inherit
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Isengrim
55
Aug 15, 2015 14:18:57 GMT
August 2015
isengrim
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Post by Isengrim on Jul 8, 2016 17:53:47 GMT
It had been several days since they had entered familiar waters. The rhythm of their ocean long conquered and the call of their home's indigenous avian life was soothing to the sailors of the Caranassa. Just above the sails, a lone man peered intently into his spyglass, looking for the familiar shape at the horizon. Finally, after hours of searching, he saw it, straight ahead, just as predicted. With the skies and the sea as calm as they were, they should arrive with no issues, in less than three hours, by his estimate.
"Home at the horizon, Captain! Straight ahead, three hours at this pace!" He called out over the edge of the crow's nest, his arms and hands throwing practiced signs to accompanies his shouts. The small figure on the bridge acknowledged him with a wave.
The captain's lips twitched at the edges, for a moment, relief and joy peeking through his stoic mask. He was home. "Desmond, take the wheel, straight ahead." His temporary replacement first mate quickly obeyed with a "Yes, Cap'n", and immediately took the Captain's place at the wheel. The Captain made his way off the bridge and towards the bow, planting a foot on a crate at the very end, and pulling his own spyglass out of one of his several pockets. Magically augmented, he could see the shadow peeking over the horizon clearly. Etirath. A pleasant feeling washed over him at the sight of his home. These past months had been incredibly arduous. But he was glad that he would return with good news.
He turned around to face the ship. His crew stood stock still, watching him, the many faces a mix of stoic and wily grins, all of them awaiting orders.
The Captain took a deep breath, gazing over their heads and towards Desmond, who's eyes were also fixated on the captain.
"Well what are you all standing around for?!" He called out, his familiar gruff, booming voice shattering the silence. "Full speed ahead! I was told three hours, I want to be there in one and a half, even one minute later and I'll have you all scrubbing barnacles with no pay! " The men all cheered and scattered, immediately setting to work as fast as they could. "Jinxy!" He called out to the organized mess of crew members "Yes Cap'n" Called out a short young man, no older than 16. "Prepare a messenger bird. Let The Portmaster and Guard Captain know that we'll be arriving in no later than two hours. And tell them to prepare two docks, but say no more than that."
"Yes, Cap'n!" The boy called, before hurrying off to perform the task. The Captain, maintaining his expressionless face, made his way to his quarters to prepare for docking.
As he walked to the small room under the bridge, he kept his eyes fixated on the sky. There was some cloud cover, though nothing to worry about. But that was not what he was searching for. It wasnt until just before he reached his room that he saw it. Crossing a small break in the clouds, a flash of metal and wood. The grand surprise for Etirath.
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#ed1717
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Sept 9, 2017 19:51:41 GMT
5
Lev
191
August 2015
admin
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Post by Lev on Jul 9, 2016 21:22:00 GMT
Willem brushed away the wooden shavings piled haphazardly on his lap, adding them to the scraps that were collecting on the dusty wooden floor around his feet. One strong puff of air pushed a small cloud of reddish-brown powder into the air to shower and settle on the top of his dark desk. The little form was starting to take a decent shape after weeks of intermittent carving. The overworked captain could only catch a few short moments for himself throughout the day- even less with all of the troubles steadily springing up around the kingdom. Still, seeing the roughly faced figurine come together was slightly satisfying. After wiping the excess off of his knife Willem stuck the tool back in the sheath on his belt, and placed the project near the far corner of his desk. There was nothing else placed on the dirty surface to obscure the view of the tiny sculpture. Willem had removed every frivolous decoration that littered the work space shortly after the palace attack. With the exception of hanging maps, tactical journals, and weapons racked on the wall, his quarters were bitterly void of fineries and decor. Even the the lavish, gifted chair was removed and stored away.
It was time to walk the streets and check conditions with the stationed guards during their mid-morning shift. Just before Willem finished readjusting the sword at his hip, a light knock came from the closed door. Jameson, the courier master, was on the other side with a tall black bird perched on his shoulder pecking away at a small meaty treat between its talons.
