A Merchant Ship

[Largo LeGrande]

PTS: Magical characters allowed.
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Darzenth stood on the deck of the old ship, looking out. He could see the water, just.

One week out of Lunairis Port, the fog had descended on the ship. It seemed to block out even daylight, and had lasted for a solid week now...

There was rumor that the ship's navigational equipment wasn't working properly, and people were starting to worry. It was strange for a fog to last so long, especially at this time of year.
Darzenth had long given up the hope of making it to port on schedule, and was now more concerned of making it there unharmed. Situations like this often caused one to panic, but there had also been whispers of voices, and people seeing things.

The ship was old, it creaked even more than a regular ship, and had a lot of history. It was still a fairly fast ship, but only had small armament. But was more than the eerie creaks and crews' tales?

[rainlightlyn]

Naias sat on the railing on the port side of the ship. The girl would be considered odd by most of the people around her. A wild feeling maybe. certainly she was dressed strangely in leather clothing not really suited for Lunarius. She was glad to be leaving this country. Too cold for her tastes. Then again she was from the more tropical Mezsia. Whatever was she thinking, deciding to come to this cold frozen place.

The only thing that was slowing down the journey away from here was this fog. It really felt odd to her and dampened her spirits. She looked down at the boots on her feet. She would be glad to finally be rid of those cumbersome things.

[SuibuOgami]

Ryoty stared hard through the looking glass, but all she could see was grey fog. Dammit, no matter how hard she strained, she just couldn't make out the ship! It didn't matter though, she thought, she she popped the thing closed. If Damon said Willy said it was there, then it was there. She walked over to the ship's mage, or Lord Shadrak as the crew had come to call him and addressed him.
"Mister Shadrak, how fares our quarry?"

[ShadowRune]

Shadrak leaned indolently against the main mast, surveying the misty ocean as if he could see a dolphin swimming a hundred miles away... which he undoubtedly could if he felt like it.

Shadrak looked up at the ship-captain's question. He grinned. "They despair of ever seeing aught but the damning whiteness," he actually sounded pleased... but that was mage's for you. Nasty unless you paid 'em well.

ooc: I thinks I'ma have a slightly different Shadrak figure in this one! ^^ ish okie? o.0

[SuibuOgami]

ooc: Oooo! Variation!

bic: "Perfect." How much longer until they break? Doesn't matter. Now's as good a time as any to initiate the next phase of the plan.
"Mr. Damon," Captain Mecxatcum muttered. For the past week straight the entire crew had been ordered to silence, only speaking when absolutely necessary and whispering even then. Now they were aware of every creak in the ship, every wave lapping against the hull and yes, even aware of the fact that Willie mutters in his sleep up in his crow's nest or that Cookie likes singing while he cooks. She could just imagine what would happen when they fired the first shot. Damon, who had been at the otehr end of the ship before, was at her side a moment later. How does he do that? she thought to herself. She wasn't suprised though; it was his usual m.o.. "Mr. Damon have the helmsmen circle around and make for the quarry's aft. Have the crew load the cannons quietly. First thing I want taken out is their keel. Then their mast. I want them dead in the water before they know what hit them, understand? And remember," she said as he walked away, "Quietly." Damon disappeared into the mist. A moment later, the mast was creaking as its weight swayed with the turning of the ship. The captain inhaled through her teeth. "I wish there was a way to mute that."

[Largo LeGrande]

Darzenth's head shot up. He could have sworn he had heard something, out there...
The eerie quiet and the stillness of the sea let even the softest sound carry further than it should. He listened hard, but whatever it had been, was silent now.

[SuibuOgami]

Ryoty crossed her arms thoughtfully, staring intently into the fog. She was, for the lack of a better term - in the zone. As if before the crew's very eyes she was morphing from their quirky captain into the feared Pirate Ryoty Mecxatcum and her crew riding Satan's ship from Hell. Suddenly they were reminded of why she was captain and not them.

ooc: Oh what a power trip!

bic: She stroled down the deck to one of the crew members, starin intently into a spot in the fog. The air was electric.
"Pass on the word to the rest of the crew to arm," she murmered, then grabbed his arm as he turned away. "Quietly," she reiterated. Her eyes were intense.

[rainlightlyn]

Naias turned and looked out across the foggy water. There was something out there. She was pretty sure of it, but she could be positive unless she shifted and that would just freak the people out on this ship. The last thing she needed was to cause more of a panic.

[ShadowRune]

Shadrak grinned wickedly and curved his lean body to watch the battle preperations more closely. Like a hunting hawk he looked, and an eel, sliding through the fog, dark-hooded and wicked.
He could almost smell the gunpowder, and the promise of coppery-blood on the tar-soaked wood.

[SuibuOgami]

The cannons were all prepped. The lines secured. Her men stood at the ready. All that was left was for them to get in position. She could feel them staring, the tension rising. All she had to do was wait. Hands gripping the gun barrels. Sweaty palms fingering the various swords and daggers at their belts. Their heart beats were pounding in their ears. Almost. She could hear the waves lapping at the victim's hull. Almost. Their eyes were wide. Bloodlust was beginning to pound through them. Almost. They were beginning to shake. "Now!"
The torch wielder let out a carnel hoot and slammed the fire onto the wick. The cannon was knocked backward with the force of the shot and a second later the sound of splintering wood could be heard. For a moment Ryoty was cought of gaurd. They were less then fifty feet from them!

[rainlightlyn]

Naias jumped at the sound of the cannon blast, only just dodging out of the way as a part of the mast came crashing down on the deck. The crew and other passengers were also scrambling around either trying to mount a defense or in just plain panic. Personally, she was a little scared, but she wasn't going to panic. At least not in ways these soft city type folk were.

Though for once in her life she wished she had remembered to bring some kind of weapon with her. Her powers were good, but not on a wooden ship.

[SuibuOgami]

The sound of cracking wood could be heard as the enemy ship's mast beant and twisted under the weight, but didn't fall. "Dammit! Take us around!" she shouted to the helmsmen.
The mast was thicker then she'd expected! She stalked over to Shadrak. "Where is the ship now? We need to get that mast taken out; give one of the cannons the say so when you want him to fire and don't miss." The mast creaked under its own weight. "And stop that damned creaking!" she snapped at the inanimate object.

[Largo LeGrande]

Darzenth tore a three inch long wood splinter out of his arm and tossed it overboard.
There was that damn creaking again. Hmm...

Beside him, crewmen were setting up the deck guns. The captain was a paranoid bastard it seemed, so the guns were usually in near-readiness. What few there were. However, that fool obviously had no idea the direction of the attack.

The crash of the enemy's cannon had echoed around the fog like thunder, and even he, for a brief moment, thought the ship had been struck by lightening.

[ShadowRune]

Shadrak looked at Ryoty with something akin to mutiny in his eyes, then it faded and he grinned placatingly. "Of course," he hissed. An invisible blanket settled onto the deck, muffling the sounds on board, and increasing the unease of the sailors. He waved a hand at the tiller-man, to shift portside.
Then he stalked over to the gunners, and held his hand up, staring into the fog. He eyes, usually completely black, almost seemed to smolder a sullen red like almost-dead coals.
He waited, clearly seeing what the others could not.
The silence grew, only amplified by the blanket of silence covering the ship.
Shadrak's arm descended sharply, and the roar of cannon shot roared out like distant thunder even in the gunner's ears.
Shadrak grinned as a wicked crack echoed from the unseen merchant ship.

[SuibuOgami]

ooc: Ummm... someone on the other ship needs to say whether the mast falls or not, unless they'd like me to do it? *shrugs*