[center][h3]Sinmara[/h3][/center]

For a solid moment, it seemed to Sinmara like Fae was going to rain on her parade. It wouldn’t have surprised her if he did, since his appearance and demeanor all suggested that he belonged to some stuffy, self-important intellectual caste, so focused on intellectualism and ‘progress’ that there was simply no time for quaint notions like ‘fun’. By this point, the huntress was also somewhat used to rejection; few people ever bothered to humor her, let alone actively engage with her, so her efforts to drum up enthusiasm in situations like this typically fell flat. It was to her surprise, then, that even as Fae verbally decried the idea of such immature tomfoolery, his body sprang into action. He proceeded to launch himself up after her, and though the strength of his mechanical limbs naturally fell somewhat short compared to her incredible physical might, his ascent was still an impressive feat of engineering. When Fae casually joined her on the upper deck, she extended her hand for a fist-bump with a smile on her face. “You’re alright!”

Less alright was the remainder of the entourage. Marissa willfully abstained from enjoying herself, using the chance to bolster her ego. With her arms crossed, Sinmara watched her rival amble up the ramp, shaking her head in exaggerated disappointment. “Tsk, tsk, tsk. Guess we all know who’s the rotten egg in this situation,” she said aloud, her lack of inner dialogue still in full display. Still, the others didn’t even give her that much. Once it became clear that none intended to board with any fanfare, Sinmara gave up and turned away from the railing, not even really caring if the rest embarked with her or not. After all, this was [i]her[/i] big adventure, and she didn’t need any extras dragging her down.

Very soon, the ship began to move. Distracted by the grand vistas of the surrounding sea and land that being so high up afforded to her, Sinmara didn’t even notice until the scenery began to move around her. “Whoa,” she breathed. “I can’t even feel it! How’s something so big moving so quiet?” Full of energy, she sprinted toward the battleship’s bow, her huge ponytail trailing behind her in the salty sea breeze like a black-and-white flag as she ran. When she reached the very front, she clamped one hand on the railing and leaned out over it, one fist extended in emulation of a classic ship’s figurehead. “Finally, we’re going places!” she crowed, her Heart of Darkness pumping with exhilaration. After all this time, the huntress was finally embarking on her first real adventure. No more random hunts or fetch quests–this was an epic journey to save the world! Or something like that. The final destination didn’t matter as much as the road to get there, and on a campaign of this scale, Sinmara just knew there would be oodles of suitably epic battles

Sinmara could already picture it in her head. An island home to all manner of evil, awash in perpetual storm clouds and darkness, infested with terrifying monsters. Towering cyclopean giants, abyssal leviathans, horrific spiders, ghouls and goblins, and majestic dragons. What was a quest without dragons, after all? She imagined herself leading her band of adventurers through haunted forests, pitch-black caves, and lava valleys, overcoming challenge after challenge in style. Then they’d finally arrive at the impregnable citadel, where the Denizens of the Damned (who would logically be demons, based on the name) amassed in droves, armed to the teeth and outnumbering the heroes a hundred to one. The image came easily of herself wading through the battlefield, waist-deep in enemies, cheerfully comparing her kill count to that of Fae (who’d be doing well without even trying) and Marissa (who’d be bringing up the rear despite all her bluster, yikes!). Then after cresting a mountain of bodies, she’d slide right down using a demon as a surfboard in order to blow apart the citadel’s gates with a single mighty punch. Finally, they’d run into the Demon Lord of the Damned, a huge red devil with bat wings, a forked tail, and horns almost as cool as hers. What a fight that would be! Destruction waves, dive kicks, blocking blows that could crush cars, sawing through limbs twice her size, and just when the Demon Lord seemed defeated, he’d molt down to a true form the same size as Sinmara for the final showdown, fist to fist! After the brawl to end all brawls, they’d clash one final time, coming together with such ferocity and power that the amazed onlookers couldn’t even tell who hit who. But then they’d see: the True Demon Lord’s punch had barely missed, while hers struck true! Cue the dramatic death scene, ominous final words hinting at a still greater threat, and then a big explosion. Finally, a feast with all her loving fans, bathed in the attention and fame she’d always deserved!

The ship’s horn suddenly snapped Sinmara out of her starstruck daydream. She blinked rapidly, readjusting to reality. No victory feast. No Demon Lord. No mammoth citadel. No legendary monsters. No perilous island. At least, not yet. Just the blue sky and the blue sea, stretching all the way out to the horizon. Sinmara sank down onto the railing dejectedly, bent over it like laundry on a clothesline, and stared down at the waves. This was going to be a long, long boat ride.

“Wait.” After a minute, she perked up, her brows raised and her eyes wide. “The hell am I moping around for? I’ve got super strong people I can fight!” Pumping her fists, the huntress turned around and took off running. It was time to do laps around the battleship, and the moment she saw any of her fellow weapon finders, it was Go Time.