally a few seconds ago and saw through your little scheme. You are on the verge of collapsing, I can sense it. You cannot fool the first mate or anyone on this ship right now, and you especially cannot fool me. I know you are frustrated, but we woke up and found you unconscious and dying. Listen to Trixxtal, you have confided in me yourself that he is the one who knows you best. So listen to him, he says you need rest, so rest, Jecht."

The entire time, his words gave off a sense of calmness. Stern, but calm, his voice never become raised loud enough to give off the impression of anger. He dismissed the irritated aura Jecht was giving off, a calculating look on Cepheus' face as he observed their reactions. He simply smiled at the two vampires and took a few more steps closer, extending his arm towards the parrot on Jecht's shoulder. "You have a parrot."he stated in a curious tone, as the bird hopped onto Cepheus' arm and then flew onto the top of his head. Cepheus did not understand why Jecht had a parrot but now was not the time to ask any more questions about the random bird. The look on the vampire's face clearly showed how annoyed he was at both Cepheus and Trixxtal and his situation in general, but Cepheus only chuckled.

"Anyways, I did have a reason for my presence. I apologize that I had to interrupt you two, but you need to feed, Jecht."he explained, before Dave flew onto Trixxtal's shoulder, "You'll get my blood once you two meet me back in your room. Please meet me there once you have decided to cease your stubborn behavior, Captain. And do not even think about trying to get out of going back to bed by feeding from another human. I will know."

Hoping his obvious threats to Jecht that he would only get blood was if he listening to Trixxtal and went back to bed and recover properly, he bowed to the two vampires politely before seemingly vanishing back into the shadows.

regulus
The crew had been instructed to retrieve blood for the vampires from the specified crate, and that crate only or else. Regulus knew better than to question why in the world Fenrir would care so much about blood. He opened the clearly labelled crate in front of him and cautiously grabbed two items that were stored inside.

The young boy frowned as he re-entered the dungeons holding the captive vampires prisoner. Really, why did he agree to this annoying babysitting again? In his hands were two small vials, each filled with dark red blood. Regulus was pretty sure it was human blood he was holding. He could smell the horrid scent. It felt disgusting to touch, even through glass. "Vile vampires," he spat, "Here is your meal."

Not wanting to get any closer than required, he carefully bent his knees and placed the vials on the ground. He cautiously pushed the glass forward, forcing it to roll further into the cell and within reach of the prisoner. Regulus observed as the two vampires hungrily reached for the vials and removed the cork, drinking the blood that had been contained inside. The half demon quickly held his breath; oh how Regulus hated the smell of human blood! It smelled worse than garbage and vomit and rotting corpses. And he had been forced to deal with the horrible scent way more than he would like to when one of his previous masters had been a vampire. The filthy smell of human blood, he hated it so much, hated how it reminded him of his pathetic past.

"I will never understand how you monsters love drinking human blood so much."he hissed, shaking his head as he fled the dungeon.

dromena
"...And the prisoners did not speak, even when I gave them their vials, but they did drink all of the blood. Physically, their condition is fine and they will remain alive. Mentally, their wills seem to have finally broken."the young man reported. Dromena wondered if she only imagined that cheerful glint in his eyes that flashed for a moment at Reggie's final sentence. She simply nodded and broke the short silence that befell the room.

"Excellent. Good job, Reggie. I appreciate you taking over the shift. You will be free to do as you wish for the rest of tonight and tomorrow but will be notified if the situation changes."she informed, watching as he gave a polite bow and his lips curved into a small smile. "Thank you, Lady Fantine."he stated before he quickly departed from her chambers.

Dromena looked away from the door she watched him exit through and stared down at the parchment in front of her. She picked up her quill and continued the work she had been doing before Reggie arrived and informed her of the prisoner's status. The fairy briefly thought about how the boy acted so formal, being the only person who addressed her as "Lady Fantine". She supposed the behavior had to have been drilled into him due to the nature of his past, but it still felt odd to her . Dromena pushed the thoughts aside and set down the quill before she glanced at the book that was beside her on the desk. While she would rather be forging a blade or engaging in a friendly duel, she knew that the runes she was attempting to translate would be of great help for the ritual Fenrir desired to perform.

milton
Milton sat alone, his only companion running errands in the milky way galaxy. Only one planet, earth, held life but the tiny little rock held so much magic inside, so many alternate dimensions for just earth alone. Because of this, Milton found little earth fascinating. He often ordered Michael to bring him items from various time periods and timelines, both for his personal collection and to bait Michael into enjoying earth as much as he did. Milton even dressed in earth's clothing; his current outfit was formal attire from earth's modern age.

The man took a sip of wine, his legs crossed as he enjoyed his drink in his personal room. The liquid in his glass rippled suddenly and Milton set it down on his table. He felt magic pull at his insides; a pull from a familiar guest. "Ah, he's summoning me with words of the food. Fenrisulfr knows exactly how to get my attention."he mused, standing and walking away from his chair towards the main chamber. Milton returned to the Velvet room and saw that one of his mirrors was glowing red. He sat in his chair behind the table that held his tarot cards and summoned the mirror to him. The mirror flickered slightly and Milton saw the familiar face gazing into his eyes.

He gave the werewolf a soft, genuine smile."I did not expect you to contact me again so soon. You have collected all of the ingredients?"he asked gently, but did not wait for an answer before speaking again, "I suggest you wait to conduct the ritual on Samhain. The 31st day of the 10th month. In your perspective, that night is less than a year from now. It is a powerful, magical night for your planet. The blood you gather will be at it's most potent, as well as any spell cast. Samhain seems like the ideal night to open the gate of the underworld. The souls will be drawn to the magic and power..."

Milton paused in his explanation, a thoughtful expression on his face before he continued. "I have given you the ritual for opening the gate and now it is time for you to begin preparing for what occurs after the soul is summoned. If you would like your lover to come back to life, to truly come back from the dead...then you must construct a body to bind the soul to."

As he awaited his guest's response, Milton felt his heart sink the more he thought of the werewolf and his lover's fate. But his warm smile never strayed from his face. Knowing what he did, he couldn't do anything except smile at the man. It was Milton's only comfort to help him get through this situation. Milton knew the future. He knew the outcome of Fenrisulfr's request and ambition.

And he pitied him for it.

[Midorimacchi]

☆trixxtal☆
" I will continue this sassy attitude as much as I like Jecht and yo-" Trixxtal spoke over Jecht's words until the parrot arrived out of nowhere, landing on the captain's shoulder. It's sudden appearance was enough to bring Trixxtal into silence and soon confusion when Jecht seemed to accept it's presence. Still, it wasn't enough to make him forget the matter at hand which was getting Jecht to rest, so for now he pushed the parrot issue aside. Jecht appeared to do the same too when he continued his rant. " But you're not fine! You passed out after that wizard disappeared, how can you say that you're okay?!" His voice rose along with Jecht's but the other plowed through with his argument, ranting on and on about wizards and strangely Protettore came into the conversation and how training would be beneficial for the young child. Not that Trixxtal couldn't object. He wanted his dear nephew to be capable of fighting off his attackers, whomever they may be, and there was no better teacher than Jecht. Additionally, it was better for him to learn at a young age so he could get better with time. Hell, maybe Jecht was right when he said that Tori could become something great. Purebloods normally did. Whether it was Jecht's intention or not, Trixxtal could feel the fight draining out of him and he slumped his shoulders, ready to just say fine walk around as much as you want see if i care until Cepheus came out from the shadows.

Immediately, Trixxtal's stance straightened and he pulled himself back as far as he could without having to take a step backwards. On top of creeping him the fuck out, Cepheus always managed to make his blood boil. The grim didn't even have to say anything, just merely had to be in his line of sight, or even be mentioned, and Trixxtal's mood would shoot straight to fuckthatville. Every word that tumbled from his mouth fueled Trixxtal's anger even though what Cepheus was saying only proved that he was right about Jecht's health and also praised their relationship at the same time, and Trixxtal still had the overwhelming urge to push him off the side of the ship watch as the sharks tore him apart.

Even after he left the two of them alone, Trixxtal's mood remained the same, " Yes, Jecht." His glare snapped back to Jecht and his voice sharp like a crack of a whip, " Listen to dear Cepheus and go back to your room to feed," He angrily dug around in his pocket for the hook, shoving it into Jecht's palm once he found it, " you sure look like you need it." He spat before turning around and storming back to his little pile of origami crafts. He barely acknowledged the parrot that landed on his shoulder and couldn't bother to shoo it off, so it remained. He stubbornly refused to turn around to see if Jecht was affected by his words and kept his eyes on the crowns. In the middle of the pile was the largest one, decorated in jewels and diamonds that they had raided from other ships. That was the one that he had made for Jecht and he had intended to give it to him, but that was before Cepheus showed up and everything went downhill. Taking the crown in his hands, he dramatically threw it off over the side of the ship, watching it as it fluttered into the ocean and slowly dissolved. " That'll teach him," he told the bird with a pout, and yet it didn't make him feel any better.

