EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha let out a long, uncertain sigh once Fendros' questions took on a more serious nature. "I know you're probably right, but...what is there even to talk about? I mean, we were both there, we both know what happened. And neither of us have any solution to just get rid of that pain. I know I'm not alone in the pain I experienced, at least not the mental pain. I wish I was; I wish you never had to go through that, but...I guess I'm saying I just have to accept that it happened. There was nothing we could do about it, then or now."

Though confused for a moment, Kaleeth's eyes lit up when she realized that she was actually familiar with what Sabine was talking about, at least partially. It was nothing she had ever seen herself, of course, but it was a familiar detail in the stories told to her by the Treeminder. "I...don't know what a fox is, but I think I know what you mean. Like I said, the Treeminder loved to tell us stories. According to him, Argonians have not always been alone living in the marsh; there were other people. There were Humans, a group called the Kothringi, that used to live in Black Marsh. They all died with the...Knahaten Flu, I think was what it was called. The other race were the Lilmothiit. They used to live where Lilmoth is now, and they were covered in fur like Khajiit. They all died a long time ago too. The Treeminder said it was probably the Knahaten Flu too, but no one knows for sure. That is probably what Meesei was talking about, I think."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha gave a smile, walking over to the railing and leaning over to look at the waves hitting the ship below. "Well, I have been sleeping better, certainly. I'm not completely without nightmares, but they're more like the ones I was always used to having, not so...regular in topic. I do have some trouble sleeping still, but not because of dreams. I still have not become completely used. to sleeping on the ship. The rocking of the ship and my hammock at night, it is somewhat distracting and disorienting. Hopefully, I'll get used to it, but if not, at least we won't be onboard forever."

Ahnasha turned her head, noticing Rhazii at the same time as Fendros. "We should get back down to the bunks." She said simply.

"Oh, is that why I sometimes see Janius and some of the others cutting the hair on their face? I guess that makes sense; the hair not on the top of a human's head doesn't feel nearly as soft. It's almost...itchy. I almost wish Janius would cut all of his hair off, but I guess that wouldn't look right." Kaleeth said, pausing for a moment when she noticed Ahnasha and Fendros starting to head below decks. It inspired a question in her mind, though Sabine was not likely to know the answer to it. "I wonder what it's like to be a Khajiit? Humans have hair on your heads and other places, but Khajiit have it everywhere They probably have to do a lot more to take care of it than Humans do. It would seem like having all that hair would be very itchy, but they don't seem to act like it."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha no longer took as much interest in the game now that she was not playing and had no investment in it. She instead she paced a few steps as she glanced out over the horizon. As they were travelling along the coast, they were still in sight of land, which was comforting. Once Fendros spoke up about Rhazii, she turned her attention back to him. "You know, I can't actually say I know exactly how quickly Cathay grow. I know it is fast, but I really don't know when he will be what size. Hopefully, he will be able to walk before he is too...inconvenient to carry around at all times. Though honestly, we will probably have to carry him a fair amount even when he is old enough to walk and talk. That, or we'll need to be content with covering a lot less ground in a day."

Kaleeth leaned down to allow Sabine to reach up to her fins, giving a nod to ask permission to feel them. She did not feel there was anything special about them, but then again, Sabine probably felt the same way about hair. Although, she really could not say she understood what Sabine meant when she asked if they hurt. "No, I don't have to do anything special to them, unless I wanted to pierce them or something. They don't really do anything, I don't think. I think feathers take the most work if you want to make them look pretty. I think I am glad I don't have feathers; I wouldn't want to have anything that would take a lot of work, and hair seems like it is even more work than feathers. Humans even have hair on your body and not just your head. Do you have to worry about that too?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha breathed an audible sigh of relief when Drinks failed to set his pattern. It seemed he grew a bit too ambitious, or felt that he had to create a much more difficult challenge to defeat her. In all honesty, she had a good chance of failing the next one even if he had matched her last one. As Fendros knelt down beside her, she gathered the coin she had one into her coinpurse. "I think I've had my fill of excitement for now. That will be my last one."

As she stood up, Ahnasha grinned at Fendros. "Yes, I did a wonderful job at winning back my coin, didn't I? All my training really helped, but you weren't too bad. Ah, that was exhilarating, I feel...energized. I know fighting is a serious matter, but games like that give a sort of...thrill like in fighting. I guess it is the danger. I wouldn't mind taking some risks more often."

Once again, Kaleeth mimicked Sabine's motion by rubbing her fins at the same time as she rubbed her hair. "We don't have hair, but some Argonians do have feathers, like Meesei. They are...sort of the same. A lot of Argonians have horns, and some like me have fins. I don't know why our heads are so different compared to yours; it seems like humans just have different colors. There are a lot of Argonians that try to make their heads look pretty too, though. Some like to pierce their fins and put rings in them, some put larger rings over their horns, some tie fabric to them. There are a lot of things people do, I just never tried it because I was a hunter and didn't want jewelry to get caught on things."

