[b][center][i]Kyne's Tear[/i][/center][/b] [b][center][i]6th of Last Seed, 4E 205, Afternoon[/i][/center][/b] "...then I had to fight them. That's right, all of them! Ten bandits in all..." "Uh-huh." "I took the first one out by throwing my spare dagger at them, hit them straight in the heart..." "Wow." "...but then one got a hold of my arm! But I kicked him away, and cut his stomach open!" "Amazing." "Oh, and then..." This had been going on for about an hour and a half. Piper, simply looking for a quiet place to relax in the afternoon, had sat down at a small table. She had just about dozed off when she was beset upon by another Imperial. To Piper's immense chagrin, it was not her brother, but a man named Cilo. Some wannabe soldier that joined the company to prove his worth to some girl, apparently. No matter what she did the man never seemed to take the hint that she wasn't all that up for conversating, he simply kept talking. And talking. And talking. And fucking talking. "...and that's how I saved Tibedetha!" Doing her best to keep her eyes from rolling into the back of her head in irritation, Piper let out a sigh, whistling with false impress. "Wow, that's...really something, Cato." She said, staring off at nothing, impatiently rapping her fingers on the tabletop. "Uhm...Cilo, miss..." "Cilo, right." "So, what do you think? That was all pretty impressive, right?" "Oh yeah, definitely. In fact, I think you should go awa-...go off and tell everyone else your story! I really think they'd love it. Think about it, if you tell enough people, you'll be a legend..." Suddenly much less confident, Cilo looked around the room suspiciously. "Um...well, I dunno, I mean not everyone needs to know, right? Besides I don't want all that glory. I-it'd be really annoying to deal with, you know? So much pressure..." "Riiiight." "Oh, but I'll tell you though! I have a lot of stories-" "Don't you have some floors to sweep? Decks to swab?" "Well not re-" "GO." "Yes ma'am!" Flinching at Piper's demand, Cilo jumped up and scurried away, trying to find something to do to look busy. With the infernal chatterbox finally gone, Piper was able to close her eyes, lean back, and enjoy the relative silence, the rocking of the [i]Tear[/i] nearly putting her to sleep. Hell, she was almost relaxed, and that hadn't happened in a while. "Hey Piper." Came a voice to tear the peaceful silence asunder, like a kitten to cheap cloth. "Who the hell..?" The woman whined, not bothering to lift her head up to look at the new visitor. Though when she felt her nose get flicked as if she were a misbehaving animal, she shot up with a glare. "Your brother, you big baby. You talked to someone for an hour and you're already crying about it. I mean come on, being social isn't that painful, Piper..." Sagax stood before his sister, looking surprisingly rested and bright. He wore his casual clothes, leaving his leather armor under his cot. Good. Piper thought he looked strange wearing armor. "That guy is a whole 'nother story, Sagax. Trust me. He just...ugh! I mean, the nonstop talking wasn't the worst part, it was his bullshit story. I mean come on, him? Winning against a whole gang of bandits single-handedly? Give me a fucking break!" "I dunno, he looks like he could hold himself in a fight..." Sagax pulled a nearby chair over to him and sat down across from Piper. "Besides, can't you appreciate a good story?" His sister just rolled her eyes. "What's there to appreciate? It was about as good as that fool Leif's tales of dabauchery." "Oh come on you have to admit, they're at least funny. Most of them end with him getting slapped or chased out of the house by an angry father...or husband." "If you say so. Personally I'd only find it funny if I actually saw it happen." The thought of Ravenstone getting flipped over a third story balcony did admittedly bring a smile to Piper's face. Maybe she'd be lucky enough to see something like that for herself. Eurgh, what a disgusting man. "So..." Sagax began, ending a streak of silence. "So?" "How are you doing?" "Uh...fine? What kind of question is that?" "You know what I'm asking, Piper." This was the same game his sister always played. Non-answers, playing dumb, generally being stubborn as a mule. Sagax never understood her utter repulsion to sharing her problems and feelings, even to him. What's a brother to do about a sibling that simply won't open up? "Gods, not this again..." she responded, hanging her head back, exasperated. "I told you I'm fine. I always tell you I'm fine...because I'm FINE. I don't have anything to talk about." "Really? Nothing at all?" "Not a fucking thing." "Not even about mother-" "What the fuck are we supposed to do!?" Sagax had only barely finished his question, yet Piper was already yelling her answer. She clenched her fists and locked her jaw shut. "This is such...bullshit!" the young Imperial said through her teeth. "There's nothing we can do, and it pisses me off! We're all the way out