☆videl☆
"One thousand-nine hundred-ninety six...one thousand-nine hundred-ninety seven..one thousand-nine hundred-ninety eight," Videl muttered angrily under his breath as he pushed himself back up, "One thousand-nine hundred-ninety nine..." Hours had passed since he started his workout routine, but despite the ache in his muscles and sweat dripping into his eyes, he did not stop. No, this was his punishment for letting that blasted wizard get the upper hand on him and attack the entire ship. Like the rest of the crew members, Videl had been put under Valerio's sleeping spell and was incapable of doing anything else. After he had woken up and discorded this, he locked himself away in his room and started to train. The way he saw it, the more he worked out, the stronger he would become, and the stronger he would become, the better he would be at fighting off wizards and their spells. Of course none of this would make any sense to someone who wasn't Videl, but everyone on the ship knew that he would punch their teeth out if they even suggested he was wrong, so they left him be.

" Two thousand." Finally, Videl pushed himself off the floor and stretched out his back, hearing his muscles pop and his joints creak. Usually a thousand push ups was enough to start the day, but this time he went over to two thousand without a break and even though he ached, he felt better than before. " Now, sit ups!" He announced happily and dropped down to the floor, " One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve," And on and on he continued.

☆fenrir☆
"Samhain?" Fenrir questioned, his frown deeping. As Milton said, the date was less than a year away but ideally Fenrir would have wanted it to be sooner. The other ingredients he had collected would probably last until then, but it was the livestock he was concerned about. This meant that he would have to keep them alive until then, such as giving them suitable living requirements and food so they wouldn't die from nourishment before Samhain. He would have to make sure to talk to Fantine about where they should store their prisoners once they reach the island, and where to find food for them. The crates of blood that they had already could only last so long before they start to run out. All of these were hassles Fenrir hadn't foreseen when he had started this quest, but if all this meant that he could see Freya again, he could gladly do it twice over.

" A body? Does it have to be dead? Alive?" He asked. This was also a set back. One of the many reasons he had fallen in love with Freya was her beauty, and he was disappointed that he would never see her face again. But ultimately it was her soul that he was mated to and it wouldn't make him love her any less. The only problem was finding a suitable vessel for her to possess. He thought back to the pair of vampires that they had captured from their last raid, a young man and woman, both vampires but only one of them was a pureblood. The thought of his beloved Freya inhabiting a body of a vampire made his toes curl in disgust and he quickly pushed that idea back into 'the last resort' plan just incase all the others fell through.

[Azalea]

dave
His new master, his Chosen One, had bestowed him the name Dave and Dave felt blessed to have the honor of having His Grace give him his new identity. He would protect his master's pirate ship, for his vessel had been earlier cursed by an Evil Wizard, and extend his protection to all of his master's allies. So, when he sensed the sadness in the heart of the Golden Haired Mate of his dear Chosen One, he flew to his side. The parrot nuzzled it's beak against Trixxtal, comforting the distraught vampire. He tweeted, knowing that the Golden Haired Mate would not understand him, but Dave hoped he would feel better knowing that he did not have to suffer alone and that Dave would be his companion until his Master ceased his foolish, hurtful words towards him.

nemesis
She slipped into the room, eyeing the vampire conduct his daily work out routine. The vampiress rarely concerned herself with Videl's training but the wizard's attack left her feeling insulted. Nemesis felt a constant irritation in the back of her mind, nagging at her to increase her power so that she would not be left defenseless yet again. The ease of how easy the wizard's spell left her incapacitated during his assault on the FlyingDeath over some ridiculous magical golden hook the captain apparently possessed reminded her of the days before meeting the pirates. The humiliation she experienced when she had been prisoner resurfaced into her memory after the crew's pitiful defeat from the wizard and Nemesis hated that she was so easily subdued. Obviously, she needed to work even harder at gaining power to protect herself! Perhaps Videl could help her?

"Hello, Videl."she said smoothly. Nemesis steadily approached the male vampire, each step reflecting her graceful character. Her old habits were hard to break and she always carried herself with elegance and proper posture. She gave him an innocent smile once she had his attention. "Forgive me for interrupting your exercise but I was wondering if you could assist me? The wizard's spell reminded me that I require more training. I do not wish to be so easily defeated again."

jecht
Cepheus had the irritating effect of silencing him, like always. The vampire didn't even know how to respond to the grim's words at the moment; he didn't hear all of what he had lectured him about because earlier Jecht began to ignore the long sermon when his head started pounding again. "Shut up! You're giving me a headache."he muttered darkly at Cepheus, but Jecht was just met with more demands and he was reluctant to admit that he was indeed hungry. More annoyingly, Trixxtal was apparently agreeing with him! Oblivious to his fellow vampire's anger, Jecht frowned as he tried to keep himself standing steadily. He nearly stumbled over when Trixxtal shoved the golden hook into his hand and Jecht glared as he watched the retreating form of the vampire.

"Where are you going?!"he asked Trixxtal quickly, but Jecht was ignored and he watched as the blond went to a pile of strange items. He didn't even look at him! First, he tries to boss him around and then he had the nerve to gang up on him with Cepheus! To think he had gotten out of bed just to look for Trixxtal. Jecht suddenly felt angrier, enraged that he was reduced to this pathetic weakened state. The vampire snapped as he watched his friend walk away. "Fine, walk away from me and see if I care! I don't know why I bothered to look for you. In fact, I'm glad you weren't there when I woke up! This is all your fault! The stupid wizard was looking for this hook, and the only reason I have it is because of you. Because I was kind enough to try to help you find your family! I'm like this because of you; I am hurt because of you!" he shouted, waving the hook in his hands before shoving it in his pocket. Jecht began to cough violently and the pain in his chest began to feel worse, but that didn't stop him from observing Trixxtal.

He had no idea why Trixxtal threw some random crown looking thing off the boat, but the vampire had a feeling that this was a perfect opportunity to test his new student. It would be a great distraction from Trixxtal's "betrayal" anyways. Jecht smiled at his brilliant idea as he sauntered over to the ship's edge and randomly tossed an anchor off the ship, ignoring the stabbing pain he felt all over his body, in order to stop the ship from sailing away from this spot. He turned to the nearest crew member and barked out, "Instruct young Protettore to retrieve that item the first mate tossed overboard. It is shaped like a crown and made of parchment and jewels. Watch him while he swims in the water and do not let him return unless he finds it. Especially make sure he gets the jewels out of the water, Charlie, and that he understands the importance of this training!"

With his final order, he began to slowly return to his room, not giving a second glance towards Trixxtal.

cepheus
He had a sly smile on his face, knowing full well of the wrath he caused Trixxtal to feel over Jecht. The drama between the first mate and captain was absolutely delightful. The two were ridiculous and it was like watching a dramatic play unfold before him. He relaxed in a chair that he had placed beside Jecht's bed.

Cepheus smirked when the captain finally barged through the door, grumbling about something and Cepheus had no doubt that Jecht had gotten into some sort of argument before he forced himself to return here. "Oh? I did not think you would have come so soon. You must have missed me too much, I certainly expected you to be more difficult to deal with."he taunted as he rose from his chair, walking over to the vampire and guiding him to the bed. He was slightly surprised when Jecht didn't resist and the vampire's coughing worried him slightly. That wasn't going to stop his teasing, though. "Most likely you shouted something hypocritical and vicious and unreasonable to your darling first mate again before storming off and coming for your dinner."he laughed as held his neck to the vampire.

"Quiet...and it's his fault..."he heard Jecht mutter darkly before Cepheus felt the familiar pain in his neck. As he felt the blood drain from his body, the grim smiled playfully. "I see you did not deny it, sweet Jecht. Are you admitting that you were unreasonable to him then?"he asked, and winced as he felt Jecht dig his fangs even harder out of spite.

"NO!"he heard the vampire exclaim almost immediately after he was done feeding, and Cepheus just threw his head back and laughed.

charlie
Charlie felt slightly surprised when he was suddenly called out, but then again he knew Jecht was probably twice as delirious at the moment since he was still recovering from his injuries. He had long ago realized that the dear captain sometimes had fits of insanity and acted ridiculous, especially if Trixxtal was involved. His order did not make any sense to him but the vampire simply nodded and did what he was told, beginning to walk towards the ship's interior. He felt a familiar deep weight on his heart with each step he took and he breath be breathed and like always, it was as if his body was moving automatically. His depression felt deeper than the entire ocean at the moment. Charlie always felt sad, but like the other pirates on board, being put to sleep and leaving Jecht alone to fight made him feel horrible. Charlie felt like a failure and he felt glad that the captain had given him this minor assignment as a distraction.

