POOHEAD189

Damned to the Depths

The Characters

• Calliope
• Markus

The Crew

• Sketti (Dwarf quartermaster/engineer)
• Jax (Half Elf sailor/Crow's nest lookout)
• Corsica (Barbarian woman/sailor)
• Sron (Gnoll sailor)
• Bill (sailor twin)
• Phil (sailor twin)
• Will (sailor twin)
• Jim (lad sailor)
• Grimey (gunner gnome lass)
• Reginal (new crew member)
• Halvar (Viking sailor/warrior)

Notable persons

• Sebastian (New Tyrant)
• Frenchy McFrencherson
• The lady German England
• Roderick

Damned to the Depths

Minutes later, Calliope and Markus were on board and dry, Calliope now having donned Markus's shirt after he'd given it to her without a word. The fact it was still soaked had the fabric clinging to her ample bosom, but it still moderately covered her up. Markus was a bit more intimidating shirtless, sword in hand and death in his eyes when he took the measure of the two prisoners and the mutinous deckhand he had to deal with.

The rest of the crew stood on either side of the deck, saying not a word. Only the slight creaking of the ship in the cove was audible while Markus stared at the prisoners. Jim was downstairs, wiping up the blood that had been spilled on deck. An audible 'clunk' could be heard as Sketti banged his metallic appendage on the railing. "So Capt'n. What do ye suppose we do with this lot?" he grumbled, glaring daggers at the bound men.

"Captai-" Bill began, but Sketti shot the deck in front of him. "Shut it, ye dog!"

"No, let him speak." Markus said, staring at Bill. The deckhand grew nervous under the Captain's gaze. He could swear the Captain had not blinked since he had come back onboard. As if judgement itself kept his eyes open to bring the crushing weight of the sea on Bill and the other two men. Bill began again, his northern country accent evident in the cool breeze of the hot day.

"I didn't know they would attack the crew, or yourself sir. I only..." he glanced at Calliope's direction. "I only thought they'd kill the witch, Captain. I swear on me life. The things she done...it's not right. Her being on board!" He seemed to gather himself up, knowing he was a dead man but still wishing to speak as if he was still apart of the crew. "A woman aboard is bad enough, but I'm a progressive sort, I am. But I draw the line at demon pacts."

Markus glanced at Calliope, then at Phill and Will. "Were you two in on this?" he asked them. "Speak truly."

"No, Captain." Phil said. "Well..."

"We had words." Will spoke up. "We all have misgivin's about the dark Lady here but, we didn't plan on doin nuffin with it." None of them seemed to want to meet Calliope's eyes. They might be intimidated of Markus but they didn't even want to acknowledge Calliope was there, though because of her power or her being the most recent victim of their brother's stupidity, Markus wasn't certain. "Bill got a little carried away I suppose. He told neither of us about what he was doin' I swear on Galena."

"And what would you have me do with him?" Markus asked them, watching the brothers. All eyes turned to them, and they were silent for many moments. Phil cleared his throat. "We understand your role as Captain, but we beg you to spare him. Please Captain. He won't even disobey orders again, will you Bill?"

"I won't. I swear on the Gods." Bill said, lowering his head. The crew began to quietly murmur to themselves, indecipherable to Markus who simply needed time to consider. He needed to make a decision now, however. The crew looked to him to make quick decisions. "Sketti." Markus said, calling the quartermaster up. The Dwarf gave his customary 'aye' and approached. Markus nodded. "free Bill of his binds." Sketti did so, to the relief of the three brothers.

"Get the chopping block." Markus called, which drew surprised and horrified looks from the triplettes. Bill almost looked like he was going to jump ship, but Sketti held him by his wrist firmly and Sron loomed behind him. Halvar and Corsica brought a stout wooden table and set it on the center of the deck. Markus grabbed a boarding axe that was embedded on the railing, testing its keen edge and gave a practice chop.

"Which is your dominate hand, Bill?" Markus asked. Bill groaned in fear, trying to bite back a tearful beg. "Your dominate hand." Markus repeated.