"Noon, captain!" The older man's face wrinkled twice over as he smiled widely. "Message for you," he continued. "I think you'll like this'n. Oh, yes." Willem didn't expect to like very many things presently, but still he waited patiently and politely for his elder to fish the delivery out of his deep linen pockets. Hogul- the bird- cawed indifferently in the meantime. Ugly rat.. "Here y'are!"
Willem took the folded note from Jameson's shaky hands and gave it quick read. Elation and apprehension kicked him in the gut, squeezing his brown eyes down two sizes. A nervous smirk twitched at the corner of his lips.
"Good man, Jameson. There's no time to waste is there?"
Horseback gave Willem and Kay just enough time to reach the docks before Isengrim and his party arrived to port. They could see the wide face of the ship just beyond the arms of the rocky coast. Sea hand were already preparing the pier for the arrival, shuffling this way and that with heavy bundles of rope and moving stock into organized piles. Willem wasn't familiar with the work of watermen, but he did enjoy the smell of the salty water. Being around it was already starting to curl the end of his thick brown hair. Kay scrunched his nose unhappily.
"Smells like fish," he complained.
"You've smelled worse," Willem joked, dismounting. "We'll be away soon enough. The mountain air isn't going anywhere."
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inherit
17
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1
Isengrim
55
Aug 15, 2015 14:18:57 GMT
August 2015
isengrim
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Post by Isengrim on Jul 9, 2016 23:35:04 GMT
An hour and a half later, they were slowly making their way up the canal. The port just ahead, identified by the large lighthouse with its perpetually illuminated beacon, though the light was drowned out by the bright daylight. The sails were half drawn as they began to slow down, the rudders braking their speed. Captain Elridge stood on the bridge as his first mate steered the ship.
"Alright ladies! Prepare for docking! Squid, Samson, Garland, go down and prepare the cargo. Carter, send a message to the Erebus, the port is ready, they can land as soon as they arrive." The three bulky men disappeared beneath the deck of the ship. Carter, the mage, made his way onto the bridge, behind the Captain and began muttering some incantation into a large mirror. The Captain nodded once quickly to the first mate before taking the wheel once more.
The Caranassa was a-buzz as it slowly drew into the dock. As they came alongside the pier, the crew through large heavy ropes to the port crew, who set to work tying them in. The rudders were pulled and the sails drawn as the ship came to a full stop. The plank was lowered so that the crew men could begin unloading the cargo. They said little to the crew men, as instructed. The Captain came down from the ship to find Willem. He figured that Willem would notice the sheer difference in the number of men aboard the ship. One of the missing men being Isengrim who had accepted the mission when asked to accompany the crew and provide his expertise on magic and magically based events.
He kept his face stoic. Inside he was excited, like a child, but he did not show any sign of this outwardly. When there are less men returning from a trip at sea, than the amount of men who left, terrible conclusions are oft drawn. The exact reaction he wanted to see.
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#ed1717
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Annasiel
At last, my peace. I found it in her eyes.
369
Aug 13, 2015 22:40:06 GMT
August 2015
annasiel
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Post by Annasiel on Jul 10, 2016 2:22:20 GMT
In from the bright-blue sky, a hawk descended, much like the great vessel in the clouds a distance above. It glowed with a soft, emberglow that cascaded behind its outstretched wings. As it spiraled down in a trail of smoke, it let out a raccous cry. It soon landed on the edge of the pier. There it stood for a few moments, staring at Willem, Kay, and the ship captain with dark, scolding eyes. Then it opened its beak and began to talk.
"Don't mind me, I'm here to greet a cockaninny who's prancing about in the sky. Oh, and deliver a few messages from the brilliant mind of the Great Warlock of the Glenn." It spoke in a raspy, guttural voice that held a tone of age in its tenor. The sentences were spoken quickly and sharply, almost condescendingly sarcastic in the cadence. The bird turned its full gaze to Willem. "I... that is, Seanfear... Captain DeCarlisle. You've had a lot of horseapples to deal with." It shifted its attention to the other captain present. "As for you... your bludgeonwheeling arse almost careened into a white porpoise during your docking. You need to watch where the hogwind you brigging turn that ship."
