[center] [b]Una, Ailis, & Cross - Chapter 1: Gust from Another World[/b] [youtube]MalBJuI9O5k[/youtube] "So, that's the metal contraption the guys at the bar were talking about." - Una "Seems a lot more menacing than I expected." - Ailis The two standed at the edge of the lake, the silvery water reflected the image of the airship and the bioluminescent light of the trees gave a glowing aura around it's surface. The thick forest surrounding the scene gave the area a twilight feel, small insects that were more adapted to the dimly lit environment scattering quietly as the two made their way around the west side of the lake. "[b]Seems unsettlingly quiet, menacing isn't really the word I'd use.[/b]" - Una "[i]You don't think that emblem on the ship is a bit...[/i]" - Ailis "If I painted my face blood red, and ran around naked with a claymore. Would that be menacing?" - Una "I get it, forget I said anything." - Ailis Reaching the opposite end of the lake, they peered at the front end of the ship where a few men could now be seen, high above on the peak of its bow. A number of them clamored over the rest of the ship's surface, though given it's height above the duo, it was difficult to pick out how many were there. They seemed to be clad in similar black and red colors with shanty uniform that seemed bloodstained and tattered. These men were obviously looking for something, and within moments the scent of blood was picked up by Una's nose. The elf's ears perked as she heard the approaching crunch of leaves and mossy soil coming from behind. Ailis set her hand upon the hilt of her sword, standing abruptly as if challenging the approaching noise. While Una a bit less blatantly turned at a slow careful speed, setting her hands on each opposing hip's sheath and awaited for the approaching figure to notice them. Two men, dressed in loose-fitting and mangled clothing of the sea, carrying curved swords approached their position from along the lakeside beach. Their booming voices indicated they felt little fear in the area, and the duo could easily make out a jar of alcohol swishing in their hands. Their weapons were sheathed and their spirits high; perfect for eliminating. They trudged towards Una and Ailis unabated and unaware. Some patrol they were. Ailis smirked, and Una cackled, darting towards some less than concealed bushes. The two followed the awful sentrymen for a short amount of time before Ailis signaled her partner, the signal was of course the impatient snapping of the succubi's fingers as if saying "We don't have all day." Nonetheless, Una quickly and quietly made her way behind the to men, unsheathing the blades that glowed a light-green color. The left sentrymen seemed to notice the vague light, but it was already too late. Flashes of acridium quickly went through the light clothing of the two, opening their lower bodies with ease as they silently bled out. Pressing them to the ground by their necks, their faces hit the wet ground below as the sound of mud and blood gargled within their mouths. Una turned to Ailis and offered her to approach the corpses. "They were already stained with blood when we got them." - Una "It's been a while since we've gotten to play dress-up." - Ailis In the distance, a heavy bell sounded in the air. The booming vibrations it had caused indicated the immensity of its size, and such a bell could only have been located on a single place nearby; on the ship. Commotion picked up in the lake, and it seemed some sort of gathering was taking place aboard the ship. Torches began to light up as darkness set in, and for the moment it looked to be that everyone who was anyone was headed aboard. Pirates from within the forest around the lake appeared from within, on their way to the massive airship out on the waters. "Is that the dinner bell?" - Ailis "Good, I'm starving." - Una The two casually pulled the two corpses into the short bushes, stripping them of their clothing, though not of their shoes. Letting the bloodied pirates roll into the lake, and afterwards throwing the ruined pirate garb over their own armor. Some of it peeked through, though not enough at this amount to be spotted unless inspected carefully. Though after their 'disguises' were complete, the duo casually hopped back into sight following the swarms of similairly clothed shipmen to the airship. ---- Rightfully, they had garnered some powerful stares, but ultimately they went unnoticed. Either their garbs were so horrible that they couldn't possibly have been anything but pirates, or they were not the only attractive females headed to the same place. Eventually they found themselves boarding small rowboats, packed in with a larger number of burly men, the foremost of whom rowed them to the underside of the airship. Upon reaching it, they had rope ladders thrown down to their rowboat, and slowly each of the passengers found their way up to the ship's deck. It seemed a lot larger from outside and below, likely because it wasn't quite as crowded. Countless pirates filled the deck, chattering with one another, the sheer diversity of their appearances testament to the strangeness of the crew. Una and Ailis were jammed in amongst them all, overcome with a foul smell of sweat and dirt. Eventually, all the conversation fell into silence, and for a moment even high above the lake, the chirping of crickets and birds could be