He stopped in front of a door and there was a brief paused before Charlie knocked on the door. "Protettore? I have a message from the captain."he called out gently.

milton
"Well," he began, "The body needs to be functioning, otherwise her soul will be attached to a motionless corpse. Her vessel will need to be alive, but soulless. One possibility is for you to summon her soul and have her possess a body and destroy the original soul so that she can take and use the body for herself. It is a difficult process and success is slim, so it would be in your best interests to just use that method as a last resort. I suggest constructing an entirely new body from scratch, almost like a golem of sorts. I could attempt to create it for you, but I am not a master of the art. The great dragon Koryuu is a being similar to myself and he has the power to help you."

Milton paused his story and held out his hand. A swirl of magic surrounded him and in a flash there were two devices in his palm. One was a type of eyewear created with the magic of a mage gifted with the Sight, an ability that sensed auras and power levels and could see hidden magicks. The second was shaped like a compass with a single star decorated in the middle. He held up the compass first.

"This is a compass called a radar and I'm going to let you borrow, if you desire Koryuu's aid. Koryuu will only grant the requests of those who have enough power, skill, and devotion to summon him and his trial is the gathering of seven spheres. The compass will lead you to the location of the spheres. Each one has a different number of stars and glow a bright orange color. Bring all seven together and you can summon Koryuu. He can create a new body for her and can be any appearance or species."explained Milton, and in a flash the compass appeared in Fenrir's hand. "Next, I will give you this item called a scouter. There will no doubt be obstacles and traps, this will help you."he said as he began informing him of what the scouter was capable of. After his explanation, the scouter appeared beside the radar.

[Midorimacchi]

☆trixxtal☆
Every word from Jecht was like a stab in the heart, but Trixxtal still refused to turn around. If he wanted, he could steal his own ship and find his own brother his goddamn self, Jecht was just making this a whole lot easier. Okay...maybe it was more than that, a lot more than that, but Trixxtal was angry so he didn't bother thinking nice thoughts about Jecht right now. When Jecht started coughing again, he was tempted to see if he was alright, but his stubbornness won out and he stayed put. If there was one thing Cepheus was good for, it was making Jecht stronger with his blood. All Trixxtal needed to do was ignore him until he gave up and went down to his room to feed. Instead, he held his finger out to the bird so it could perch itself on there, " Hello," He smiled at the parrot, vaguely remembering Jecht calling it....Dave? He stroked the top of its head with his other hand and tried to listen to what Jecht was doing. He totally missed what Jecht said to Charlie because he had been paying attention to Dave, so he only heard Jecht's footsteps retreating. He let out a sigh of relief and hoped that after he fed, Jecht would feel a lot better, or atleast get some more rest.

" I think I'm going to get some rest as well," He muttered to Dave as if he could understand him and dejectedly walked back to his room. He didn't worry about running into Jecht because he would no doubt be feeding right now, so he didn't hurry. It surprised him when he found Charlie outside his door, speaking with Protettore. A small smile spread across his face at the thought of his young nephew making friends on the ship. Since there were no other children on board, he had been worried about Tori being bored all the time. At least now he would have someone to talk to other than Jecht and himself. " Ah, Charlie, how nice of you to play with Tori!" He cooed, patting Tori's head.

☆protettore☆
Tori had been sleeping peacefully when there was a knock at the door, awakening him from his slumber. He slipped out of bed and sluggishly walked to the door, opening it. Infront of him was a man he had never seen before. After last night's attack, he was weary of people he didn't know incase they were here to take over the ship again, but he figured that if this guy was bad, Jecht would have alerted the whole ship. Also, this man wasn't a wizard like the last intruder, but a vampire like the rest of them. He was probably just one of the crew members he hadn't met yet. " Um...yes?" he asked. Before the vampire could reply though, Trixxtal came trudging down the steps. Even from where he stood, Tori would feel the sadness surrounding his uncle. Infact, now that he thought about it, the stranger vampire was oozing sadness as well. If they were hundreds of years in the future, Tori might even compare him to one of those cartoons where a dark cloud followed a man around and rained on him all the time. It made Tori want to sit him down and talk about his feelings. Because he was caring like that.

" Make sure to be safe and don't break anything!" His uncle laughed and closed his door, leaving Tori alone with the vampire in the hallway. Tori was confused what that even meant, but he disregarded it. He was used to his uncle's strange behavior already. Instead he turned back to the blond and tilted his head, " What does Jecht want to tell me?" He asked.

☆videl☆
Videl's sit-ups were interpreted when someone said his name and greeted him. He stopped halfway through his sit up and turned his attention towards the voice. It was impossible to mistake that voice for anyone else, seeing that she was the only female on the ship, and Videl quickly stood up, greeting her with a small bow, " Ah, my princess, what brings you here?" Wiping the sweat away from his forehead, he beamed his brightest smile at her as he waited for her answer. " Oh no, no, no! Please, interrupt whenever you'd like, my lady." At the mention of the wizard, Videl's mood darkened slightly, " Ah, that blasted wizard! If only I had been stronger...." He shook his head, " Of course! If my assistance is what you require, then my assistance you shall have! I shall teach you everything I know! By the time we're done, you shall have enough pasión to rival that of a thousand suns, princesa!"

☆fenrir☆
Fenrir could only stare in awe at the items in his hands. He tended to stay far away from wizards and their tricks, but it always amazed him at what they were able to do and create. The items in his hands were so advanced that he was scared to try them out in case he ended up breaking them or make a fool out of himself. But with these, he could summon the dragon that would create a body for Freya so that she could walk among the living once more, so there was no argument what so ever whether or not he was going to use them. All he had to do was familiarize himself with this...strange magic items. " I understand," He nodded, turning his attention back to the mirror, " Thank you for your help. I will contact you when I find half of the spheres to make sure I am on the right track."

[Azalea]

Dave
The parrot chirped and flew off of Trixxtal, landing on young Protettore's head. The Golden Haired Mate desired sleep. Therefore, Dave figured he would watch over the Little Vampire, since both his Chosen and the Golden Haired Mate seemed to have taken an interest in the child's activities. Dave chirped once more to let the Golden Haired Mate know that he would guard the Little Vampire and the Sad Faced Vampire as they completed his Chosen's request.

Charlie
The vampire wanted to correct Trixxtal, but hesitated. He overheard the recent fight between him and Jecht, so bringing up the captain would probably land him into some sort of trouble. The two vampires fought often and he learned long ago to avoid getting brought into their quarrels.

"Um, right..."he muttered uncertainly as the other blond left him and Protettore in the hallway. He looked over at the child and noticed Jecht's new parrot on his head, raising his brows with confusion. The captain must have gotten the bird during their stop in Italy after hearing the rumor that all great pirate captains had their trusty parrot with them. "Yes, please come with me." he requested, ignoring the parrot for now, beginning to walk out of the hallway with Protettore. As they made their way to the deck, Charlie explained Jecht's mission for him.

"Well...you see...the captain sort of wants you to start your training, now, "he began, somewhat worried that the child would be hurt by Jecht's crazy training regime, "and stressed that it is very important...that you retrieve a certain item that First Mate Trixxtal sent into the ocean a few minutes ago."

Charlie paused, and smiled sadly at Protettore. "I'll watch over you though...to make sure you stay safe. The captain might get mad if I interfere, but I've been through worse...so I'll help you if I sense anything going wrong. But it should not be that bad, really."

When they reached the deck, Charlie led the younger vampire to the edge of the ship. "The ship is not sailing right now, so you just have to dive in and find the crown." he explained, giving Protettore a detailed description of the paper crown. "Some of the jewels your uncle placed on the paper crown might have fallen off, so I would grab those too if you happen to see any. Um...any questions?"

Nemesis
She smiled warmly at Videl, grateful for him agreeing. Deep down she wondered if he only agreed because she was a girl, but Nemesis wasn’t about to admit that thought. She needed his help, after all.
“Ok.” she nodded, not understanding his last comment. She couldn’t speak Spanish but she was guessing that princesa meant princess. “So when is a good time for you? To start, I mean.” she asked excitedly. “And thank you, Videl, I’m so excited!”

Cepheus & Jecht
Once Jecht was finally finished feeding, Cepheus smirked and asked, “Weren’t you flirting with Trixxtal the other day, I’m pretty sure I saw you two kiss while fighting on that enemy ship.”

Jecht scowled at the memory, still angry at the vampire, but didn’t say anything. He suddenly remembered that pocket watch he gave to Trixxtal and wondered if his first mate still had it.