Curiously, kaleeth reached out to Sabine and ran her hand through her and across the side of her face, not actually remembering to ask beforehand. "Your hair is soft, though, like your skin. It feels a lot different from feathers and scales. I had never felt hair before me and Janius became mates."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

After watching the first two games, Lorag gave a small laugh at Fendros' defeat. He could have made a joke, but he did not want to put himself in the position of being challenged at the game. He did not fear being hurt, but he was not exactly the most dextrous individual. Against these sailors, he would probably lose, so trying to say anything to Fendros would likely backfire on him.

"Hmph, I should have known you would lose my coin." Ahnasha teased as she handed off Rhazii to Fendros once again. It only took her a moment to consider the Argonian's offer before placing down the remainder of her coin on the box in front of her. "I only have six, but I'll take the bet. You want to start us of?"

Drinks-In-Sun gave a nod as he laid his hand out on the box and took up the knife. Given that he had already shown what he could do with Fendros, his pattern was just as rapid as the one which had won him the last round. She had to watch him intently to memorize the pattern he set, which was both complicated and quick. He finished it seemingly without issue, so Ahnasha took in a deep breath once it was her turn to take up the knife. Concentrating intently, she started to mimic him with just as much speed, trying to imagine the gaps in her fingers like the gaps in armor. She was practiced with precision and needed only to apply that experience. It was only a few seconds before the round was over, and her hand unscathed.

The others quickly took considerably more interest in the game upon her success. It was obvious that this Argonian was one of the more skilled players among the sailors, so for her pattern, she decided not to hold back. Ahnasha pushed the limits of what she could do, nearly cutting herself on two occasions as the blade danced between her fingers. Not only did she keep up a high speed, but she tried to make sure the pattern was as complicated as she could make it. Luckily, she managed to finish the pattern without cutting herself, so it was up to the Drinks-In-Sun to match it. He seemed a bit less confident than before, but then again, neither was Ahnasha. If he managed to pass this round, then it was unlikely that she would win the next.

Kaleeth matched Sabine's motion of rubbing her arm. "Hmm, the sun is warm, so I guess it makes sense that it could burn, but...I've never been burned by it before. Maybe it is because you have skin and I have scales? Human skin seems thinner and easier to scratch, so...maybe it is easier for the sun to burn? I'm not sure; I never really thought about any of these questions before. I wonder what else is different about us that we don't really think about?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Sorry for the short post, I am a bit busy at the moment.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Being that she was the actual victor of the previous round, Ahnasha had a few more coins to work with, eleven in all. She did not actually know how Fendros would fare at this game, given that she was not as involved in his swordsmanship training. Janius and Lorag often handled that part, while she focused on archery. If he was practiced enough, his skills could transfer over to this game, however.

"Hmm, I'd say...I am about as confident as you." She answered. "Five coins on Fendros." She said as she put forth the coin, matching his bet from the previous round. Once she took back Rhazii, the game was ready to begin

Kaleeth paused, seemingly deep in thought as she tried to figure out what to say."I...don't know. I mean, I've been burned before, and it didn't seem to hard. It really hurt too. I just don't really know how it compares to Humans and other races. I've never burned a human before, and we can't really test it or anything. Do you know how easy or hard you burn?" She asked.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The bets placed on the pair were fairly low, but there were a few on both sides. It seemed that at least some of the onlookers were either willing to risk their coin on someone they did not know, or the Nord was simply not known for being skillful at the game. Once all bets were placed, the Nord grabbed the dagger and laid his hand out on the table with his fingers spread out. "Alright, game's pretty simple. One of us stabs at the points between your fingers in whatever speed and order you want, then the other has to match it at the same or faster speed. We go until someone hesitates, slows down, messes up the order, or stabs their own hand. Oh, and just to make sure you're not just stabbing at random, there's a limit on how many you can make. We'll make it ten for this one.Easy, right? I'll go first."

The Nord started out at a brisk pace, but Ahnasha could tell he was being cautious. She followed his movements carefully, which, at their current speed, were not too difficult to follow. She could understand his strategy, though. He likely did not want to risk making a mistake at first when he did not even know the skill of his opponent, so he wanted to gauge what she could do. Once the pattern was set, Ahnasha laid out her left hand on the table, since it still had all of its fingers, and took the knife in her right. Following the pattern he set, she was able to mimic the Nord at his speed with no issue, though by the reaction of the onlookers, it was not really an impressive feat.

When it came time for Ahnasha to set the pattern, she had to decide on how to approach it. She felt confident that her training would give her a definite advantage, since, when she did use blades, it was almost always in a precise manner directed at vital areas, or gaps in armor. However, she did not want to show all of her capabilities at once, so the speed and patter she set was faster than the Nord's, but not so fast that they could not believe she was a beginner. Still, with each stab of the knife being so close to her fingers, she was feeling an adrenaline rush by the time her pattern was set. It was a dangerous game, but to her, that danger was exciting.

