Ravaged Seas (1x1 Cj and Started)

[cjr09]

"Nah, I've got more drawers than I can fill. And it'd take ages for you to go get anything you need, and if there's anything I hate it's wasting time," she gripes, and it's a flimsy excuse at best. Women were rare at sea, and the sailors weren't always as accepting as Tetra's own crew- and if someone tried to do something she didn't want, she could feed them to Lyric's birds.

She twirls the feather she's holding between her fingers, staining them lightly with ink before picking up her compass and drawing a neat line on the map currently laid out in front of her before setting the feather back in its holder as a sailor raps on the door frame twice, nodding deeply to Tetra and in acknowledgement to Bri before disappearing again. "Alright, we're good to go. You can put your things wherever, I don't really care- just watch the maps and we'll get along fine. We're setting off- let's head out then, shall we?"

~

"Ah, I don't really know. Moved around a lot when I was young- being on your own does that to you. I drifted a lot. Like a bird, I suppose. The crows think I am, at least. It's why they listen to me. Most of the time. But I've been with Tetra for as long as I can remember, at least," he says with a shrug, then cocks his head to the side as a few crew members walk by the door.

"Hey, time to shove off. Dump your stuff and we'll head topside- shipwrecks don't scavenge themselves, you know. Besides, Tetra'll have our hides if we're late."

[Startedraining]

Bri smiled enormously, grateful to the captain, "Thank you, Captain," she moved closer to the maps and gazed at them cautiously, "If we're off, where are we headed? Somewhere exciting, perhaps?" she turned and headed towards the door, leading the way for the captain.

__

Sven smirked at the thought of Tetra "having his hide". As if she would, he thought as he placed his sack of foods onto a neater-looking hammock that he has assumed was empty. He realized Lyric was already out of the cabin, his crow with him, and Sven made a face of terror, actually imagining being late, and scurried to the deck.

Arriving breathless, he smoothed out his ginger hair and nodded greetings to the other members of the crew, most of which were absolutely horrid looking and scarred. Sven swallowed hard as one of them glared menacingly.

[cjr09]

"Nothing so exciting, I assure you. But it's always safest to make sure the crew runs well together before taking on the bigger fish. I want to check out a rumor about a ship that went down a few years back- people say there's still some valuables on it. Mostly just whispers, but you never know. Plus, we just got a diving bell and I want to use it. Plus, we're delivering some firearms to a port nearby- if we hustle and the weather holds, it'll take us about four days round." she says, not looking up from where she was marking her map.

A final stroke, and she sets her feather in a cup with a flourish, standing and stretching, arching backwards and bracing her hands at the small of her back. She stretches her arms in front of her once before looking to the cupboards on her right- twisting far to see them with her one good eye- and walks forward in long strides that betray her shorter legs; opening one and pulling out a pair of swords- a cutlass and a spadroon. "Here- you'll need a weapon that's not that potato peeler. You look like a cutlass type of person- Sven gets the spadroon, She passes Bri both weapons, still in their sheathes, and brushes past her and out onto the deck, Fenrir hot on her heels as he barrels out into the sun. "Weigh anchor, we're getting out of here!"

~

Lyric gives a snort, shaking his head at Sven. "Hey, you don't survive this as long as we have without taking a few hits to the face," he says, scratching the scar that splits his face, over the bridge of his nose. "Hey, you help untie the docking ropes, I'm on sails," he says, distraced, before launching himself up one of the masts and tying down a flapping sail, catching the air and lurching the ship to movement- slowly, at first, as she pulls herself through the sluggish waters in an effort to avoid the other ships.

[Startedraining]

Bri nodded, "That's a lot of pluses," she gazed at the map as she returned to hear her answers. A ship that had fallen a few years ago? How many years? Could it be Dawn breaker? She remembered the hideously destroyed slave ship that had docked onto the harbor when she was but a girl, and remembered the way it creaked with the waves. It didn't seem too safe, and surely enough a few days after a storm had broken over the sea. Gulls were not seen for days after, and fish were hard to come by for a week. She shuddered inwardly at the thought of seeing drowned slaves and captives that were smuggled onto the ship, and brightened slightly at the idea of the valuables being used for better purposes. "Who is going down to inspect the ocean floor for the ship?" she asked as Tetra handed her two sheaths. One for Sven, she recalled the instructions she had hardly listened to, and one for her.
She gripped the cutlass with her left hand, feeling the blade and getting it's balance. Perhaps a fit for her, and Sven would indeed love the spadroon, but would still use his dagger for most tussles. Couldn't stop him, even if I tried, Bri thought. She followed Tetra out of the cabin swiftly.

-

"Hits? To the face?" Sven lifted his hand to touch his tanned and perfectly clear skin. Scars? He smirked. Scars. Sven heard "untie the docking ropes" and then Lyric was gone, and Sven hustled to do as he requested. He leaned over the side of the ship, tugging the ropes loose and pulling them onto the deck. He rolled them up and set them aside, then hurried to the rigging, climbing the ropes expertly.