With that, the bird hopped up to a loftier perch, literally fuming. The wood beneath its talons began to smolder, a thin circle of char spreading from where the claws clutched.
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#ed1717
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Sept 9, 2017 19:51:41 GMT
5
Lev
191
August 2015
admin
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Post by Lev on Jul 17, 2016 21:16:19 GMT
The hurried shuffle of working feet pounded the wooden pier more loudly than the waves. Meanwhile Willem was pining eagerly on the balls of his feet like a child reluctantly leashed to their mother's gaze, waiting for the go-ahead to approach the ship. As soon as the commotion of their entry had died down, Willem passed off the reins of his horse, Apollo, to Kay and started forward. His friend was more than willing to linger behind and supervise the young apprentice charged with boarding their three stallions outside of the shipyard. The smell of the salty air was starting to flush his cheeks in a shade of green as unattractive as the browning seaweeds.
"Captain Elridge!" Willem called out with his hand lifted in greeting above the heads of the churning crowd. When they were close enough for a handshake the land-captain introduced himself with a respectful salute to his Great Water counterpart. "Pleasure to see you," he added. "How faired the-"
A cantankerous hawk sliced through the air between the two large men and nipped their conversation like a premature bloom. Their eyes both snapped to face the rude bird. Willem didn't recognize it as anything special until the hoarse, gargling speech projected from its opened beak. The sound of it made the captain snarl without baring his teeth- glare from beneath his narrowed brow. Filthy magic pheasant.. How long had he been watching through those beady eyes? When did he start following them? He cared little for the puppet's seemingly sympathetic remark, or the individual it stemmed from. He was happy when the pompous creature took his leave.
"What a horrid little thing," Kay remarked as he joined the two, clicking his tongue distastefully at the messenger after it had flown away.
"How faired the journey?" Willem asked again. Concern tightened around his throat when glanced over Elridge's shoulder and realized Greisimn still hadn't come off the ship. Quite a bit of the crew hadn't disembarked. Was something holding them up? Or was something worse keeping them hidden.. "What of the crew? And Greisimn?"
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inherit
17
0
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Isengrim
55
Aug 15, 2015 14:18:57 GMT
August 2015
isengrim
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Post by Isengrim on Jul 17, 2016 22:19:51 GMT
Elridge didnt say much towards the bird's coarse words. "I see Seanfear is as lively as usual." He said, shaking his head, a slight smile playing on his lips. He was in good spirits. But his face went back to the stoic mask. "The journey had some unexpected setbacks." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. "We did as we were asked, inspecting the island where the ships kept disappearing. We found the problem. But I'd rather wait till I present the official report before elaborating. It's a long story..." He said, pausing for a moment, looking towards the sky. It was cloudier now. Not threat of rain but plenty of cover. There was no sign of the ship "As for my men, and Isengrim. Well. The events that took placed forced us to separate. He is not with m-" Before he could finish, a shout from the bridge caught his attention. "Captain Elridge! Palmer says they're coming in now!" Elridge turned, making a gesture towards the messenger let them know that the message was recieved, before he turned back. "As I was saying, Isengrim and the rest are not with me, because he was needed on the elsewhere." And with that, he turned his eyes once more to the skies. As if on cue, the tips of the lower sails of the Erebus began to tear through the clouds, the ship slowly descending as it moved forward towards the port. "Captain, meet the Erebus."
More of the ship lowered from the cloud, as if being birthed from the sky itself. From the spiked metal ram at stretching from bow to hull, to the four wing sails at its sides, the ship seemed to own the sky as much as any bird or beast of air. After about half a minute, the very top of the main mast descended from the cloud, flying the Etirathian flag. "We used the spare in the Caranassa. It's already been christened." As the ship descended, a few figures could be seen standing at the edges of the ship. One, the most recognizeable, stood at the very front. His mantle billowing in the wind. The armor of the Eldritch Knight recognizeable at a distance.
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