[right][h3]Aseophin[/h3][/right]

The ocean was deadly calm save for little patches of wind dappled waves that skittered here and there across the almost glasslike vastness. There was no land in sight, not even a cloud in the azure blue sky that stretched from horizon to horizon with nothing but the blazing sun to mark the passage of time. 

Amid the huge emptiness lay two vessels that would serve to strike awe into any race who relied on wooden warships and sails for speed. A pair of [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/4922723]Miruk Flesh-Constructs[/url] rose and fell gently with the near invisible swells that never cease to sweep the ocean, their sides and decks alive with a swarm of Aseophin. 

Both constructs lay much deeper than they normally might in the water, water having been pumped into the lower ballasts tanks in order to settle and stabilize them for the task ahead. Great thick cables of woven kelp ran through out rigged pulleys and then vanished into the ocean. The cables served two purposes; they allowed the Aseophin to move quickly between the constructs and their prize, and to eventually bring that same prize to the surface.

[i]Organized chaos at its finest.[/i] Cearirne smiled to herself as she brushed a small tentacle behind one ear. She watched as a work party began to unspool another cable and lower the weighted end into the sea. Two younglings, still new to their tade, whooped with laughter as they rode the weight into the sea with a crash. They would hang onto the cable now while it pulled them down several hundred metres to the bottom. [i]I should have a look myself. Always important for the leader to know what is happening.[/i]

She stepped up to the edge and caught the eye of the construct captain who nodded in understanding. Then she dove. It was a quick dive, arching out to ensure she was well clear of the main mass of the Murik Construct and its bulky size. She could feel her tentacles weight immediately tucked her arms close to the side of her head, her hands forming a spearhead so that she sliced cleanly into the water with barely a splash.

Shafts of sunlight shot through the water, great columns of gold amid the deepening blue and green, like a mighty cathedral that dwarfed any structure on land. The ocean below her was vast and filled with a thousand species of ocean life from the tiniest fish to a pair of [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/4922723]Orkiathan[/url] that cruised through the heavy cables, ignoring the panic they caused among the smaller sea creatures around them. 

[i]Such deadly beauty.[/i] She gave the two a wide berth as she began to swim downward. She was aware of the sounds of the Orkiathan as they displayed a scant interest in her passage. They would have to ne truly hungry to risk attacking an Aseophin. She kept a dagger strapped to her otherwise naked thigh for just such an occasion.
She reached a cable swiftly enough and began to pull herself hand over hand downward into the deep. It didn’t take long for her destinations to reveal itself. A leviathan corpse, its body mostly intact, was being swarmed by flesh scavengers as much as it was by the Aseophin workers who were setting the cables into place on fins and armoured head. They could not stay down forever however and a steady stream of workers came and went to the surface. 

[i]Perfect. The Elders said we needed a new trade construct and this one is ideal. It will require some flesh removal or course, and the organs will have to go, but its easy to work one like this.[/i] She swam lazily above the corpse, noting carefully the placement of the cables among other things. [i]Sandyish bottom. It’s going to need that sudden jerk to get it off the bottom. Can’t break the suction any other way.[/i]

Two passing Aseophin offered her toothy grins. They carried tridents, hand held crossbows, daggers and little else. Armour only served to weigh you down under the surface and clothing was impractical and pointless. Aseophin rarely wore clothing at all unless dealing with other races who seemed strangely determined to wear the skins of their dead enemies at times. She had never understood that at all.

Satisfied with her view from above she kicked hard and dove close to the leviathan. It was a [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/4922723]Toiyr[/url], a sought after creature for creating trade constructs due to its heavy armour and size. It would ideal for moving valuable cargo as it was impervious to almost anything a common pirate could throw at it. Provided it was properly modified and rebuilt. 

[i]I think that will do nicely.[/i] She turned and took hold of the nearest cable;  ascending to the surface rapidly without needing another look behind her. She burst out of the water and landed gracefully on the low platforms that sat only a foot above the surface of the ocean. Water cascaded off her and she paused, taking a moment to untangle seaweed that had attached itself to her ankle. She tossed it back into the water before making her way back to the captains platform where the salvage chief waited for her.

He knuckled his forehead to her as a show of respect and then raised  an eyebrow on his v-shaped head. She had always found his tribe pleasing to look at it. They had completely smooth skin, streamlined fins, and none of the extra appendages that some tribes had. 

“You have done an excellent job.” She stated, the words gurgling slightly at the back of her throat. “You may began raising it whenever you are ready.”

“Thank you, Magi.” He turned away from her to look over the chaos below. The last of the heavy cables was being swung into position and the workers were beginning to clear the water as they finished their tasks. 


Cearirne turned to the small plain chest, made from the shell of a giant scallop, and opened it carefully. Inside glowed a crystal, a round pulsating stone of pure white that had been brought from the depths by a harvesting team a few years previously. She caressed it gently, turning it over in her clawed hands, marvelling at how it showed no marks on its gleaming surface. She did not need it to increase her power, but rather to help her focus it. She was one of a score of powerful mages in Aseophin and creating construct vessels was her speciality. 

“Stand clear!” The chiefs voice echoed across the water between the two constructs and all of those assembled took shelter away from the cables. If one snapped, it would cut clean through any Aseophin it struck and leave a tremendous dent in the side of a construct. 

“Cut away!” Several Aseophin, lower down, began to work the heavy pumps that began to drain the ballast tanks. Sea water poured out of small ports on the sides of the constructs and they lifted slightly from the sea. Heavy stone weights hanging below the surface kept them partially submerged still and more workers stood by their lines, waiting for their order.

“Let got the weights!” The constructs had come as high as they could with the ballast tanks pumped free. Now the weights were cut free with axes, dropping toward the bottom immediately. The two constructs, freed from the burden shot toward the surface, Aseophon clinging to anything available and whooping as they went.

The cables snapped taught and the constructs keeled slightly inward toward the strain being put on them. After a seconds pause the carcass far below popped free of the clutching mud and the two constructs floated upright to cheers from their crews.

Next would come the cleaning of the carcass. All the internal organs and flesh would have to removed. Then, and only then, could Cearirne begin the process of transforming the dead hulk into an ocean going construct. Nothing would make her happier.