“Anyways, it’s time for me to act mother hen and tell you that you should go to sleep. Not tucking you in though and definitely no bed time stories!” interrupted Cepheus with a laugh, who stood from his seat and forcibly pushed Jecht onto his bed.

Cepheus stepped back from the bed and turned around, walking towards the door. He reached the doorknob and paused for a moment. “Well, I hope you recover quickly…“We really should find a healer for the crew, captain.” he added, turning his head slightly only to see that Jecht had already fallen asleep. Cepheus shrugged, made a mental note to address the issue of a healer when Jecht was better, and then left.

[Midorimacchi]

☆fenrir☆
After the reflection in the mirror faded, Fenrir was left alone with his thoughts and the strange items in his hands. It was no secret what he was trying to do and what his goal was, but the real question was how much his crew knew about what he was willing to do to bring Freya back. Would they still follow him if they knew that he was making deals with dimension witches and using items not from this world? None the less, talking things over with Fantine would help clear any confusion in his mind so he put the 'radar' and the 'scouter' into a rucksack and left his cabin. The SkullKracken was already on course to NeverIsland where they were to drop off their captives until Samhain, but from there they could start the search for the Dragon Spheres so that they could summon Koryuu. All this would sound ridiculous when he would explain it to Fantine, but he trusted her to trust him and believe him.

When he stopped infront of her door, Fenrir tapped on the wood out of politeness but opened it shortly afterwards anyway, " I need to speak with you," He began, closing the door behind him securely so that no one else could hear their conversation.

☆videl☆
Videl mirrored her warm smile and rubbed his hands together, " How about tomorrow? We can start slow and work our way up through the week! We'll have you fighting like a professional in no time!" If training Nemesis turned out well, maybe he could propose the idea to Jecht about training the rest of the crew. If the crew was stronger, defending the ship would be alot easier.

☆protettore☆
Protettore didn't want to be rude and interrupt Charlie as he spoke, but a lot of alarms did ring out in his mind. First, he didn't even know what is was that he was supposed to retrieve. Finding a paper crown in an ocean seemed impossible. Second, how was this supposed to train him for anything? Third, why was there a bird on his shoulder? Fourth, even though Jecht was scary, why wasn't he the one giving these instructions? Not that Charlie wasn't good enough or anything! But of all this, the most pressing matter was...

" I don't know how to swim."

He probably should have told Trixxtal this before getting on the FlyingDeath, but he never thought that swimming would ever be a problem!

☆trixxtal☆
Now that Protettore was finding friends on the ship, Trixxtal could rest a little easier. But this thing with Jecht...it was weighing him down just like the anchor Jecht threw into the ocean. Things weren't always this rocky and he could usually control his sass whenever Jecht's anger took over, but with all this stress with his brother's disappearance and the responsibly of Protettore that had been thrust upon him, things were difficult. Cepheus certainly didn't make anything better. Infact, he just made Trixxtal's mood even worse and when he was around, Trixxtal just couldn't control his tongue.

Trixxtal sat down on his bed and sighed deeply. Even though it was Jecht who needed rest, Trixxtal was definitely feeling worn out as well. He made sure to leave a space when he climbed into bed for Protettore on the other side for when he finished playing with Charlie. He tried to get comfortable but something hard digging into his side stopped him from doing so. When he rolled over and reached into his pocket to find the object, he pulled out the pocketwatch Jecht had given him. The words that Jecht had said were engraved in his heart and he remembered them whenever he looked at the watch. He didn't question if he meant something to him, he knew he did, but that didn't stop him from being insecure at times.

"I'm like this because of you; I am hurt because of you!"

The words stung his heart and Trixxtal closing his eyes, his fist clenching around the watch in his hand. Crying alone in his room was just as low as he could possibly get so he opened the desk drawer next to his bed and gently placed the watch in it. He was still furious with Jecht but that didn't mean he would treat the pocketwatch like shit. If he ever damaged it out of anger, he would never forgive himself for being so careless. But still, the watch belonged in the drawer, atleast until his emotions leveled out, or when Jecht stopped being a douchebag. That bastard. With the watch out of his side, Trixxtal rolled back and attempted to go to sleep. But even from the drawer, he sound hear the faint 'tick-tick-tick' of the watch and he growled in frustration.

[Azalea]

Dromena
Wanting to keep track of her weapons, Dromena kept files of parchment detailing her creations and what they were capable of. At the moment she was describing the composition of her newest sword and felt quite proud of it. She couldn’t wait to test it out. When she heard a knock on her door and begin to open without her permission, she had to stop herself from testing out her new weapon, like she wanted to a few moments ago, on the intruder.

Dromena quietly observed the captain as he stepped in her room and privately was glad she had not reacted on instinct and threw her blade at him. “I have a feeling this make take some time. Please take a seat, Captain, if you wish. ” she spoke neutrally, quickly clearly her desk. She waved her hand to the empty chair across from her, motioning for Fenrir to sit.
“What is it you want to discuss?” she asked courteously.

Nemesis
Nemesis smiled. “Thanks sounds like an acceptable arrangement, thank you Videl.” she thanked earnestly, excited at the prospect of training with the strong vampire. The former princess had never done any physical workouts like she saw during Videl training and was unsure as to what they would actually be doing. All she knew was that whatever regime he came up with, it obviously worked for him, and hopefully it would work for her too. “What must I do to prepare? Will I be required to gather any items?” she asked curiously.

Charlie
Charlie frowned as he heard Protettore’s declaration, but he was not frowning at the young vampire, but at one of his old memories. “Um…honestly, this training probably came at an excellent time then. I mean, that the Captain is not here. When I first joined the crew I did not know how to swim either, and when he figured it out he pushed me into the ocean and told me to learn quickly otherwise I would drown and die or be left behind by the ship. Since it was still moving, still.” he explained, sighing as he remembered that horrible experience. “I really did learn how to swim, but I do not want you to go through that. I feel depressed just thinking about that…”he mumbled.
Charlie did not know what to do about the situation, though. There was no way he was going to be like Jecht and throw the child into the water, but he did not want to disobey the captain’s orders. “Er, I am not much of a teacher. I learned by nearly drowning, I would not know where to start with teaching you…um…I will go find someone. Wait here. Please.” he requested nervously, silently hoping that the child did not run away and hide as soon as he left. He briskly strode towards the rooms again and silently wished that the person he was seeking was nearby.

He reached the room and knocked on the door.

“Mariemaia?” he called out. “Can you help me with something Jecht wants done?”

He remembered the female pirate and how the captain sunk her ship during their first meeting. Charlie figured that she knew how to swim since she didn’t drown after she lost the duel with Jecht. Well, at least he hoped so.

Cepheus
“Well if it isn’t the captain’s pet bitch.”

Cepheus snarled at the random vampire he encountered, not even bothering to learn his name. There were few vampires on the crew that he bothered to learn the names of, the rest were just nameless fools who he hoped to send to mother Cerberus one day. He was really annoyed to encounter one of them so soon after dealing with Jecht’s ridiculousness earlier.

“You belong with the rest of the human livestock you- AHH!” the vampire had began to say, but Cepheus snatched his neck and choked him in order to stop him from speaking.

“Shut your mouth.” he growled darkly. “If you know what is good for you.”

Cepheus was tempted to throw him overboard and wondered if Jecht would even notice if one of his crew members had mysteriously disappeared. He figured that, yes Jecht would notice, and then the vampires would be given even more reason to hate him. So instead, he just tossed him against the wall and quickly retreated before he could be attacked from behind.

Jecht

Jecht was dreaming.

Dreaming of something strange.

There was a large sign, with large words in English. The dream Jecht squint his eyes and even with his vampire sight could barely make out what it said: THE END. The letters were written in a bright green color. He snorted, figuring that it was drawn by some sort of child. Such an unelegant scripture, he mused.
The dream Jecht felt confused by it but he pressed a giant blue arrow that suddenly appeared next to him. The sign saying “THE END.” suddenly disappeared. His surroundings turned black and he instantly went on his guard.

Then, he heard a sound unexpected.

He heard laughter. Strange, mysterious laughter.
The vampire cautiously glanced around and there, he saw it. A green monster. He had green skin and his face look like a skull with bright red eyes and wore a strange outfit. His scent was strange and he could not tell what he was. And floating around him were heads of what he thought was human, based on the smell since he actually could tell this time, with large X’s drawn with blood covering the face. The X's would disappear and then reappear. The heads had white eyes but he figured it was because they were obviously dead. The creature was also glowing for some reason but he could not tell why.

The dream Jecht stared at the creature in confusion, wondering when the laughs would stop.