heard. Heavy boots quelled the noise of the forest, approaching from one end of the airship. Una and Ailis were further jumbled together as the crew made linear space in the center of the deck. A tall, rather filled-looking individual walked through the clearing, a tattered red cape trailing behind him in the breeze. His face, for a moment, was obscured by a triangular black cap, but soon Una and Ailis caught a glimpse of his true nature. His face was but a skull, held aloft seemingly by the upwards draft of ghastly mist that emanated from the hole in his shirt where his neck should be. The ghost stopped in his tracks, and another individual caught up to his greater stride and stopped as well; a black haired girl with a blue scarf tied around her neck. Despite her petty size in comparison to the ghastly captain, she exerted a stern visage that commanded respect and caution. With a shift and slide, the captain turned to face the side of the ship Una and Ailis were crammed on. He took no notice of them, however, and only spoke to everyone as a whole. "Men, I'm sure you've all heard rumors bout' where we're headed. You've been taking bets and losing all yer' hard earned cash it seems," the captain threw out a finger to an individual the duo could not see, and smiled before continuing. "Some of you were right. Better cough up the coins to yer' mates soon." A bout of laughter and cheering filled the deck, and died down when the captain hushed them with waving gestures. "On this remote Sphere, we got our means of escape! Things fell through with a certain [i]someone[/i], and now we got ourselves in a bit of a mess, yea? In all my years, never thought we'd be coerced into doin' somethin' so impossible. We got close..." he trailed off, "But nevermind. What's under these grounds is somethin' no one's ever used in a long while, so I hear. Once we get it, no more runnin' from the authority! We'll go where we please, take what we please, and get our arses out of it just as soon as we had gone in!" "For now, after layin' down our own law to the nobodies out there, we can rest a little easier for the night before settin' out." The captain threw his arms up to the crew and boomed, "So eat hearty, drink well, and rest well! Got a lot o' work to do come tomorrow when the sun ignites!" The crowd once again cheered and began to disperse. As room began to clear on the deck, Ailis and Una caught one final leer, this time from the girl that stood at the captain's side. When she turned away to follow the ghost, however, it seemed that for the time being, they were still safe. "Skull-faced Sailor, fake, myth, right Ailis? You'd better hold-up your end of the deal." - Una "Yeah-yeah, what are the odds?" - Ailis "The odds? In my favor, as always." - Una Una stared at the raven-haired girl as she sunk back into the darkness behind the captain of this ship. Once the figures were no longer able to be seen, the vibe of the ship seemed to be less tense. Though, the scent of it didn't get any better, it was like like expired fish, bathed in prehistoric cheese with a side of welted crops after a day's rain. Both of the girls' faces seemed to turn green with disgust and ran to the dining area where they hoped the scents of food would masque it. When they pressed deeper into the ship however, the scent did not change, though that was the least of their worries as drunken pirates nearly filled this entire area to the brim. "This is going to be difficult. I suppose we'll have to act like these imbeciles for a while, until we have an opportunity to search the ship at the least." - Una "They're gambling, I can do that." - Ailis "Just don't win too much, you'll draw attention to yourself." - Una Pressing past the grog-soaked sweaty men and women of the ship, they finally reached the large dinnertable at the center of the dining area. Ailis quickly took a seat where the pirates were playing some foreign game of cards, Una on the other hand just stood quietly behind her and observed their surroundings. The men welcomed Ailis, albeit reluctantly, sliding but slightly to allow for the cubi to take a seat at their side. Putting down their cards for a moment, they turned their attention to the peculiar new face. The crew was large, but it wasn't often a pretty face like hers found its way into the ranks. "Don't recall seein' you on the Windy Mare before. You a new hand?" one of the pirates asked, placing a bracing hand on his knee as if resting from a long stand. The cubi perked up in alert as the abrupt question caught her off guard. "A-aye! Jus' got recruited a day'er two ago." She visibly grimaced towards the man, looking back to the cards. "Fond of games, huh? I know that look," the same man responded. His group too seemed to realise how intent Ailis was on playing cards, and they quickly halted their game in progress in favor of introducing another player. The pirates shuffled the cards up and slapped the deck down at the center. "What game you itchin' to play?" "Got anything to offer, lass?" another asked, leaning forward on his elbow. "You choose the game, just don't get upset when you lose." said Ailis as she reaches to her side pulling a small leather satchel full of golden coins towards the table, slapping it to the wood and smiling to those around. "The real question is, what do you have for me?" She winked with this response, working some of her charm