"I'm a righty, sir." Bill said under his breath, his arms now splayed across the table. Markus nodded, placed his foot on the man's left arm, and hacked into his wrist. The blade chopped heavily, splitting bone, flesh, and finally wood as it severed the hand. The man screamed, his cries echoing off the treeline on the shore, before he went into shock and lost consciousness, falling into a darkness he wasn't likely to wake up from for awhile. Phil and Will rushed to his brother's aid, and Markus dropped the bloodied axe onto the table.

He picked his sword up again and pointed it at the right soldier, the one that had been on board looking at the cannons. "You, what is your name?" he asked him.

"Reginald, Captain."

"You're on the crew, Reginald. But you do not eat for two days. If you fall behind, I'll throw you overboard do you understand?" he asked him. The man nodded stupidly. The other soldier to the left looked up at Markus. He had been below decks, fighting until he was captured. "Your name?"

John, sir."

"Your fate I leave to my first mate." he said, motioning for Calliope to approach. "Kill him any way you want, or have him join the crew. Do what you will."
@Penny

Cara's Originally Titled OoC Hangout Thread ♥ (Still)

I will likely not have kids for many years. I'm just not the dad type yet. Then again, I also need to actually find a girl I'm willing to share life with.

Grim Galaxy: Shots and Chances

The room seemed to quiet down, and everyone took a breather as the floating disks were no longer a threat for the moment. York smiled through his mustache, amused as usual. "Well, that was a bit more hazardous than I had hoped." he said. The next move from Neil was sudden. As if Neil's arm was being used by some unseen force, his elbow shot back and struck York in the chest, sending the man skidding across the ground.

Sparks shot out from Neil's tattoo, and he blinked, anyone in his line of sight could see that he had somewhat regained control of himself. "What?" he mouthed, confused as to what was occurring. He didn't have time to continue however, because suddenly his body began to spasm and contort, and he fell from his standing position to being curled up on the ground. The soldier's trained their guns on him, superstitious fear evident in their eyes.

"Hold fire!" York declared, gathering himself up and and dusting off his vest. Those that were physically closer to Neil could hear his seething breathes of pain. It was a new sound. He had been hit, thrown around, cut, and even shot, and he had never made these kinds of agonizing noises. It was as if something was touching and stretching his very nervous system. Sweat began beading off of his arms and what part of his face people could see through the thrashing, and a shoulder 'popped', though whether out of place or back into place, no one was certain.

And then the pilot slumped into the floor, limp and motionless. The marines held their rifles up, but they relaxed a bit after moments of no movement. Taya turned and buried her face into Sayeeda's shoulder, unable to process what where they were or what was happening. Saxon gave a guttural chuckle. "It looks like his luck had finally run out." he rumbled. Woods and Sven gave him a sideways glare, though for different reasons. Woods for romantic plans foiled, and Sven because logically, Neil was their best chance for escape.

It was fortunate for everyone that Neil groaned moments later, and a few gasps were heard as he drew himself up to a sitting position, looking more or less his old self. "Fuck," he breathed, scratching his head and blinking, as if to get used to light his eyes weren't used to. "That hurt more than I thought it would."

Woods and Junebug both looked relatively relieved, though it would only be if one looked close. Taya instead ran to him and gave him a hug. He hugged her back, appreciating that was always going to be the one with her heart on her sleeve. "I'm fine, I'm fine," he repeated to her questions of what happened and how she believed him to be dead. York cleared his throat and stepped forward, inclining his head. "It is good to have you back as yourself, my boy. What exactly did happen?"

"Just me having 2 million years of Alien knowledge uploaded into my brain." Neil said.

"Bullshit." Woods said, eyeing him.

"...Yeah it is. Well, mostly. I do know the layout of this place better, and its function." he said, getting to his feet and stretching. He continued to explain at York's insistence. The men lowered their weapons with a wave of Wood's hand. "I was being whispered to in my mind." Neil explained. "Echoes in my head... I did see images. Images I never thought I would see. Places in the universe I had never been to. Monsters I had never seen. Science beyond ours...I even saw early man. I don't know. But, what I mostly saw was the history of this facility. And I know it's a fail safe facility, against the God Machine near the equator."

"Where do we go now?" Junebug asked.

Neil pointed down the leftmost corridor. A lowlight hall with hexagonal dimensions that never quite closed into shape, defying the eye's expectations for what was meant to be and what was. Neil cleared his throat. "The rest of the facility is that way. The other three doors go to living stations, or have collapsed." He said. The air through that tunnel did smell more fresh than the stale, recycled air that permeated the room they were currently in.

