Muttonhawk

The Jade Stream

Vita or Zeroth? You guys around? Need post ideas?

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

On both ships, as the hatches out of the holds were torn off and spilled more light onto the shackled clan, those who had transformed began to leap up the steep stairs to join the fray. It was a tight fit through, so they only came up one at a time. Those who were less patient began to transform just to be free, but they would not be needed for the fight. The majority of others remaining stayed put, tensely murmuring to one another and listening up at the ceiling.

Specific to Meesei's ship, the silhouette of one werewolf actually climbed down into the hold after the fighting werelions were done climbing out. He looked across the sea of perked ears that stared back and he sniffed at the air. "Ahnasha!?" The werewolf shouted with gravel in its beastly throat. It was Fendros, checking to see if his family was alright.

While Janius was mobile on the top deck, leaping upon and dropping the crew as they slowly reacted, he took a few superficial hits. His beast relished in the bloodbath, free to fight without the fear of silver this time. Soon enough, when Kaleeth emerged, he focussed on making sure that none of the crew with harpoons or other long weapons could not take advantage of her slowness. The pair virtually secured the top deck on their own. The help from the werelions that followed them was just about insignificant. Meesei's way was clear, but for those that tried to climb the rigging to escape. Unfortunately for those that tried escaping upwards, Uthri had a penchant for climbing.

Not only did Sabine not feel the need to fight for too long, but she had been concerned about the people packed below where she was sleeping. Once she tore the hatch off and allowed the fighters to emerge, she took the time to snack on her previous kill to sate her beast, before reverting back to Breton form and stepping down to the remaining people who were shackled. One by one, she began to step around the clan and release them from their shackles with magic, prioritising those who needed to be released the most by asking.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

G'night!

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ah, I'll edit. Sorry.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

As soon as Ma'tanza released Tzirret's shackles, he carefully slid out of them and rubbed his sore wrists. "Thank you. This one forgot that magic could do that," he commented. As Ma'tanza went around unlocking whomever else while she had the magicka, Tzirret stood up and stretched, but then found himself at a loss. He glanced to Bheja and Qa'habi, "What should we do?"

Rhazii didn't much care for exploring the ship at this point. He could hear people getting hurt above and he could smell blood. He kept one wide eye looking out around the hold while he held onto Ahnasha. "Mama? What is happening?" Rhazii asked, clearly frightened.

While Peiter dispatched one of the Bosmer slavers, Sabine took a less rushed approach. Her opponent was not at all a threat, especially when he clumsily dropped his sword. Sabine strode up to the Wood Elf and grabbed him up off the floor by his lapel. She was adverse to killing those who were afraid under normal circumstances, but this was a slaver, just like the rest. Her beast was hungry. She shoved him up against a wall and went for his neck, making it quick.

Sabine did not give the slaver a chance to scream, but neither did she give her beast the chance to feast just yet. She left the blood-soaked Bosmer sitting up against the wall and instead turned her attention to the hatch on the floor, grabbing onto the chain that held it closed and pulling it out with all her might.

The ambush had killed many of the crew in the first few moments. Those still sleeping would be torn apart in their hammocks. It would be over quickly unless there was an unforeseen circumstance.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

While everyone stirred, Tzirret tried shaking his sleeping arm and causing clinking in the chains. He curled his fingers until they began to get sensation and began to speak. "Well...This one hopes the ships get taken soon. He really needs to relieve him-"

There was an unmistakable muffled sound blast from outside. It caused everyone in the hold to look up at the ceiling. Anyone who was still sleeping was awake now. A baby cried in the hold while everyone else was tense and silent. Ahnasha felt Rhazii press up against her in terror, grabbing hold of a handful of fur on her side in lieu of being able to hug her.

Then there was a greater frequency of clacking boots against the floorboards above. Shouting. Screaming. Snarling. The footsteps and shadows became heavier, causing the ceiling to creak. It reached a peak with a loud wolfish howl. Those who were to fight, nearest to the hatch, began to stand and transform, breaking their bonds in the process. They knew they could not transform all at once for fear of crushing one another in the limited space.

Thankfully, Gallus had located the navigator, grabbing him from behind near his cabin, pressing a knife to his thoat, and a hand over his mouth. Gallus hissed a warning as he lead the man into a small storage closet, "Don't move, don't make a sound. Your death will be much worse if you escape me, I promise." The sounds of the signal and the carnage that followed may have served as encouragement that the man was not outside.

Janius' transformation made him the only werewolf around him apart from Uthri nearby. The rest were werelions and of course Kaleeth, the largest of them all. That did not discourage him as he burst out a door from the mess, leaping upon the first slaver he saw and striking with such power that the surprised man stumbled off the side of the ship with a bloodied chest. He lunged at another, going for the throat.