magic. "Oho, that's quite the bank there, that is. Where'd you work your magic on before comin' aboard this messy place?" The pirate grabbed the cards and began fiddling with them, a smirk on his face. "We'll play somethin simple. First games with one another should be simple, I think." He began to hand out cards, face down, to each of the players present. "Blackjack," he stated, having set the initial board, "Throw in your bets." The other pirates brought out a few coins, but certainly nothing of Ailis's comparatively grander wealth. As the cards were handed out, Ailis gave a quick glimpse to see her comrade nod to her. The succubi smiled confidently, watching the others around her she tapped the two she currently had beckoning to be given another card. Clueless to the rules of what she was playing, she flipped the three cards over obliviously asking. "Did I win?" The three cards happened to be a 7,4, and 10. The pirates grunted in failure, most of them bowing their heads in failure. Before the pirate that had dealt the cards could acknowledge her sudden, peculiarly lucky victory, a feminine but stern voice called them all out from the other side of the room. "You goons. A fire's been spotted out in the forest. We need a team to go investigate it." Turning to meet her stare, Ailis and Una found themselves faced with the dark-haired girl that had stared them down earlier. Even still, however, she seemed to remain oblivious to their novelty aboard the ship. Her pointed finger and sweeping gaze indicated the two, and their gambling pirate partners, were the ones to take up her command. "Grab some gear and head out there," she demanded. The pirates about the duo immediately rose from their seats, shuffling together the cards as quickly as they could, and promptly retrieving their own cash before Ailis could snatch it up. "We'll see if you're as lucky next time. Then maybe we'll part with our coin, lass," the pirate stated before passing beside the raven-haired girl, who merely returned their downward glances with a leer that could light the ship's wooden structure aflame. -------------- It had taken a bare handful of conversations to get the information he'd needed and a few minutes of bartering to secure supplies for the trip. Cross had spent less than a half hour in the town before leaving for the ship's reported position. He arrived shortly after nightfall, creeping through the trees that he barely remembered from his childhood. Surveying the area, he noted that most, if not all of the pirates were aboard, leaving him without any easy way onto the craft. Something caught his attention and he inhaled through his nose, scenting blood on the air, much too strong to be coming from the pirate ship. Tracing his way around the shore, Cross eventually came across a pair of bodies floating in the shallows and stripped naked save for their footwear. He grabbed them by their hair and pulled them across the shore and into the tree line, before crouching down to think. After a moment he stood up again, leaving the pair of corpses for the moment and walking off into the trees. Returning with a bundle of dry wood under his arm, he dropped his load at the base of a tree, making several more trips until he felt that the pile was large enough. He left again and after a few minutes of searching found the bloodstained patch of ground where they were killed, along with their weapons. Returning for the last time to the pair of bodies, he lifted them each in turn and used their own swords to spear them through the chest, fixing them to the tree. Stepping back, he double checked the distance from his chosen trees to anything nearby, not wanting to start any forest fires. Pulling off his left left glove to reveal the metal forearm and hand underneath, Cross picked up a piece of the gathered wood and gripped it in the hand. A second later the stick burst into flames and he threw it onto the rest of the pile, setting it alight and illuminating the two dead pirates in the tree. Standing for just a second to admire the effect, he turned around and moved quickly along the shore to watch from the treeline. The two trailed behind the pirates as they made their way to the upper-deck of the ship. Ailis took a few moments collecting her earning, but quickly returned to Una's side before she could fall behind. The elf gave the raven-haired woman a smirk as she passed, returning the leer of the woman with a broad smile and squinted eyes as they exited the crowded area. The pirates clearly led the imposters, and rightfully so; with what little time they had on the boat, the two might as well have gotten lost in its sub-deck depths. The three pirates walked silently -albeit with intermitten quips on something irrelevant- followed closely behind by Ailis and Una. Eventually they found their way to another hanging rope ladder that led down to a rowboat. The group rowed back to the forest by the beach, following a trail of smoke rising from the canopy, as well as the barely visible glow of a fire behind the rows of trunks. "This better not just be the leftovers of one of the crew's torches," one of the pirates moaned. The boat brushed on the sand ashore, and the pirates disembarked, unsheathing their curved blades in preparation. They walked with attentive eyes, but their stances and careless move forward indicated they weren't quite as worried as