[Midorimacchi]

☆fenrir☆
After taking a seat, Fenrir tried his best to explain the events that just happened in his meeting with Milton, but couldn't help feeling that he left something out. He went over the summoning, Samhain, the DragonSpheres....the only thing he was missing was...." Oh yes," He suddenly remembered, picking up the bag that he had placed at his feet and set it cautiously on the table. " The space wizard gave me these," He explained as he opened the bag and took out the scouter and radar, sliding them across the desk so Fantine could examine them. " He said that they can be used to locate the spheres needed to call the dragon. The radar acts like a compass and will direct us to the spheres. We must collect all seven to summon Koryuu and from there he will grant me my wish. The second is a scouter, which reveals the abilities of others before they attack. I'm only repeating what the wizard said, I haven't tried it myself," As he spoke, he eyed the equipment skeptically, expecting it to turn on him at any second. But, if he wanted to get Freya back, he had to trust what the space wizard told him and follow it thoroughly. " All of this must be finished before Samhain for it to work. After returning to the island, I will set a course for the closest sphere and start from there."

☆videl☆
Remembering that Nemesis was just a beginner, he supposed that they should start off with something easy. " From now until tomorrow, take five minutes to stretch. It might not seem like much, but a well stretched body means the difference between a helpful workout and a hurtful one! We'll start with punches tomorrow so be sure to stretch your arms," He demonstrated as he talked, folding his arm behind his head and then pushed it back until his joints popped.

☆mariemaia☆
As if summoned by the very mention of his name, Mariemaia appeared on the other side of the door, a hopeful smile on her face, " Yes? Jecht needs me?" She asked, happy to do whatever task the captain assigned to her. She waited for Charile to explain, but became confused as he summarized Jecht's wishes. " Yes, I know how to swim. And you want me to train Trixxtal's nephew?" Because of the attack on the ship shortly after Protettore's arrive on board, most of the members hadn't met the child yet, or even knew he existed. Mariemaia was one of those who had no idea that there was a child on board, but she took it in stride and followed Charile up to the deck where Protettore was waiting.

" So! You must be Protettore! Im Mariemaia and I'll be teaching you how to swim." She held her hand out to the boy, her eyes shining brightly. She loved children and had always been secretly regretful that she never had one of her own. Not that she couldn't have some in the future, but a pirate ship was no place to raise a baby, and she wasn't quite ready to leave the FlyingDeath yet, so motherhood would have to wait. She had until eternity to have kids anyway, what was the rush?

" Charile says that you have to retrieve a crown in the sea, but you don't know how to swim, correct?" She walked over to the edge and looked down at the water, trying to decide which course of action would be best. Teaching a child to swim in the ocean was dangerous, more than dangerous actually; suicidal was the best term, but they lacked any other options. As she mused over the possibilities, she thought back to the time where she first met Jecht. She had been foolish and challenged him to a duel and at the cost of losing, he sunk her pirate ship. She still remembered his maniacal laughter as her ship fell to pieces and was swallowed by the sea and through the water in her eyes, she remembered his victorious smile looking down upon her. It was scary at the time, not knowing whether or not he was going to leave her floating out in the middle of the ocean, either dying from sharks or drowning, but despite all that, Mariemaia fell in love that day. The captain had not only managed to capture her treasures, but her heart as well, and now she would gladly follow him to the ends of the Earth if it meant she would be able to stay with him.

No matter how nice the memories were, she had a job to do and she turned back to Protettore, ready to get the job done. " Teaching you how to swim is impossible all the way out here, unless we were trying to kill you, so we'll use this," She picked up a thick rope that was conveniently on the deck and squeezed it in her hands, testing its durability.

☆protettore☆
He didn't like this idea.

He didn't like this idea at all.

" Are you sure this is going to work Miss Maia?" He called out, clutching the rope that was tied beneath his armpits and chest for dear life. It was the only thing keeping him suspended above the water and although it hurt, he was glad that Charlie hadn't done Jecht's method and just throw him overboard.

" You have nothing to worry about! Charlie and I have ya!" Mariemaia yelled from above where they were slowly lowering him into the water. Before pushing him over the edge, she had briefly gone over the basic swimming maneuvers. " Just kick your arms and legs until you stay afloat!" She had said," The rope around your chest will stop you from drowning!"

It sounded easy in theory, but now that he was inches away from the water, he could feel fear nipping away at his resolve. I can't do this I can't do this I can't do this I can't do this I can't do this! He cried out in his head and started to panic. But it was too late to call out and tell them to stop because before he could open his mouth, he hit the water. It was a cold shock, touching the water for the first time and Tori's breath stopped, along with his movements. The rope was preventing him from drowning, but the crippling fear that he was going to die had already taken over and he began to freak out, kicking his arms and legs all around, splashing the water everywhere in a frenzy. He could hear Mariemaia yell, " No! Not like that! Like this!" as she made smaller hand movements, but Tori didn't care because he was going to die and Mariemaia and Charlie were just going to stand there and watch.

" GET ME OUT OF HERE! TAKE ME UP!" He pleaded, his voice going higher in the way that frightened children's voices do, and he could taste the salty water in his mouth. It was only because of all the splashing he was doing and not because they had dropped him, but his crazed mind didn't know that and he continued to freak out more.

[Azalea]

Dromena
"Fenrir, you realize this all sounds like some ridiculous rip off of some fairy tale."she answered dryly, grabbing the strange compass. She examined it carefully and then went to look at the other item. Fenrir was lucky that she was familiar with wizards otherwise it would have been difficult for her to believe the so called space wizard. She had lived with her old lover's family, after all, and- shit, didn't she have a kid somewhere? She briefly wondered what happened to him but Fantine did not want to think about her old life and instead continued her conversation with the captain. "But wizards are strange, so the story sounds plausible. Samhain, hm? We should have plenty of time to find these mystical spheres he spoke of, then, if we continue to work together efficiently."

She pressed a button on the scouter and saw the magic activate. Fantine brought the equipment up to her eye and was surprised that it stayed in place, but even more surprised when she started to receive data in front of her eye. According to Fenrir, all she had to do was think about what she wanted the data to display. She briefly thought of Fenrir's strengths and the scouter began to give her data on his werewolf abilities. "The scouter seems to work."she informed, although a bit skeptically, "This magic feels strange, though. Almost like lightning..."

She removed the scouter and then grabbed the radar, pressing a button on top of the object. The compass powered up with the same type of lightning magic she sensed from the scouter and she saw seven dots. Fantine pressed a random dot and the others disappeared and were replaced by an arrow.
"Apparently, this sphere is to the west."she commented, before turning off the device. Their search would not begin until they reached the island, so there was no need to waste the item's magic. "Well, they seem to work, Captain."

Charlie
"At least the ocean seems somewhat calm right now..."he mumbled, worryingly watching Protettore being lowered by the rope into the water. When the young vampire started to panic and splash around, Charlie frowned and wondered if they should try raising him up a bit more. "Um...Mariemaia...I don't think he's listening...maybe we-"

Cepheus
"Did you just dump the kid in the ocean?"he sighed, walking over to the two vampires and rubbing his temples. He was already in a bad mood because of the vampires from earlier, and now it looked like he would have to deal with Jecht's whims again. Even when asleep, his friend was making his life difficult.

"I'll go down there and calm him down, if that is alright with you...?"he asked, awaiting an answer.
"Uh, alright..."he heard Charlie agree, and that was all he needed to hear. Without bothering to undress, Cepheus took a deep breath and dived into the water.

The kid was still splashing around, probably not noticing him or just getting more afraid. Cepheus grabbed a hold of Protettore's arms and attempted to lift him higher above the water.

"Hey! Calm down, I have you, you won't drown."

[Midorimacchi]

☆fenrir☆
"We'll reach NeverIsland by tomorrow. Once we hand the prisoners over to Nico, we can start our journey for the DragonSpheres." He reached over to take the radar out of Fantine's hands and examined it himself, turning it over to look at the back for seemingly no reason at all. " I want to start with the furthest and then work our way back from there. Samhain seems to be far away, but there is no telling how long it'll take us to collect all of the Spheres in time." His fist clenched around the scouter as he spoke, his voice turning darker. The thought of him not completing his quest in time got his blood boiling. This opportunity only came once in a lifetime and he wasn't going to blow it. He owed Freya that much.

He placed the scouter and radar back into the bag and stood up, " Thank you for your time. Get some rest so you can help unload our supplies to NeverIsland tomorrow." With that he slipped out the door and returned to his quarters.

☆protettore☆
When Cepheus, his savior, jumped into that water and lifted him up, Protettore automatically wrapped his arms and legs around his body, like a koala would do to a tree, and held on for dear life. He was probably choking the vampire, with his arms wrapped tightly around his neck, but Protettore didn't care! He was drowning, and now he wasn't, and he was determined to keep it that way. " T-Thank you so much!" He cried into Cepheus' hair. He didn't know who Cepheus was, not having the chance to meet him before this fiasco, but now he was Tori's most favorite crew member. " Tell them to pull me back up! I don't wanna do this anymore!!"

