Markus rushed out of the brig and into Calliope's room, knowing they would go after her first. What he saw he didn't expect. One dead man and blood, but no Calliope. He didn't wait, running down the halls and heading up the stairs. He made it to the upper level and stepped out of the corridor and into the hall leading to the gun deck, turning the corner to face three men moving in his direction. Judging by the look on their faces, they were just as surprised to see him as he was to see them. "It's him!" the one in the back cried. A quick observation told Markus they had raided the blade rack, so he swiftly reached into his baldric and leveled a flintlock pistol. The man didn't have time to scream before a lead ball punched through his skull, spraying the man behind him with blood and viscera. The man cried out, swiping his cutlass wide, blindly. Markus easily sidestepped it and ran him through, stepping back so he would topple to the floor. He would have a harder time with the man at the back, however. Markus stabbed forward, but the soldier knocked it aside and cut at him. The Captain could barely block in time, parrying with the strong of the backsword. In this closed situation, they both had advantages. The cutlass the man was weilding could maneuver easier, as it was a slightly shorter but broader blade. Markus' backsword was not as long as Calliope's rapier, but it was still constricted. However, it still had reach. They traded cuts and stabs for a few more moments until they heard a splash out the open window. They both looked to the window, and then one another for a split second. It was now who had the quicker reflexes who would win, and Markus cut him down in an instant, maiming the man and leaving him bleeding on the floor. Somewhere below decks, Sron howled in anticipation and steel on steel could be heard, but Markus needed to make it top side. He stepped into the sunlight just in time to see the burly man that had been guarding Calliope turn to face him, a grin on his face. "So Captain, you gots yourself a choice as I sees it. You can go after the bitch I just knocked over, or you can fight me. Which will it b-" His words were cut off when Markus's throwing dagger entered his throat, red liquid pouring out like a geyser. The soldier that had been on the gun looked in blank amazement, and he held his hands up, clearing not looking for a fight. Markus ignored him, stepping to the ship's railing and hastily taking off his coat and swordbelt. He could barely make a fading outline in the water that looked to be struggling weakly. [i]Or it could be her body being pushed by the current[/i]. He willed himself to be quiet. "If you want to live, sailor, tell them you've no fight in you when the rest of the crew make it to the deck and keep on the ground." He remarked to the man, and with a practiced dive he leaped off the railing and into the shallows of the cove. As the water swallowed him up, he wondered why he felt more worried than he should over Calliope's fate. He paid it no mind at the moment, zipping into the water with a trail of bubbles in his wake, before his momentum halted. He needed his wits about him. Even if no major sea monsters were in the shallows, young beasts and moderately sized sharks could still lurk. He could see Calliope at the bottom, mouth and hands bound in nothing but her skivvies. She wasn't moving. He swam down to the bottom with a strong stroke, grabbing ahold of her waist. She seemed far more innocent than he knew her to be, like this, dark hair flowing in the soft current and eyes closed. Turning her about in the slow pace that only water permitted, he kicked off the bottom toward the surface. It was to his great relief that all he saw of any critters was a sea turtle idly watching them with a curiosity. Less than a minute later, Markus dragged Calliope onto the beach where only the high tide could nip at them, and he checked her breathing. "Sink me" he cursed, and pressed his mouth to hers, before pumping his hands on her chest thrice, and then breathing into her again for what seemed likely an eternity until she coughed up a mug-full of sea water onto the shore, hacking and desparately trying to draw in breath that came all too slowly. Markus fell over to his side, breathing almost as roughly as she was. "Oi!" he heard from the deck of the ship. His arms like lead, Markus pushed himself to a sitting position and saw Jax waving at him, three of the soldiers in custody, as well as Bill. [@Penny]