"Let's move out!" Woods called, and the men hopped to, moving into Delta formation and keeping their rifles trained on their 9 and 12s, though they visibly blinked and shifted every time their eyes passed over the strange proportions of the hallways interior. Neil strode at the front, walking through and speaking about the things he garnered from his brief entrancement. "You know, it's pretty wild they developed their civilization two million years before we invented the written word. I think they began their first interplanetary travel with Muon-catalyzed fusion, like we did."

"Neil?" Junebug asked. He zipped his lip and looked at her, expectantly. "You said this place was a failsafe, as well as a research facility."

"Yeah." Neil said.

"Failsafe how?"

"By Decimation." a voice said behind them. They all turned in an instant, guns trained on something they least expected. One of the Old Ones stood there, though it was not flesh and blood. It was a hologram. Sven immediately scanned the apparition, and confirmed it as an A.I. system, albeit a bit rudimentary for the heights of technological advancement this race could usually achieve. The hologram continued. "The chosen one is correct, it is a failsafe. Something to be activated in only the most dire circumstances."

Junebug gave Neil a questioning look. He nodded. "In other words, we're standing on a star system sized bomb."
@Penny

Into The Dark: Tales of Maroleth

@Mortarion@Gardevoiran@BCTheEntity@Fetzen@Stormflyx@The Fated Fallen
I know I said I would post today, but I have a few things to consider on the next post and will post on the morrow!

Into The Dark: Tales of Maroleth

@FetzenHey! I scheduled myself to post tomorrow!

Damned to the Depths

Markus rushed out of the brig and into Calliope's room, knowing they would go after her first. What he saw he didn't expect. One dead man and blood, but no Calliope. He didn't wait, running down the halls and heading up the stairs. He made it to the upper level and stepped out of the corridor and into the hall leading to the gun deck, turning the corner to face three men moving in his direction. Judging by the look on their faces, they were just as surprised to see him as he was to see them.

"It's him!" the one in the back cried.

A quick observation told Markus they had raided the blade rack, so he swiftly reached into his baldric and leveled a flintlock pistol. The man didn't have time to scream before a lead ball punched through his skull, spraying the man behind him with blood and viscera. The man cried out, swiping his cutlass wide, blindly. Markus easily sidestepped it and ran him through, stepping back so he would topple to the floor. He would have a harder time with the man at the back, however.

Markus stabbed forward, but the soldier knocked it aside and cut at him. The Captain could barely block in time, parrying with the strong of the backsword. In this closed situation, they both had advantages. The cutlass the man was weilding could maneuver easier, as it was a slightly shorter but broader blade. Markus' backsword was not as long as Calliope's rapier, but it was still constricted. However, it still had reach.

They traded cuts and stabs for a few more moments until they heard a splash out the open window. They both looked to the window, and then one another for a split second. It was now who had the quicker reflexes who would win, and Markus cut him down in an instant, maiming the man and leaving him bleeding on the floor. Somewhere below decks, Sron howled in anticipation and steel on steel could be heard, but Markus needed to make it top side.

He stepped into the sunlight just in time to see the burly man that had been guarding Calliope turn to face him, a grin on his face. "So Captain, you gots yourself a choice as I sees it. You can go after the bitch I just knocked over, or you can fight me. Which will it b-" His words were cut off when Markus's throwing dagger entered his throat, red liquid pouring out like a geyser. The soldier that had been on the gun looked in blank amazement, and he held his hands up, clearing not looking for a fight.

Markus ignored him, stepping to the ship's railing and hastily taking off his coat and swordbelt. He could barely make a fading outline in the water that looked to be struggling weakly. Or it could be her body being pushed by the current. He willed himself to be quiet. "If you want to live, sailor, tell them you've no fight in you when the rest of the crew make it to the deck and keep on the ground." He remarked to the man, and with a practiced dive he leaped off the railing and into the shallows of the cove.

As the water swallowed him up, he wondered why he felt more worried than he should over Calliope's fate. He paid it no mind at the moment, zipping into the water with a trail of bubbles in his wake, before his momentum halted. He needed his wits about him. Even if no major sea monsters were in the shallows, young beasts and moderately sized sharks could still lurk. He could see Calliope at the bottom, mouth and hands bound in nothing but her skivvies. She wasn't moving.