here on this fucking boat, in the middle of the FUCKING ocean, with all these MOTHERFUCKING weirdos and...and..." She stopped suddenly, taking deep breaths and staring Sagax dead in the eye. "And...motherfucker...!" Huffing in frustration and crossing her arms, Piper sunk into her chair. "You did it again..." she mumbled, defeated. And speaking of games, that was one Sagax would always play. Once Piper got riled up, she simply couldn't stop herself. She'd vent everything out to you in one long burst. Of course he never set out with the intention of making his sister angry or causing her any other kind of distress, it was just unfortunately the only way to get her to spill what she was bottling up inside. "If you're wondering how I knew...you were pouting. And sulking lower than normal." "Pouting? Wait, you mean like..." "Your lips, yeah." "Ugh...I thought I taught myself to stop that. Guess I have a little more work ahead of me." "You know Piper, I know you're a fan of the 'tough girl' stuff, but really, I'm your brother and-" "You're here for me. I know..." Stopping for but a moment, Piper leaned over and wrapped her arms around Sagax. "Thank you." Sagax gave a firm embrace back, with a small but warm smile. "You're welcome." Just then, Sagax thought of a way to lighten the mood with Piper. "Hey, do you remember those songs we'd hear the crews down by the docks singing early in the morning?" "Yeah, I do. I remember our favorite, actually..." Piper felt a smile grow on her face, but right then, she didn't quite care. It was just Sagax, after all. "Go ahead, you start." Clearing his throat, the Imperial prepared his best singing voice. "Oh, the worst ship that ever did sail, set sail out of Anvil on a windy day..." Then Piper chimed in alongside her brother for the chorus. "[i]And we're waiting for the day, waiting for the day, waiting for the day that we get our pay![/i] "She was built in Reman's time, held together with bits of twine..." "[i]And we're waiting for the day, waiting for the day, waiting for the day that we get our pay![/i] "Nothing in the galley, nothing in the hold, but the skipper's turned in with a bag of gold..." "[i]And we're waiting for the day, waiting for the day, waiting for the day that we get our pay![/i] Sagax and Piper paid no mind to anyone else. They were too busy just enjoying the fact that they were actually spending time together again, something that hadn't happened in a long time. Absorbed in their merriment, the two carried on until supper, where even then they still sat together and talked. Though as oblivious as she was to them, Piper was getting odd looks by people shocked to see her so exuberant. They just didn't know the secret to making her smile, and they probably never would. Because it wasn't a word or deed, but a person it took to lift her spirits, a very special person. [hr] [b][center][i]Kyne's Tear[/i][/center][/b] [b][center][i]7th of Last Seed, 4E 205[/i][/center][/b] Sagax was sleeping like a baby throughout the night of the 6th. No dreams, no interruptions, nothing. It was an increasingly rare thing, a good night's sleep, and Sagax appreciated every single one he was afforded. His morning, however, was starting very abruptly. After finding Piper and helping her get her armor on, Sagax raced to the top deck and sprang into action. Choosing the chain closest to him, Sagax grabbed on as tight as he could and began to climb towards the massive ship in the sky. What was on board he didn't know, but if the new visitors were any hint, it was nothing good. Shortly after starting his ascent, Sagax heard his name. It was Sevine, and she had just thrown something at him. A pole with what looked like a large jelly fish stuck in a net on the end. He grabbed the pole successfully, but panic gripped him as he felt himself start to slip and turn sideways. "Ah...!" was all the man uttered as he turned upside down, legs locked across the chain to keep himself from falling into the briny deep. "Okay, okay, one...two...!" Sagax swung the pole over himself, using the weight of the strange creature in the net as leverage to set himself upright. Turning back briefly, Sagax gave the Huntress a thumbs-up, signalling that he had regained his grip. He then continued climbing, determined to stop the madness that the flying juggernaut had summoned. He didn't want to leave Piper behind to fight the creatures on the [i]Tear[/i], but he had a job to do. Besides that, Piper was not a child, but a grown woman that made her own decisions. If that decision happened to be playing chicken with a rotting werewolf, then so be it. Inching his way closer and closer, Sagax finally reached solid land once more. Carrying himself and the improvised bomb up to the deck, Sagax took a moment to quickly get his breath back. Several others had already found their way, including Sadri, Do'karth and Tsleeixth. "Okay, I'm here now...with a bomb, too! Let's get to work sending this pile of junk into the sea."