☆mariemaia☆
" Can't do that shortstuff! Jecht's ordered you to do something and we have to help you. You can't go against the Captain's orders!" She helpfully called down to them, glad that Cepheus had shown up when he did so Protettore didn't drown. She could only guess that Jecht was doing this to make the little boy stronger, but was completely going about it the wrong way. Making the poor child do impossible tasks wouldn't make him any stronger, and would only result in killing him. Sighing, Mariemaia leaned over the edge of the ship and watched the two in the water, hoping they would find a way to complete this task.

[Azalea]

Cepheus
When the vampire grabbed onto him desperately, it took a lot of effort not to get shoved under the water by the panicking Protettore and he silently thanked Cerberus for giving him extra strength. Cepheus patted the boy on the shoulder, attempting to calm him down. "I don't think they'll listen to me..."he answered, and right on cue he heard Mariemaia from above saying that they couldn't go against the captain's orders. He sighed, holding Protettore protectively as he attempted to think of a way to solve this mess. "Are you sure he has to do this?"he shouted out to Mariemaia and Charlie.

"Uh, he said not to let him return until he found the stuff so...Yeah, I think so...!"he heard Charlie begin to say, and scowled internally.

"Are you serious? What is he even sending him to look for?!"yelled Cepheus, and Charlie said something about jewels and paper that Trixxtal threw overboard, causing him to sigh once more.

"Well kid, I can't order them around so it looks like me and you get to go on a treasure hunt. Ah, it's ok to be scared, but remember you won't be alone."he smiled.

"And I can shapeshift into a dog, random I know, but I can transform and lead you in the water safely. Just hold on to me and I'll do the swimming. I turn into a grim, and they're stronger than ordinary dogs, so even though we're in water I think I can find the things if I just search for your uncle's scent. You just have to grab them. Is this plan alright with you?"he asked. "It's the simplest way I can think of to get you out of here..."

And within a few minutes, after more persuasion and reassurance, Cepheus found himself in his grim form leading a terrified vampire child who could not swim around the ocean. He had never personally swam under the ocean, only above the water on board a ship, so he was surprised to see that the ocean actually looked beautiful in his eyes. There were a lot of colorful fish and strange...water trees...?

They returned every few minutes back to the surface for air and Cepheus was glad that there were no sharks or other dangerous creatures. He led Protettore to the jewels one by one, using his nose to find them, and after finding about ten of them he could no longer smell Trixxtal's scent scattered in the water. Just as they grabbed the last one, Cepheus was going to return to the surface when something shiny caught his attention. He took a detour and saw a small, orange sphere hidden in one of the water trees. He grabbed it with his snout and swam with Protettore back to the surface.

He immediately transformed back into his human form and looked at Protettore. "Well, that's all of them!"he told him happily before looking up at Mariamaia and Charlie. "We're done!"he shouted, and to his relief he saw Charlie begin to pull Protettore's rope back onto the ship. As Cepheus waited in the ocean, he glanced down at the sphere in his hand. He grabbed it because it was shiny but now that he was examining it closer, he sensed some sort of strange power coming from it. All he could see was that the sphere had three stars on it and other than that, he had no idea what the item was.

[Midorimacchi]

☆célestin && fenrir☆
It was when he was relaxing on deck that he noticed the ship in the distance. They were pretty far out in the water, NeverIsland being so far from land that it wouldn't be found by any ordinary ship, so it was usual to see another ship so close. Though there was a possibility that it was just a normal cargo ship, Célestin figured it would be safe to alert the captain anyway.

" Captain! There's a ship in the distance," He called behind him, not taking his eyes off the ship. Footsteps approached him from behind and he felt Fenrir peer over his shoulder before pulling his telescope from his coat pocket. Célestin waited as he observed the ships and was surprised when he heard his alpha laugh, " They have very colorful sails," The werewolf explained as he pocketed his telescope. It took a minute for him to decide, but when he made up his mind, Fenrir turned around and called up to the men tending the ropes to the sails, " We're changing course! Take us to that ship!" He pointed in the ship's direction. " Our journey will be long and we can use all the supplies we find. Gather up everyone and be ready to breach that ship. Loot them for supplies while I deal with their captain." He ordered before walking up the steps to the wheel and turned them in the direction of the ship with the rainbow sails. Célestin nodded and gracefully slipped off the edge of the ship where he had been relaxing. Naturally the werewolves were the best fighters, but Fantine, Kakeru, Regulus and even Gwendolyn were expected to fight. They lived together and fought together, and that was just how they lived on the Skullkracken.

☆fenrir☆
Fenrir watched as Sultenúlfr went to the bottom decks to collect the rest of the crew members and smiled to himself. It wasn't normal for him to attack every ship they passed, despite being a pirate, but what he said had been true, about collecting supplies for the journey ahead. Also, it would give his betas a chance to let out some steam and practice before putting their skills to use. He knew that Nicolao was itching for a fight, having been stuck on NeverIsland with nothing to do, and that Romulus needed to practice fighting a little more. These were just humans that they were going up against, so no matter what, it would be a one-sided fight. Offhandedly, he took out the radar from his shoulderbag and turned it on, just like Fantine had done on the night in his cabin. He hadn't really messed around with the strange items the spacewizard had gave him, but he supposed there was no better time to practice than now.

To his surprise, there was a dot nearby, meaning a DragonSphere was close. Infact, it was so close that it was probably in the area. " Fantine," He called out to her once she and the rest of the crew made their way to the deck, " A dot means that a sphere is close, correct?" He asked, shaking the radar. According to it, the sphere was infront of them, just a little ways ahead. Fenrir looked up in that direction, expecting to find an island or something, but instead, found the ship. Even better! That ship had a DragonSphere on it, which only doubled Fenrir's desire to overtake that ship.

As they got closer to the ship, Fenrir stepped down from the wheel and looked towards his crew. " Remus, Romulus, you two make your way down to their supplies and take what you can. Kakeru will go with you so he can stun anyone who tries to stop you. Everyone else, distract the other crew members away from the supplies. Don't let them get on board the Skullkracken and retreat if you feel overwhelmed, for whatever reason. Leave the Captain to me." He smirked as they got closer.

☆trixxtal☆
Giving Jecht the cold shoulder was something he had come to perfect over time. Surprisingly enough, for as much as they claimed to be each other' best friend and meant alot to each other, they sure did fight alot. So much so that it was almost expected once a week. It happened enough that the crew stopped noticing it and hardly thought anything of it. So no one said anything when Trixxtal made it painfully obvious that he was going out of his way to avoid Jecht. He would spend time talking to random crew members that he hardly had talked to before and even went as far as to go down to where they kept the humans to strike up a conversation. He avoided the deck like the plague, which is how he found himself in the supply deck, speaking with Videl about his life in Spain and what is was like to be there.

[Azalea]

Cepheus
"I suggest we find a healer to join the crew, Captain."he proposed, his hand rubbing the side of his neck as the fresh bite marks started to heal. He heard an uncommitted "Hn, I will consider it." from Jecht and nodded silently, knowing he needed to say more. Just as he intended to leave the captain's quarters, Cepheus' memory suddenly jolted and he remembered the strange sphere he found in the ocean.

"Jecht, please wait a moment."he requested, waiting until the vampire's attention was back to him, and pulled out a small bag that held the treasure. "Will you examine what is inside of this for me when you have the time? It was found during Protettore's task."

Jecht
The vampire looked at Cepheus questioningly but shrugged his shoulders, grabbing the object and stuffing the bag into his coat pocket without bothering to know what was inside. "I'll look at it later, after I finish some business."he explained, gaining a smile and a thank you from his human friend. The two of them exited Jecht's room together but went opposite ways.

Jecht found himself on the deck a few minutes later. He leaned against the gunwale and inhaled deeply, his mind filled with thoughts of recent events. Jecht still did not feel one hundred percent recovered from his wounds dealt by the wizard and he was still fighting with Trixxtal.

He heard footsteps. The vampire tilted his head to the source of the sound and noticed Mariemaia approaching. Jecht parted his lips to speak a greeting to her, but his eyes caught notice of something in the distance that froze his words.

He returned his gaze onto the ocean, feeling the waves rocking his ship along the water. Those same waves, he could see, carried an approaching ship closer and closer towards his precious FlyingDeath. The FlyingDeath sustained numerous damages over the years from the battles he waged but no matter what, his ship always managed to sail on proudly. "Well, my dear,"he cooed, patting the edge of his ship with a hint of fondness in his voice, "Looks like you may have to go through another fight tonight."