He swam down to the bottom with a strong stroke, grabbing ahold of her waist. She seemed far more innocent than he knew her to be, like this, dark hair flowing in the soft current and eyes closed. Turning her about in the slow pace that only water permitted, he kicked off the bottom toward the surface. It was to his great relief that all he saw of any critters was a sea turtle idly watching them with a curiosity.

Less than a minute later, Markus dragged Calliope onto the beach where only the high tide could nip at them, and he checked her breathing. "Sink me" he cursed, and pressed his mouth to hers, before pumping his hands on her chest thrice, and then breathing into her again for what seemed likely an eternity until she coughed up a mug-full of sea water onto the shore, hacking and desparately trying to draw in breath that came all too slowly.

Markus fell over to his side, breathing almost as roughly as she was.

"Oi!" he heard from the deck of the ship. His arms like lead, Markus pushed himself to a sitting position and saw Jax waving at him, three of the soldiers in custody, as well as Bill.
@Penny

Grim Galaxy: Shots and Chances

Neil moved forward inexorably, no longer aware of his companions around him. Taya, having noticed that nothing witty or silly had come out of Neil's mouth for more than a minute, waved her hand in front of his face. He gave no indication that he saw her, still walking forward with his hand out, as if to grasp something that was always just beyond reach. Woods squinted and looked at Neil, noticing Taya's concern. "Pretty boy?"

"Captain," Taya said, drawing Junebug's attention. "I think there's something wrong with Neil..."

Junebug looked at him, shaking his shoulder. When he didn't respond, she barked. "Edwards! Front and Center!" But it was to no avail. York shrugged, only glad the pilot was still walking. Junebug sighed, shaking her head at their predicament. Saxon and Sven walked behind them, silently moving and observing, with little interest other than what lay ahead.

Another dot on the radar disappeared. Woods spun, her gun trained on where O'Bannon had just disappeared. She could see nothing. Only the ghost-like monoliths standing erect and silent. York spoke over the comm. "I ordered all eyes on everyone" he lectured. "What is happening, Lieutenant?"

Woods shook her head, full lips parted and blue eyes searching for any sign of the soldier. "Everyone close in." she ordered, and the men began to form up in an archaic, closed formation one might expect from a las-lock world where soldiers used single shot volleys against locals. The leaves still hung above them, silent yet somehow exuding a sense of watching the group as they moved. At the fore, Neil suddenly halted, and his fingers began to twiddle in midair.

Taya shook her head, confused. It took a moment, but a holograph began to form. It took the shape of a console, smooth and advanced, with dimensions that seemed somehow off. A certain wrongness to it that annoyed the eye, and yet remained elusive to its shape. Neil's hands intricately pressed the various buttons on the console, as if writing a 'code' or an algorithm as he often did on the Highlander.

Without warning, the monoliths began to shift. Stone-like material grinded against the smooth structures as they began to turn, lifting up to lay horizontally rather than standing vertically scant seconds before. Somehow, the room seemed even more silent than it had been when they had first entered, as if the very movement of the monoliths caused a silence before the storm. Junebug grabbed Neil, shaking him. "Neil! Wake up!" she called to him.

Hesitantly, Woods approached one of the monoliths. She wanted to help Neil, but she was married to her job first, and she needed to admit she had a rapt fascination with what these structures could possibly be for. Her gun pointing upwards, she lay a strong hand on the smooth metal, suddenly realizing there was a small pressure button near the top of this particular piece. Her slim fingers merely brushing it set it off, and a small portion of the metal 'slipped' open at the top.

She gasped, stepping back, unable to process what she had seen through the glass opening. Junebug noticed and approached too, stepping forward and peeking over to see a Xenos, though one unlike any she had ever seen. Its head was tall and nearly pointed, with large eyes and two slits that no doubt served as a nose. The mouth was covered by a mouthpeice, and its skin was leathery. If it lay in the monolith, it must be tall, albeit lithe.

"What in Gideon..."
@Penny

Current Mood in One Gif

Me @ most dark jokes

No fans of Zombie Apocalypse?

I haven't seen your interest check, and I do not want to assume anything about you, but the genre might not be the problem.