Ahnasha expected that the Nord would be able to keep up, but surprisingly, he seemed to have a significant amount of difficulty mimicking her pattern. He had to concentrate for a few seconds at first to get the pattern down in his head, then seemed quite nervous as he was carrying it out. As he was nearing the end, he slipped up and held his dagger in the air for noticeably longer than Ahnasha had. He finished the pattern regardless, but he knew he had made a mistake.

"I...think I'm going to have to call that one. You hesitated, she wins." The Imperial sailor said once he finished, with a few of the others nodding in agreement. Ahnasha had expected it to end with one of them being stabbed, but she supposed there was more than one way to lose. She now had a few more coins to her name once the bets were paid out, though it was only really enough to make a more enticing bet if she put all of her gold into the next one. First, however, she looked to Fendros with a grin, wondering if he would live up to his challenge and step up as well.

Kaleeth shook her head. "No, it is never cold in Black Marsh. I remember hearing that it could be in other places, but I never imagined it could get so cold that water would freeze without even using magic. That almost seems unbelievable." She commented, trying to imagine how being in such a place would feel. The only experience she really had with cold was frost spells, and Sabine said that it wasn't quite painful like that. She could not understand how it was possible for water to be freezing on its own, but the air still be comfortable enough to live in. "You said that wearing thick clothes makes you warm? I didn't know that; the most clothes I've ever wore at once is this, or that terrible dress."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha grinned, taking the small pouch of coins out of her bag. "Alright, provided one of them will actually take my bet," She watched the game in progress to attempt to understand the finer rules, though someone would no doubt explain it to her if she asked. The pair of imperials on each side of the crate went back and forth a few rounds until one of them. stabbed the knife a bit too close to his hand and cut part of his hand near the base of two fingers, a cut that made Ahnasha wince. Once the winner took his gold, Ahnasha was quick to step forward before another game started.

"Hope you don't mind, but this game looks like something I could do. Unfortunately, I don't have much in the way of gold, so I don't suppose any of you would be willing to take a low bet?" Ahnasha asked, opening the pouch to show its contents. The victor of the previous game glanced inside, but did not seem impressed.

"Eh, not enough to be worth it, not for me. Hey, Hjorin, you could use some coin, how about you take her on?" The man suggested to the large Nord standing behind him, who had noticeable cuts on his hand. He stared at Ahnasha's coinpurse for a few seconds before finally letting out a sigh.

"Uh...fine, okay, whatever. I'd like to go way with something, at least, and I've still got enough to at least match that." He said, albeit hesitantly.

As they were getting ready to start, the others started placing their own bets. Noticing that Fendros had approached with her, the Imperial gave him a quick, questioning nod. "You got any bets, Dunmer?"

Ahnasha followed the man's question with a glance of her own. "Yeah, I'm wondering who you think will win this one?"

Kaleeth seemed skeptical. She did not have any reason to distrust Sabine, but she wondered if cold would affect them differently. After all, the Argonian homeland was warm at all times of the year. She wondered what kinds of things they would have to do to prepare. "I hope you are right. You say we have to wear warm clothes. What are warm clothes? Are they enchanted to be hot or something?" She asked. Given that she had never once used clothing for insulation, or indeed, had never needed to insulate anything, she was not aware that layering clothes would make her warmer.

The Depths of Deception

Though Rareth had managed to get Shiva and herself to a relatively safe and stable position, there was little she could do from there. Normally, she was quite proficient in zero-G combat, as her telekinesis allowed her more fine maneuverability than was possible with thrusters. However, her current level of magical fatigue placed her in a difficult situation. She needed to keep her barriers up, or one shot could mean death, but at the moment, she could not keep her barriers and perform complex telekinesis at the same time. It was difficult enough to keep the piece of debris she and Shiva were using for cover stable. As a result, she was forced to stay put, peering over her cover to take shots at the enemy. At the very least, the fact that one shot could also potentially kill them kept them cautious as well.

At the range they were engaging, and with the debris floating between them, it was difficult for either side to land hits on the other. Rareth heard Shuo announce that a Sovereignty dropship was inbound, so all they needed to do was stall for time. Rareth was almost out of ammo for her pistol, so she switched to single fire and tried to be conservative with her shots, but even so, the forty seconds could not seem to pass more slowly. Each shot she fired was simply meant to suppress her foes, though two did hit the shields of two separate enemies. A small light on the back of her weapon indicated to her that she was drawing close to an empty magazine, so she saved her last shot and held herself behind cover, drawing her blade on the off-chance that the enemy decided to advance. She could do almost nothing more to help in the fight, apart from keep their cover stable, but looking back outside the breach, she could see the dropship approaching.