He removed his hand and glanced up into the sky, the sensations of electricity moving through the air and he felt the power pulse around his body. Lightning suddenly sparked in his palm, shining bright like the stars not hidden behind his storm clouds, and slowly twisted his lips into a faint grin. The energy floated passively in his hand before dividing into small, circular lights resembling fireflies. The lights burst away from Jecht and swiftly floated away.
"Let them come if they want to die, it is no fault of mine if they harbor a death wish."he declared.

Sparks of lightning floated towards every crew member. They all knew the meaning of the lights; the lights being one of the methods Jecht used to warn the crew of an incoming attack. Steadily the crew arrived and gathered around him, with a few the captain noticed immediately.

"Where is the first mate? And Videl?"he asked cooly, and Jecht heard one of the vampires mention the supply room.

"Tell them to stay there and protect our supplies, then. I suspect that our attackers are not human; therefore, the rest of us here will fight and defend!"he dictated, his eyes scanning over his crew. Human pirates, in Jecht's opinion, tended to attack during the day. They had more advantages in the sunlight, especially if they mistakenly attempted to raid a vampire ship such as his.

Dave flew up to him and perched on his shoulder, and Jecht patted the bird gently on his head as he waited for their guests to arrive.

Regulus
While many of the werewolves appeared eager to fight, Reggie just wanted to go back to his room and eat Kakeru's cooking. He preferred not be around filthy humans and mentally cursed Fenrir for forcing him to fight and waste his time on worthless creatures.
"Ugh, what if I get their dirty blood on me..."he muttered under his breath, trailing behind Fantine as her and the rest of the crew jumped onto the ship. He felt contaminated just walking on the same floor as them and Reggie felt the urge to jump into the ocean to rid himself of human presence. Thankfully, the scent of human was not too strong...in fact, he did not understand the scent he was picking up.

Regulus kept his face impassive, however, and merely looked straight at his enemies. A man with a parrot on his shoulder surrounded by what Reggie assumed was his crew was glaring at all of them.

"Welcome to the FlyingDeath."greeted the man with the parrot, his voice laced with a mix of malice and superiority.

They certainly weren't cowering in fear and confusion instantly replaced Reggie's irritation. As soon as the man with the spoke, as if signaled, the FlyingDeath's crew attacked and Regulus realized why he did not smell any humans early. This crew was obviously not a human one and he was not sure if he should feel worried or relieved over the news.

"Vampires..."he heard Fantine remark and he widened his eyes in surprise. A short surge of panic filled inside of him before his nails extended into claws and his body became enshrouded with a visible, dark aura. It was by luck that Regulus transformed when he did, for out of nowhere, a black dog pounced on him and he was sure the bite would have tore through his arm if it were not for his tougher demon skin. However, since he was not full blooded, he felt a cut stinging somewhere on his upper arm. He hissed and grabbed at his wound instinctively, glaring at the dog as he sent a wave of demon energy at it.

The dog dodged out of the way of his attack and transformed into a humanoid form so fast that Regulus did not have time to think before getting punched in the face.

Charlie & Nemesis
Charlie gulped, wondering if he would be able to win against the intimidating looking werewolves.

"Charlie, we are strong vampires! We can win against those wolves, just fight well like you always do."he heard Nemesis whisper in his ear supportively. He hesitantly nodded and inhaled deeply, hoping he could somehow channel some sort of secret mystical power to give him strength. He did not wield a special ability that he knew of, like Jecht's lightning or Trixxtal's waterbending, but Charlie did learn some martial arts while he lived in Japan. Hoping it was enough to bring him victory, he attacked the closest werewolves and prayed internally that he would not let down his crew.
Nemesis, on the other hand, felt slightly more confident in her abilities. I am a fierce and strong princess, not a damsel in distress! she reminded herself.

After her inner monologue, Nemesis felt determined to demonstrate why her family was made into royalty. She summoned flames to her hands, and sent a fireball towards a strong looking werewolf with dark brown hair.

Dromena
She thought they had been incredibly fortunate to find the location of a dragonsphere so quickly, but she should have known that acquiring the object would not be easy.

"Vampires..."she commented, her voice loud enough for the crew to hear. Fantine tightened her grip on the blade she wielded in her hand. She recognized the name FlyingDeath, the ship belonging to another infamous band of pirates like them except they happened to be composed of mostly vampires rather than werewolves. She briefly noted where she saw the others: Fenrir seemed to be engaged in a fight with the vampire caprtain; Celestin against a blond haired male vampire; Nicolao versus a dark haired female vampire; Regulus fighting a man who she could have sworn had just been a dog; Gwendolyn near a child; and finally, the brothers and Kakeru sneaking away behind a door. Despite her worry for the more inexperienced like Romulus, Regulus, and Gwendolyn, Fantine felt excited at the thought of being granted the opportunity to test out her weapons against the vampirates.
She lunged her sword at a female vampire wielding a similar weapon to her blade.

Romulus & Remus
"Kakeru and brother, I smell food behind this door, I think we should check here first!"chimed Romulus, dragging Remus' arm towards a wooden door. The young werewolf excitedly rushed them inside and Remus refrained from scolding his brother for once, since they were in a hurry. The rest of the crew were fighting vampirates, after all. Who knew how much time they had to secure the supplies?

Remus continued to let Romulus drag him through the seemingly empty hall and he made sure to keep Kakeru in his sights as to not accidently get separated. "This place seems a little...empty."commented Remus, wondering if they were gong the right way. There seemed to be no guards, but Romulus' had the better nose when it came to finding food...

And right as Remus was doubting his brother, the three of them arrived in what looked to be the supply room or at least where they kept some of their food. "Yeah! I told you it was here!"Romulus rejoiced, who looked as if he was about to dash forward and grab everything in his sights.

Remus held his brother by the shoulders to keep him from moving forward before he could get himself hurt. "Romulus, are you blind?! Be careful. There are two vampires in here..."he explained in a harsh whisper, eyeing the two vampires warily.

[Midorimacchi]

☆fenrir☆
Fenrir was the first one to step off Skullkracken and onto the enemy ship, all the while staring down the ship's captain. Whether the captain was confident, or just plain ignorant, he had some pretty big balls letting Fenrir enter his ship like that. The rest of his crew followed behind him and after a short head nod, they all went their separate ways. Fenrir stood his ground though, his eyes never leaving the captain. If what Fantine said was true, and these were vampires, then this would be over shortly. He had fought against vampires before and none of them stood a chance against his alpha form. And not to mention that he had faith in all of his crew members, even little Gwendolyn, to emerge victorious from their individual battles.

Before he fought with the vampirate, he wanted to test the scouter out once more, so he took it out of the bag and placed it on his head, the green transparent screen covering his left eye. It automatically turned on and suddenly, Fenrir's vision was flooded with random numbers and signs, all of which he couldn't understand. Still, discovering how to use a piece of equipment in the middle of battle was dangerous, so he tried to ignore the numbers and focus on the captain. When he did, the random numbers sorted themselves out and actually started to make sense. It displayed the captain's power level and abilities, giving Fenrir every bit of useful information before he fought the vampire. " So, the wizard was right. This will be useful." He smirked to himself and let his claws come out, ready to fight.

☆protettore && gwendolyn☆
Protettore didn't know what the random lightening infront of him meant, but he knew it wasn't a good sign. When he saw all the other crew members scramble to get to the top deck, he decided to follow them to see what was going on. Immediately after getting there, he wished he hadn't. In the distance, he saw another ship approaching the FlyingDeath. At first, his young and innocent mind thought that the other ship was coming over to trade supplies or to talk or something, but when he looked at Jecht's crew, they were all ready for an attack, their weapons drawn and their teeth bared. Fear punched him in the gut and made his knees shake. Even after Jecht's little training exercise, which he wasn't even able to complete by himself, he wasn't anywhere near ready for a fight against a real life pirate.

He looked around for his Uncle in hopes of hiding behind him until the fight was over, but the blonde was no where in sight. He was too far away to heat Jecht's question about Trixxtal's location, but remembered seeing his uncle heading to the supply deck a few hours ago. Hopefully he was still there.

As Jecht's crew began their fight against the opposing ship's, Protettore ran towards the door leading down to the lower decks. He wanted to be by Trixxtal and also alert him of the fight happening above. He didn't want to loose anymore family and was determined to keep Trixxtal safe. However, before he was able to reach the door, someone pulled him back by his collar and sent him toppling backwards. When he looked up, he found a raven haired girl peering down at him with a frown. He quickly got to his feet and readied himself to block an attack, but to his surprise, the girl didn't move to hit him. Infact, she looked unable to move, fear evident in her eyes.