Sabine had been waiting on the other ship with Peiter, ready to strike. When they transformed, their responsibility was to tear off the hatch from the slave hold, as another would do on Meesei's ship.

Not even a minute after the signal, the urge to leave the hold hit the slaves even harder as patches of dripping blood began to seep down through the gaps in the ceiling.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

In his various worries, Tzirret slept lightly and not well. Bheja's brief scream was what caused Tzirret's exposed eye to shoot open. He immediately remembered that he was still in a dim hold, but there was the odd sound of another heartbeat near his ear. He took a fraction of a second to register the pattern of the fur in front of his eye...and then another moment to recognise its shape...and another to identify its consistency. His own heart was already racing from the perceived danger of whatever Bheja's cry of alarm was, so he was panicked as he attempted to immediately get up from Ma'tanza's chest. He ended up rolling onto her navel instead, seeing her face through the parted valley. The reason for his failure lay in his still sleeping arm, pinched from sleeping in an awkward position. And of course, the other was still chained to its numb counterpart.

Now fully conscious, Tzirret heaved his functioning hand up to finally prop himself up from the floor, wide-eyed and thoroughly abashed. He first looked to Bheja and found that there was no danger, then looked sideways at Ma'tanza in fear for a moment. He couldn't maintain eye-contact for long in his shame and looked into space away from her. "Um...sorry..." Tzirret mumbled. He didn't even remember getting into that position.

When Janius awakened, he lifted his head out of the hammock to look around for Kaleeth with narrow, tired eyes. He was just as worried as Kaleeth was, so her words echoed his thoughts, but he smiled reassuringly all the same. He reached out of the hammock with one hand and placed it on Kaleeth's cheek. He breathed in deeply through his nose so he could have a moment to put together the Jel he knew. "We get Newt up soon," Janius responded, though his words were somewhat broken, "He will scare, but Ahnasha trust with us. No hurt will Newt."

Gallus had slept more comfortably than most in his bunk, but he still woke before dawn from a nightmare. Given the dim blue light on the horizon, it would have been morning soon, so he stayed up. He did not arise before Meesei did, of course, but he went to the communal quarters to quietly wake up everyone from the clan. Thankfully, Janius and Kaleeth did not need waking up by then, but soon all would be ready. His position was to overpower the navigator so he could be stowed away while his crew was slaughtered. Gallus still had daggers enough to threaten someone in close quarters. He would wait for the signal to begin.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Ma'tanza is almost looking forward to tomorrow? Tzirret does not want to be in this place for another second." Resigned to the situation, Tzirret carefully lowered himself down onto the wooden floor and found himself laying draped over Ma'tanza's lower body. The chains that kept them together weighed down on his shoulder. It felt awkward and not the most comfortable position, but not only was Ma'tanza correct about them having no choice, but it would be more comfortable than just the floor. If he really wanted to stretch out, he would be on Ma'tanza's upper body, or if Ma'tanza laid onto her side and allowed Tzirret to sleep on the floor in front of her, but Tzirret did not want to inconvenience her any more than necessary. In fact, he wanted to make sure. "Is this okay?" Tzirret asked, referring to the position he had taken.

Rhazii's sobbing paused and he looked up to his mother's face with big eyes. Even though he looked thoroughly miserable, he nodded his head and perked his ears, giving a hummed, "Mhm?" Rhazii loved stories. It helped when his nightmares were especially bad.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

As everyone eventually found the space to curl up and lay down, Tzirret was partly relieved to have the space to stretch out his arms. Even if there wasn't much light in the first place to herald nightfall, the lack general movement and light brought fatigue to Tzirret's eyes eventually. Unfortunately, as the man next to Tzirret had already settled from his left, there was no space where he would not be imposing on someone, including Ma'tanza.

"This one can hardly keep his eyes open," Tzirret whispered to Ma'tanza so he wouldn't wake anyone, despite the occasional crying infant doing that already. "He...is okay with the confined space here now. He will not panic if you need to...sleep on him," Tzirret's eyes darted around, but even in the dark, his voice betrayed that perhaps he wouldn't have minded at all if Ma'tanza was close.

Rhazii had already been chided for speaking too loudly and had been told that he neither could get more food or water, nor use the latrine, so asking that he try to get comfortable was not going to produce results. "Okay mama," he mumbled miserably. He carefully curled up against Ahnasha's stomach and put his arms around Newt, but with very quiet sobs, he started to cry. While others hid their fears, Rhazii simply showed his openly. "Mama? We will get out tomorrow? You promise?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

We could do a quick skip here if you wanted.