[cjr09]

"I do. Then whoever wants to come down with me; provided they can swim well enough to get out the way of the sharks. So usually, just me," Tetra says, ascending the stairs and making a bee-line to the wheel, spinning it expertly and guiding them out of the harbor and into the open ocean water, "Get ready, greenhorns, we're off!" she yells, letting the ship rock with the waves of the ocean a few times- closing her eyes and breathing in the salty sea air.

Felt like freedom.

"Full sail, boys, let's see what this bird can do!" she yells, snapping her eyes open. The crew respond with an equally energetic cry, echoed by the crows and seabirds gliding on the sea breeze next to them.

The sails unfurl in unison, unfolding like great white wings from the masts, flapping like wings before the crew ties them down.

There's a brief moment of stillness before the sails catch the wind and the ship lurches forward into motion, hauling herself shakily over a few waves before straightening out and gliding through the waves as easily as the birds glide through the sky.

Tetra stretches her arms, pulling against the wheel, and the tension that always came with being on land drains out of her shoulders. There's a great splash to her right, and a wide grin breaks out on her face as a familiar spray of seawater gushes up. "Whales off starboard!"

(HNN I DON'T KNOW I WILL GET THIS NEXT POST)

[Startedraining]

(breathes heavily)

With the weapons securely grasped in one hand, Bri watched from her perch beside Tetra as the surefooted navigator negotiated the waves. Briefly a splash thickened the atmosphere around the ship, and soon another spout erupted. Whales. The time of year was near for their breeding. Movement caught her eye. It was a Quince Whale. It's large, wing-like fins tethered to it's hind fins, and a pale, elongated face broke the surface of the water and spouted from the top of it's head. Bri leaned over the edge of the ship, shouting a hello to it. It seemed disgruntled, and quickly dove under again.

Turning away from the whales, Bri dodged her way through bustling bodies to get to the main mast, where she sat down on a barrel that seemed empty, and unsheathed the cutlass. She would need to give Sven the spadroon, but later.

-

Sven climbed to the crows nest, and having decided this is where he would wait for Lyric, sat down and got comfortable. Lyric was a mystery to him, and even though it made him slightly nervous, he would still press on and get to know him, and break this icy barrier that he seemed to have on him.

[cjr09]

(I'M STILL A HORRIBLE PERSON I'M SORRY)

This was an easy route- the currents were easy to navigate, and hadn't changed from their last trip this way. Only a few of the crew remain on deck to assist in the minor tweaking to account for the shifting of the wind, and a few of them have broken out into a round of "Drunken Sailor" to work to.

It's Tetra's favorite place in the world to be.

A woman steps on deck- she's young, perhaps a year or two older than Sven, and her years on the sea haven't scarred her just yet- her dark skin is unmarred from the usual terrors- and rings a bell before vanishing back below deck.

It's a bit like setting off a cannon.

The vast majority of the crew that was already above decks throws themselves down in a rush- headed for the kitchens.

Lyric just barely makes it above deck ahead of the rush and has to throw himself out of the way, balancing plates and mugs precariously- but miraculously doesn't spill anything as he strides across the deck quickly- or as quickly as he could, his legs weren't very long, after all- and hands Bri a plate wordlessly before lunging up to Tetra and handing her one- she makes a purring noise in the back of her throat in thanks, using her foot to keep the wheel in place as she chews slowly on the bread- it's still decently fresh, and combined with the cheese it's not a bad meal,and they come with an orange and apple each, and a mug of fresh water.

It's not a bad meal at all, and especially not out at sea.

Lyric stacks the remaining two plates in his left arm and treks up the mast, swaying precariously at parts until he finally manages to make it up to the crow's nest, swinging over and handing Sven his plate wordlessly before tearing into his own.

It wasn't a bad day at all.

[Startedraining]

Gladly accepting the offer of food from Lyric, Bri took it in her hands and leaned over the side of the ship, gazing out at the sea before her. It took a long time for her to get here, she reflected. Many years of waiting anxiously, and preparing herself for a ship's life, but nothing could ever take away such awe she had in this moment of the ocean. The sun was beginning to dip lower to the horizon, a flat expanse that was now stained orange and yellow. She tried to not stare directly at the setting sun, but it was difficult to navigate away from such beauty. She nibbled her bread for a moment, as hungry as she was, she didn't feel like eating. Such a day could not have gone by so quickly, in such short time. She remembered waking up, next to Sven, and looking at the cold and grimy walls of their alley. She remembered packing up and storing her things away, not that she could go back and get them now. She still had her shell necklace, and she reached up to touch it as it hung at the base of her neck, nestled between her collarbones.
She finished off the bread and cheese, and then the apple. She held the orange in her hand for a moment, then got to work peeling it, throwing the peels into the water. She began to lose herself in thought.

-

Sven leaned against the mast, stretching his feet out and resting his hands on his lap. The sun was setting, the night was probably going to be crisp and clean, no clouds or wisps threatened the stars as they would soon begin to appear. Lyric began to climb up the mast, and Sven leaned down to grab the plate of food that Lyric offered before it toppled over. He grunted a thanks, and set to work eating beside the curiously nimble boy.