they ought to be. Cross sat in the bushes, hidden in shadow but near enough to the fire that the contrast between light and dark would ruin any chance of spotting him. He drew his sword with an almost painfully slow movement, the noise lost in the crackling of the still 'cheerfully' burning fire. He kept his eyes averted from the blaze. He knew it was there and staring at it would ruin his night vision. The pirates got close enough that Cross could get a good look at them. The pair at the back appeared to be remarkably more alert than the rest. Even as they neared the pinned bodies, the pirates took little extra precuation. The corpses had since been singed so strongly that they no longer appeared as the remains of men to the pirates, and so they did not stir into fright and confusion. As far as they were concerned on the approach, the tree had simply been set aflame by some means. The two women seemed a bit confused by the burning pike, staring at the charred husk with inquiring eyes. Off to the side, Una's eyes drifted to the bushes and dropped to the sand below searching for tracks in the area. In the end however, she did not act upon her instincts and followed the pirates without a care. The pirates said nothing, only continuing to move closer to the flame, passing beside the bush Cross hid himself within unawares. Cross stood and stepped into the path, grabbing the rearmost of the group with a strong hand over their mouth and nose and pulling them into the bushes. He whispered into their ear. "Be quiet now. All I want is a ride on your ship." The succubus willingly fell into the bushes, attempting to muffle the sound to the best of her ability as she broke branches and landed on the wet sticks below. She glanced quickly at her assailant, and, noticing his ears, she marked him as a local which was less of a threat than their current pirate act. Una, who quickly noticed her partner vanish into the great green yonder, whispered nonchalantly before reaching for a pebble on the ground, wiping the sand from it's face and tossing it with swiftly into the woods. The force of the stone caused a nearby tree to shake, a few local birds flew from their nests and caused a noisy ruckus in the opposite direction in which her partner "vanished". "Look! I just saw him! That way! Go go go go! He's quick!" Una shouted, faking a sprinting motion towards the direction she pointed before dropping down to appear as if she had miraculously took off into the darkness. The pirates fell for her trick, taking immediate notice of the loud thunk upon the tree and disruption it caused. Before Una could even finish her motion, however, the pirates had made off into the darkness, more convinced by the sound than her faked disappearance. Within moments they had disappeared from sight. Cross almost chuckled at the ruse but still held a firm grip in Ailis. He removed the hand from her mouth but still kept a forearm around her neck. Glancing between the two, he smiled. "You two smelled far too nice to be pirates." Struggling to release herself from the man's grip, Ailis reached outwards like a dying soldier attempting to give off his final words. "Una... I can't breathe... Keh!" With this act, she feigned unconsciousness. "Release the princess or be slain!" Announced the elf woman who twirled from the darkness of the lakeside jungle, with daggers unsheathed she seemed to fall from the sky behind the two and posed valiantly after this facade was completed. Breaking from her own play, Ailis opened her eyes as if her role was being called upon. "My hero, you've come to slay this defiler of maidens." Said the succubi who continued to wriggle and squirm under the man's arm. "Of course. Now... Hand over your belongings please... If you'd be so kind." Una said, in a slightly more serious, darker, tone. Cross sighed and turned around, still keeping a hold on his hostage. His free hand reached under his cape and withdrew a heavy bag of coins. "I've always wanted a princess, how much?" Cross's question was met not with an answer from Una, but in the form of an intimidating screech. The flames growing up the tree cast a light upon the immaculately white down of a massive bird, an albatross, which to anyone familiar with the area, was certainly out of place. It stared down at the group with beady eyes that indicated more intelligence than their blackness initially implied. It screeched again, extending its massive wings in a flurry of movement, brushing leaves from the tree branch it stood upon. Their gazes upturned to its position, the group only heard as someone approached from underneath it. The girl from earlier, of black hair and stern expression, stood beneath the tree the bird perched upon. Her face, once but leering, had turned to one of both disgust and anger. "My hunches were correct," she growled, The albatross screamed and dropped from its perch, landing upon the girl's outstretched arm, seemingly able to hold its weight despite its size. From the direction of the forest, the pirates that had run off returned once more looking quite confused, but still at the ready. Tracing the girl's eyes to Cross, Una, and Ailis, they seemed to comprehend the situation. "I'd let you leave, you seem like pretty girls. But there's quite a bit at stake here," she explained. With her free arm, she reached to her side and unsheathed a saber. "Seize them." [/center]