" D-Don't go down there or else...or else I'll have to stop you!" She warned him and Protettore took a step back. He could only guess that his girl, who only seemed to be a few years older than him, belonged to the other ship's crew since he had never seen her before, and also the fact that she wasn't a vampire. This gave him some confidence atleast. Even at his young age, he was stronger than the average human, thanks to his parent's heritage, and he was fairly confident that he could handle this girl. But when he moved to attack, she jumped back and began chanting under her breath. A small circle appeared at her feet, strange words and symbols flashing in the center, and within seconds, a small animal dragged itself from the middle of the circle. It wasn't any bigger than a chihuahua, but it resembled a lion and had a flame for a mane. The strange flamelion jumped around Protettore's feet and seemed cute at first, until it opened it's mouth and breathed fire.

Tori screamed as his clothes caught on fire and he rushed to pat it out. During this time, the flamelion rushed behind him and began to bite at his pant leg, tearing the fabric with it's teeth. " No! No! Stop!" He cried as he tried to shake the animal off and put the flames out.

Gwendolyn felt triumphant that her little flamelion was doing so well, but she also felt guilty for beating up a small kid. For all she knew, he could have been a human captive that these evil vampires had captured and had no part in any of this. But Fenrir's word was absolute and she had to stop the boy from going down to the supply room where Remus, Romulus and Kakeru were.

☆mariemaia☆
She had been gearing herself up for this all day. When she had woken up, she knew in her heart that today was going to be the day, the day that she was going to do it. She was going to confess her love to Jecht and accept whatever consequences came afterwards. But it just so happened that just as she was about to do it, right in the middle of walking up to Jecht to awkwardly tell him, they were attacked by an enemy ship. If she was superstitious at all, she might have saw this as a sign that she shouldn't confess and keep it to herself, but she wasn't so she simply decided to do it after the battle. Which they would no doubt win of course.

When a pink haired female jumped from the ship and started towards her, Mariemaia drew the sword from her side and blocked her attack.

☆trixxtal && videl☆
The two were talking about a legendary city of gold that Videl had heard stories about as a child when the sparks of lightening appeared infront of them. In an instant, they were both on their feet and on guard. They looked at one another and simultaneously nodded, knowing that their best move would be to go up to the deck. But when Trixxtal moved for the door, he felt Videl grab hold of his elbow, " Hang on, maybe we should stay here? If it is another attack, atleast one of us should protect the supplies."

It took exactly two seconds for Trixxtal to think it over and he nodded, " Thanks for volunteering Videl, I appreciate it." There was no doubt that Videl was stronger than him, immensely stronger, but Trixxtal needed to be up on the top deck to make sure Jecht was okay. The probability of Jecht not being fully healed from his previous injuries were very high, and if these were just ordinary humans attacking then he would be okay, but there was always the slim chance that they weren't human and Trixxtal needed to be there just incase. Luckily, Videl seemed to realize this and released the blonde's elbow, giving him a bright smile, " Of course amigo!"

But that smile quickly turned into a frown when the door opened and two men came blundering through, happy that they finally found the supply room. " So it is true, you are after our supplies!" Videl sounded hurt, like it was a personal attack on him or something. Before either man replied, a calm, monotone voice echoed throughout the room, a third man stepping out from behind the two men.

☆kakeru☆
"You two take the brunette. Remember what Fantine said, these are not regular humans so be careful." He muttered and pulled a piece of paper from the confines of his clothes. It was a simple strip of white paper with Kanji symbols on the front and seemed perfectly harmless, but to those of the supernatural persuasion, it was a lethal weapon. He didn't use talismans or ofudas very much, since it seemed redundant when he was able to do all of that with a simple touch, but in this case, they came in handy. There was no way that the brunette vampire would let him get anywhere close to him or his blonde haired friend, so he needed something long distance.

As Remus and Romulus broke away from him, he concentrated on the blonde vampire. Strangely enough, he seemed oddly familiar. Almost as if he had seen his face somewhere before...

"臨,兵.闘,者,皆,陣,列,在,前!" He chanted to the ofuda between his fingers before releasing it towards Trixxtal.

☆nicolao && célestin☆
Fighting in a pack was an instinctual urge for the werewolves, so when Remus and Romulus slinked off together to the lower deck, Nicolao and Célestin naturally gravitated towards each other. They felt safer with their alpha still in sight, as he engaged in battle with the Captain, and kept close to him, ready to jump in if needed. The instinct to protect their alpha was strong, but Fenrir's pride and stubbornness wouldn't allow them to help until the very last second. But they still kept within distance when they were individually attacked, Nicolao by a woman with fireballs in her hands and Célestin by a man who seemed reluctant to fight. They both dodged their respective attackers, but while Nico moved to counterattack, Célestin simply straightened up and offered Charlie a smile, " I don't really want to fight you..." He sighed as he looked around at his crew members who were fighting vigorously, " But it seems that I have no choice." His fangs grew larger and his fingernails extended and he lunged forward, baring his fangs, hoping deep down that his intimidation was enough to scare this guy off. His only real goal was to help Fenrir out, if need be, and he had no intention to fight this guy.

Nico on the other hand was fighting against Nemesis with everything he had. He didn't care if she was a woman or if she had magic powers apparently. He had spent a God forsaken amount of time on NeverIsland and he had been itching for action for a long time now. Rather then dodging the fireballs, Nico took them head on like a badass, merely flinching when they crashed into his face. He was already wolfed out, with his teeth and nails elongated, and his healing abilities were stronger than ever during this time, so dodging was only one option out of many. " You have some nice tricks," The werewolf told the girl, wiping his charcoal covered face with the back of his sleeve and smirking up at her. " But let's see how you handle this!" He made a move at her feet, intent on dropkicking her right then and there on that deck. It would give him greater access to her neck where he would be able to bite and hold on, either killing her with the severity of her wounds or the lack of air from her damaged windpipe. Either way, it would be a victory for him.

[Azalea]

Jecht
For a moment, Jechtfeared for his life at the word 'wizard' but rage swiftly replaced the fear in his heart and he shouted; shouted so loudly that the heavens could probably hear his voice.

"YOU'REWORKING TOGETHER WITH THAT WIZARD?!"

He snapped, and consumed by his madness, Jecht ferociously lunged forward with lightning at his command. His mind held no more coherent, well thought out plans of attack. Fury was the vampire's only fuel as he blindly attacked the invading werewolf with his electric sword, golden energy shining, shimmering splendidly around his entire body.

Regulus
Of course on a ship full of vampires, Regulus was stuck with the one human on board capable of fighting. He rubbed the bruise on his cheek, planning to take twelve baths later to rid himself of the human's touch and scent, and growled as he glared at the human. The filthy creature was giving him a smug grin and it pissed Regulus off.

Cepheus
"Oh?" he mused, observing the obviously irritated boy in front of him. A curious scent. Demon and human, a mix of both. Quite like me...

He reminded him almost of Jecht, the way he was so suddenly angry without explanation. That thought made him smile.

Then the demon-human hybrid gave him an even more repulsed looked and suddenly slashed at him, although Cepheus managed to dodge in time and knee'd him in the stomach before tossing him away. He needed to defeat this boy quickly, otherwise he could not check up on little Protettore. What if he was being killed right now?!

Romulus & Remus

Romulus cheered towards the brunet, " Thats right! Now surrender your supplies now or prepare to fight! Kakeru says we have to fight you! But you dont want to fight us, my brother is the best brother and he will beat you up! Right, brother?" he paused in his speech, enthusiastically glancing at Remus before continuing. "So just give us the supplies, otherwise my brother will-"

Remus covered the pups mouth, masking his embarrassment over Romulus tirade with a glare towards the vampires. "Take this seriously." he whispered harshly to his brother before releasing him.

"ALRIGHT!" he shouted, pumping his fist into the air. "LETS DO OUR SUPER COMBO ATTACK, MY BROTHER! FOR OUR ALPH-"

"You're going to get us hurt with you babbling!"interrupted Remus, a grimace on his face over his foolish brother, silently praying that he didnt get killed by the vampires because he talked so much. Romulus pouted but nodded, and in the blink of an eye the brothers both transformed into their wolf forms and simultaneously lunged towards the brunet vampire.

Charlie

He was unsure if the werewolf could somehow sense his reluctance to fight and was only using it to advantage, and the smiled confused him. If he did not want to fight, then why did he come to their ship prepared to fight?

He did not understand and did not reply, cautiously stepping back to dodge the claws. There was a slight hesitation in his stance before he raised his fists defensively, observing the wolf and preparing to try to dodge any attack he might try.

Nemesis

Irritated that the he was barely affected by her attack, she did not expect him to suddenly kick her feet. Nemesis was about to fall onto her back when she suddenly resummoned her flames to her hands. She quickly aimed her flames onto the deck and used them to propel her from the floor. Ignoring the hint of fear of her nearly becoming vulnerable, she growled and sent a flurry of flames towards his reproductive organs to see if he would merely flinch from that attack.